Audience Segmentation Essentials for B2B Marketing Strategy

Audience segmentation refers to differentiating and categorizing audience groups into various sections based on their online behavior, demographics and demands. In his book, “This Is Marketing”, Seth Godin describes audience segmentation as a necessary part of focused and personalized marketing efforts. Audience segmentation creates smaller, ever-more-refined target groups based on particular qualities. 

Audience segmentation is a prominent B2B targeted marketing strategy for personalized campaigns. Tailored messaging makes buyers more receptive to what you have to say. By relating as much as possible to the characteristics of a particular segment, marketing becomes a catalyst in strengthening customer loyalty and relationships.

Data-driven Audience Segmentation: Many Combinations 

Brands can explore diverse types of audiences across various online channels who may be appropriate for their solutions. There are TOFU/MOFU/BOFU prospects, plus the additional filters of buyer role and time frame. 

To reach the many possible combinations with creative, relevant content, marketers know to focus on what B2B buyers want. With intent data, CRM and other martech, you can better understand that. Brands can use data and technology to tag along with prospects in their buying journeys, thus fuelling ROI and engagement rates. 

Creating an ideal customer persona (ICP) profile makes the job of audience segmentation easier. Develop personas by exploring answers to questions like:

• Who are your target groups and subgroups? 
• What do they want? Look at buyer behavior associated with the ICP.
• What devices do they use to come online?
• Where do they live? (If geo-location matters to your go-to-market strategy.)
• What can you discover about their short or long-term goals?

Data-driven answers help you target real qualities, behavior and concerns with your messaging and delivery. 

Have Long and Short-term Engagement Goals for Segments

After successful audience segmentation, the next step is to engage. You understand your target groups and their demands from their demographics and buyer personas. Now it’s time to engage and interact with them via creative content and relevant messaging. The ultimate goal is to convert the leads into customers and retain them for future business needs. The short-term goal is to convert prospects to the next step. Marketers aiming for higher conversion rates turn to audience segmentation, targeting and positioning as plausible solutions.  

While some prospects open emails and click to your websites, some prefer not to do so. Engagement and perception metrics give you an idea of what you can do next to get their attention. Via retargeting tactics, you track down real prospects in your audience groups and serve them impactful ads and campaigns based on previous behavior. 

Some Audience Segmentation Types

Every user has certain online behavioral traits or “online body language” which reflect the situation around their purchase decision. To categorize target users, marketers turn to some typical audience segmentation types.

• Behavioral Segmentation: Here, marketers analyze users’ online activities and past purchase decisions. Certain users spend a lot of time viewing websites, then proceed to purchase. Others look at lots and lots of content. Assess this behavior to design remarketing techniques to serve them relevant assets and solutions.
• Demographic Segmentation: Here, B2B brands focus on user groups based on demographics, which might include age, income level and education level.
• Psychographic Segmentation: Here, you concentrate on your user’s internal traits like attitudes, beliefs, preferences, likes and dislikes. You tend to go deeper than just online activities to understand the mental design of your target audience in this kind of segmentation. This segmentation may not be as widely used in typical B2B use cases.
• Geographic Segmentation: This segmentation is based on the user’s location, country, cities and streets.

Audience Segmentation Tips to Get You Started

• Don’t stick on just one type of segmentation. Instead cast a broader net and narrow your focus gradually based on results.
• Analyze your business needs before segmenting. Does location matter? Are you after certain industries?
• Use segmentations that most benefit your business. Don’t lose time segmenting at every level.
• Design personas around your richest, most reputable insights, if possible. Start with basic demographics, then move to geographic and psychographic segmentation.
• Watch every step your prospects take in the marketing funnel. Study their past behaviors, too, if possible. It all helps in understanding your customers well.
• Take advantage of fresh, structured intent data signals to know your target audience, their demands, and purchase decisions.
• Focus on demand generation and engagement metrics. Set these up before you start, but be flexible and open to other metrics.

Audience segmentation allows more precise targeting around your most desirable groups. Once you identify your target audiences, you can start delivering personalized, relevant solutions to their questions. And most importantly, optimize your digital marketing strategies and audience segmentation with intent data signals. 

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• 3 Risks of Over-Personalization in B2B Lead Generation
• AI-driven Audience Segmentation Adds Value to B2B Marketing