If it’s your friend and her husband’s birthday (two people who were born on the same day, got lucky and found each other, fell in love and got married) and you want to buy them a gift, what are your options? Where are you looking for the right gift? What special features should that gift have?
If you are a little creative and want to give them a different gift, look for goods or services that are suitable for couples. That means you have to be a couple to be able to use them. Fortunately, there are businesses that offer these types of goods and services (for example, online stores that sell matching outfits for couples).
These businesses are not hard to find. Because they shout exactly this special feature for their special customer in their advertisements. Proper and targeted advertising should reach the segment of the market that wants those goods and services (for example that segment of the market for an online clothing seller is couples who tend to wear matching outfits).
Marketing and advertising is successful when it interacts with potential customers exactly in their language to convert them into actual and loyal customers. It doesn’t matter if the business is digital or not, because not all users of the digital space are necessarily customers of all online stores.
What methods should businesses use in marketing or digital marketing to attract that part of the market that is ready to buy their products? Where to find the most profitable customers? How to introduce the brand and the advantages of their goods and services to potential customers compared to other competitors?
Businesses will find the answer in a relatively new concept and model in marketing: the STP (Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning) model. This article is written for a comprehensive and complete introduction of this model.
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What is the STP model in marketing?
One of the first things that should be done in the marketing of any business is Market Segmentation. It means dividing the market (customers/consumers) of goods and services into groups with common characteristics. In this way, businesses understand which part of the market (group) is most interested and in need of their product. So they invest in the same group (for advertising).
For example, an Istanbul Turkish language teaching website that conducts online classes, among all those who are of immigration age and looking to migrate, should focus on the part that wants to migrate to Turkey for work or life. Because emigrating to study in that country is not very popular.
The STP model is a formula for this. A 3-stage model in which the market of specific goods and services is divided based on different criteria; the target group (main and profitable customers of those goods and services) is determined for targeted advertising; and the position of the business compared to its competitors in the market is also determined. 3 steps in this model must be done sequentially.
STP marketing is an acronym for Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning – a three-step model that examines your products or services as well as the way you communicate their benefits to specific customer segments.
Segmentation in the STP model
The first stage is research-oriented and two things must be done in it: first, the criteria (criteria) for customer segmentation are selected, and second, customers are segmented based on the selected criteria (according to the type of business and its product). The goal is to divide customers into smaller groups based on realistic and objective criteria and according to the type and characteristics of the product.
The criteria are different. 4 criteria that are usually used for market segmentation are:
• Geographic Segmentation: dividing customers based on the country, city, region and neighborhood they live in;
• Demographic Segmentation: dividing customers based on age, gender, education, occupation, income, being single or married, etc.;
• Psychological criteria (Psychographic Segmentation): dividing customers based on values and valuation system, principles, lifestyle, interests, habits, needs, personality traits, etc.;
• Behavioral segmentation: dividing customers based on the type of behavior and interaction they have with your business (how many times did they buy from you or visit your website? Which product did they buy or which of your products did they show interest in? You can use the collected information (Use about customers in CRM to find answers to questions.)
Targeting in the STP model
In the second step, marketers must answer this question: Which segment (group) will definitely buy our product? In fact, if we advertise for which group or groups, we get better answers and can we convert them into actual customers? At this stage, it should be seen which features and competitive advantages of the product are more attractive for which segment or segments.
Your ideal segment is one that is actively growing, has high profitability, and has a low cost of acquisition.
At this stage, there are criteria for choosing the target sector:
• Size or Measurability: How much of the market does this segment include? If the segment is very small and does not include a significant number of customers, will it grow and increase in number in the future? In addition to the size of this sector, how much ability and possibilities does your business have to follow the changes in this sector?
• Accessibility and Reachability: Is this section physically and geographically accessible to your business? Can you serve them? In addition, basically, does your business have the ability and facilities to deliver its message and advertisements to that sector? How much does it cost to advertise for that segment?
• Sustainability and Profitability: Which sector will be really profitable and have the financial ability to buy your products? Along with the financial ability, how long does he have the desire and need to buy the goods and services of your business? (Among the sectors with financial income, which ones are more sustainable for your business?)
• Ability to attract customers (Actionability): Can your business and your products really attract that segment? What capabilities and facilities does your business have to attract the attention of that sector? In fact, how maneuverable is your business compared to your competitors?
Positioning in the STP model
In this stage (Product positioning), the business places itself in the mind of the target group based on the knowledge it has of its target group and also the competitive advantages of its product. The point here is that the goal at this stage is to differentiate that product (business/brand) in the mind of the target group from other competitors and similar products.
At this stage, you need to find the niche in the market that your product can fill well for the target group. At this point, the research you did for persona marketing will come in handy. Once you find that void, you need to fill it by focusing on the competitive feature of your product that is important to your target audience.
For example, you might use symbolic positioning. That is, tell the target group: My brand and my product are placed in the most luxurious, high-quality, and expensive place in the market compared to other products and competitors.
If your product meets a specific need of the target group or creates an experience and feeling that other products do not have, you can use functional positioning and experiential positioning and tell the target group: My product has this feature. It is placed in a unique place in the market.
The best way to locate is to draw a conceptual map (perceptual map) using the priorities of the target group in choosing and combining it with all 3 types of locating (symbolic, functional and experiential).
Benefits of STP Marketing for Businesses
Why should there be a place for the STP model in the marketing and digital marketing of businesses, especially startups that need rapid and explosive growth (growth hack)? Because this model puts the customer at the center of marketing and advertising activities.
STP marketing represents a shift from product-focused marketing to customer-focused marketing.
The STP model makes business marketing for the target group personalized (Personalization). This means that you know from the beginning that all marketing strategies, tools and activities are for whom and to attract the opinion of which group; you know for whom you should create an ad and design a campaign with what characteristics and preferences; and you know which group’s opinions and feedbacks you should prioritize in product design.
This personalization of marketing for the target group means saving time and money on the one hand and guaranteeing the profitability of advertising and marketing activities on the other hand.
Statistics and research are also in favor of personalization: 58% of businesses found personalized marketing and the implementation of the STP model helpful in retaining their customers, and 45% cited it as a reason to reduce the cost of acquiring new customers.
Marketing strategy design based on STP model
If you want to design your marketing or digital marketing strategy based on the segmentation, targeting and positioning model, you can do it in 5 steps:
• Define and limit the market. Not all multi-million or billion-dollar goods or services are for you. First, you must specify the Total Available Market; Next, determine the Serviceable Available Market (that part of the existing market for which you have the ability and facilities to produce goods and services) and finally, the Serviceable Obtainable Market (that part of the existing market that you can serve and You can also do it for yourself).
• Segment the Serviceable Obtainable Market.
• Evaluate and rank sectors based on the type of business and goods and services, as well as the macro and long-term policies of your business.
• Choose target segments or groups (most profitable, most durable, and most accessible) (Targeting).
• Design your brand/product positioning strategy.