Q. Dear Sig,

I’ve heard of techniques that appear to offer both psychological richness and easy identification of segments, but the reality is we are always forced to choose. Isn’t there a solution that is truly psychologically insightful AND targetable?
Sincerely,
Ambivalent in Arizona

A.  Dear Ambivalent,

This is the classic conundrum, no? Recalling a darker proverb of my childhood, Wenn Sie zwei Hasen jagen, werden Sie am Ende weder mit (if you chase two hares, you will end up with neither.) This, indeed,  is the justification used by many purveyors of standardtechniken, off-the-shelf segmentation solutions based on pre-identified characteristics.

Of course, neighborhood and zip-code based groupings are not perfect.  Let me tell you why. My letter carrier, Henri, is well known for his love of dogs and strudel, and general bonhomie; he delights in trying new sensual pleasures, particularly desserts. His closest neighbor is Fritz and although he is similarly situated economically, he could not be more different.  Fritz is a malcontent who rejects all pleasures of the senses and has been known to kick small dogs that get too close to him when he marches down the Schottenring.  A marketer who sought to advertise to both Henri and Fritz using the same messaging based on their addresses would clearly miss the mark!

However, combining an attitudinal segmentation with secondary data would provide a more accurate grouping of Henri, Fritz, and many more neighbors – giving you both rich insight and targetability. Take heart, dear reader, you may have your cremeschnitten and eat them too.

Best regards,