Customer Focus through Market Segmentation

Abstract

Today, companies operating in heavy manufacturing industries experience more complex market situations. Customers are becoming more sophisticated and the competition is increasing. In order to survive, companies must become aware of how value is generated for customers to be able to satisfy their needs. An implementation of a market segmentation approach is a useful tool in becoming more customer focused, as it creates a better ability to identify how value is generated for customers in a segment and adjust its activities in order to provide solutions for their needs.

In order to see how value is generated in a segment and how a company can adapt its marketing and sales activities according to that knowledge, we have used Volvo CE and the recycling/waste management segment. To find out how value is generated for customers in this segment, we have used a theoretical framework consisting of customer-perceived value and its influencers organisational buying behaviour and positioning.

We have created a framework that can be used by a company in the heavy manufacturing industry to identify how customer-perceived value is generated in a specific segment. This understanding can be used to create segment specific marketing and sales strategies and as a result become customer focused.