Want to learn how to do customer segmentation right? Look no further than these examples of customer segmentation from real-world use cases.
Customer segmentation stands out as one of the most effective ways to reach the right people at the right time.
Your customers aren’t one-size-fits-all, so your marketing tactics shouldn't be either. Segmenting your customers allows you to customize your approach and reach them with precision and relevance.
Using customer segmentation examples can help inspire your own strategy. You’ll learn more about what segmentation means and how to go about it to get the results you expect.
Let’s explore further.
Contents:
B2B Customer Segmentation Examples
Retail Customer Segmentation Examples
Demographic Segmentation Examples
Behavioral Segmentation Examples
Psychographic Segmentation Examples
Geographic Segmentation
Implementing Customer Segmentation with Meltwater
Tip: Learn more about the different customer segmentation models you can use.
B2B Customer Segmentation Examples
B2B customer segmentation serves the same purpose as B2C customer segmentation — to divide a customer base into groups based on shared characteristics.
However, the B2B approach is a little different because it focuses on customers serving a professional role. There are usually more decision-makers involved in purchases. Buying cycles are generally longer. Customers aren’t buying based on their personal needs or preferences, but rather those of an entire department or company.
For these reasons, typical customer segmentation criteria like age, gender, and income don’t usually apply. Instead, you’ll focus more on behaviors, values, and company demographics.
A few B2B customer segmentation examples include:
- Creating different website journeys for different roles or industries
- Tailoring messages and offers based on company size
- Marketing based on the products or services purchased
Take Meltwater, for example. Our home page features a By Need menu that breaks down our services by industry (e.g., technology, education), role (e.g., marketing, C-suite), or company type (e.g., enterprise, small and medium businesses). Each of these areas focuses specifically on those customer segments, speaking to their unique needs and priorities.
We also see examples of B2B customer segmentation on pricing pages. For example, HubSpot features various pricing tiers based on business size and needs. They also have different package options for individuals and small businesses compared to mid-market businesses and enterprises.
You can apply similar approaches to your email marketing, social media campaigns, and paid ads.
Salesforce offers a good example. Their marketing automation software is trusted by many industries, but the company also runs industry-specific PPC ads, like the one below.
Retail Customer Segmentation Examples
Retail stores (even niche ones) typically have a varied customer base. Customers come to you for a myriad of reasons, and you can lean into this variety to improve your marketing (even when all these differences might feel overwhelming).
Retail customer segmentation examples include:
- Campaigns for loyalty program members or first-time customers
- Marketing based on how they found you online (e.g., organic search, social media, PPC ads)
- Segmenting email campaigns based on product purchases and usage patterns
- Engagement-based marketing campaigns
Cleaning retailer Grove uses customer segmentation in email campaigns. For example, this email campaign targeted everyone who had previously bought a certain item that became available as a free gift.
Cosmetics brand Urban Decay also uses email for segmentation. In the example below, the retailer sent an email to subscribers who hadn’t purchased in a while. They included a discount to encourage customers to open the email and make a purchase.
Look for common denominators among customers, then tailor your messaging to pique their interests in unique ways.
Further reading: Leveling Up Seasonal Influencer Marketing: Unleashing Consumer Insights in Retail, 2024 Consumer Insights: Retail, The Retail Customer Experience Guide
Demographic Segmentation Examples
Demographic customer segmentation is like separating a bag of jelly beans by color — it's all about categorizing customers based on their characteristics. From age and gender to income level and education, companies can use these details to better understand who’s buying from them.
Demographic segmentation examples may include:
- Birthday offers
- Gender-identifying imagery
- Featuring high-end luxury goods or budget-friendly options
- Marketing based on profession
Makeup brand Il Makiage sends special offers to their customers during their birthday month.
But here's the twist: demographics don't tell the whole story. Just because two people are in the same age group doesn't mean they share the same interests or buying behaviors.
Millennials are a perfect example — some spend their time exploring and mastering the latest technological gadgets while others are busy building million-dollar startups. Demographics are a great starting point for understanding your audience, but don't forget to dig deeper and find other connections.
Tip: Learn how using customer segmentation tools like Meltwater's consumer intelligence solution can help you drill down on customer behavior and affinities, beyond simple demographics.
Behavioral Segmentation Examples
Behavioral segmentation is like cracking the code of human behavior. You investigate to learn what makes people tick and use that knowledge to create targeted campaigns. When you get behavioral segmentation right, you can build deeper connections with your audience and drive sales like never before.
Examples of behavioral segmentation include:
- Tracking the user’s website journey (e.g., what products they viewed, what they clicked on)
- What element(s) made them convert, such as a pop-up or a discount code
- Email engagement rates
- Average cart size
For example, Maurices sends emails to customers who added something to their cart but didn’t check out. The discount provides an extra incentive to complete the purchase.
Amazon also uses behavioral segmentation to reach customers in the inbox. For example, the company detects purchasing trends to identify potential customers for a business-only account.
By diving deep into the rabbit hole of behavioral segmentation, you uncover hidden patterns and trends that allow you to anticipate your customers' needs — sometimes before they realize those needs themselves.
Psychographic Segmentation Examples
If your target audience were characters in a movie, psychographic segmentation would be a plot that unravels their deepest desires, fears, and aspirations.
These are their personality traits, interests, lifestyle choices, values, and attitudes. These elements allow you to build emotional connections and show who you are behind the brand.
Examples of psychographic segmentation may include:
- Highlighting the eco-friendliness of your company and products
- Celebrating Pride Month in your creative campaigns
- Promoting messages of inclusivity and diversity
- Making religious holiday-specific campaigns
- Using niche language or slang that’s popular among a specific audience
Coca-Cola’s "Ramadan is Coming" campaign is an excellent example of psychographic segmentation. The rich, colorful media aligns with the brand’s core image while focusing on customers who celebrate Ramadan.
Learn more about how Coca-Cola collects consumer insights and more.
Aerie’s AerieREAL campaign promotes diversity and body positivity by using models with disabilities and body shapes that don’t fit the traditional definition of “model.”
Psychographic details can be harder to identify than behaviors or demographics. They’re not always as obvious, and you’ll need to do some digging and truly get to know who your customers are and what they care about.
Geographic Segmentation
If you’ve ever explored a big city on foot, you know how different neighborhoods have unique vibes. They each have a distinct look and feel, along with different attitudes and values of the people who live there.
If you do business with customers beyond your local neighborhood, you should know this same idea applies to your customer base. People’s preferences, needs, and values can vary from region to region, country to country, and even neighborhood to neighborhood.
By using geographic segmentation, you can add local flavor to your marketing that connects with people no matter where they are.
Examples of geographic segmentation might include:
- Using local imagery in your creative elements
- Aligning fashion items to the local weather in a particular region
- Catering to differences in cultural norms, languages, or religions
A clothing brand embraced this idea by creating an ad that echoed the rainy weather its customers in Ireland were experiencing.
If you want to add an extra layer of authenticity to your customer segmentation, enlist the help of local influencers. Meltwater customer Domino’s France used our platform to find and partner with influencers in the French market for a Halloween campaign. The brand found food and humor influencers who could connect with customers based on location and interests.
Implementing Customer Segmentation with Meltwater
These customer segmentation examples prove the power of non-generic marketing messages. By catering to the unique aspects of your customer base, you can build deeper connections and speak directly to their needs and interests.
Meltwater's Consumer Intelligence solution helps you segment your audience in ways that matter most. Going beyond the basics of age, marital status, and gender, Meltwater analyzes billions of data points to help you find hidden connections within audiences. Learn more about their interests, values, and other factors that motivate behaviors, and tap into the power of digital data that shows you who your customers really are and how you can effectively reach them.
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