Identify the four bases of Market Segmentation and give three market segmenting variables that demonstrate each of the four bases.

Identify the four bases of Market Segmentation and give three market segmenting variables that demonstrate each of the four bases.

board answers, and respond to the information you read by also adding your own point of information about each topic itself to each discussion board answers not about how to correct the person answers by saying he or she needs to add more information or saying you agreed without stating why. Just three to five Lines response each. Please I need good and quality response to these discussion board answers. Please I need good and quality reply, and pls i want you to add more information about the their answers n your contribution to my classmates answers and topic.

 

Consumer behavior MRKT 410

 

QUESTION FOR THE TWO DISCUSSION BOARD BELOW;

Based on the readings (from Week 2 Learning Resource list), complete the questions below.  Utilize headings to organize your responses.  Research outside sources, cite within your text answer and then fully cite the source at the bottom of your response.  Discussion this week center around two topics: Market Segmentation (which should be review from Principles of Marketing) and learning about Consumer Behavior Research methods.

1. A) Identify the four bases of Market Segmentation and give three market segmenting variables that demonstrate each of the four bases.
2. B)  Based on the article found in the Learning Resource tab of the classroom entitled “How Companies Learn Your Secrets” answer the following questions in order. 

B-1) What surprised you the most about the article?

B-2)  Which approach to Consumer Behavior Research is being used?  Why?

B-3) What types of questions are they trying to answer through this research (think of these on your own).

B-4) Do you think this type of research is insightful and worth the money?

 

 

Robyn Morrison

 

 

The four bases of consumer market segmentation include Demographic Segmentation, Geographic Segmentation, Psycho-graphic Segmentation and Behavioral Segmentation (Chand, 2016). Demographic segmentation divides the markets into groups based on variables such as age, income, and sex. Geographic segmentation divides the market into geographic unit groups such as states, cities or even neighborhoods. Psycho-graphic segmentation divides the marketing into groups based on personality characteristics such as attitudes, habits and lifestyle choices. Behavioral segmentation divides market groups based on knowledge of and attitude towards a product as well as how likely are they to be a repeat customer.

1. Based on the article found in the Learning Resource tab of the classroom entitled “How Companies Learn Your Secrets” answer the following questions in order.

• B-1) As a frequent Target shopper, I was surprised to read that I had a guest ID number and especially that it held so much information about me. I was pretty surprised to read that Target wasn’t only gathering transaction information on what I bought but also person information like my age,  if I am married and have kids, which part of town I live in, how long it takes me to drive to the store, my families estimated salary, whether I’ve moved recently, what credit cards I carry, and where I like to shop online (Duhigg, 2012).

• B-2)  Quantitative research is being conducted to predict consumer behaviors. Observational research is being used to gain an understanding of the consumer in relations to products and Target as a business. With the lower cost of quantitative research, Target is able to gather a vast majority of information on customers. While the information will not be as specific, it does offer a wide range of information to add to each guest ID profile from what they purchase to where they live. Observational research offers a company the opportunity to track what is purchased and when, and the relationship to repeat purchases as well as satisfaction.

• B-3) Target is trying to pinpoint what you buy and when you buy it. They are able to concentrate on when the ideal time is to market new customers and new products.With the idea that by targeting pregnant women when they are most likely to be open to new consumer relationships, it allows Target the opportunity to strike while the iron is hot to to speak. If Target is able to demonstrate that all the consumers needs can be met at one place and offer great customer service, they will earn a new loyal consumer.

• B-4) I absolutely do believe that is worth it. It allows Target the ability to create  a direct marketing plan for each guest ID based on what they prefer. Past purchases are often a good prediction of future ones. While it may concern some people being placed into certain categories or being tracked, it really does allow for the consumer to have an optimized shopping experience.

 

 

 

 

 

Cassi Sahut

Discussion 2

1. A) The Four Bases of Market Segmentation are:

Geographic: Businesses that use this segmentation strategy divide the market into regions or locations. Some regional variables used to determine the segmentations are; climate, continent, population density and growth.

Demographic: For this segmentation, a company divides the larger market into groups based on several variables. Variables like, Age, Gender, Occupation and income.

Psychographic: is segmentation using a person’s lifestyle or personality traits. Companies look to identify consumers based on variables like, opinions, attitudes, values and social class.

Behavioral: With this strategy, segmentation is based on customer interest or experience with the company or products (Kokemuller, n.d.). Variables such as occasion, usage rate, brand knowledge and loyalty status aid in determining behavioral segments.

1. B) Based on the article found in the Learning Resource tab of the classroom entitled “How Companies Learn Your Secrets” answer the following questions in order.
2. What surprised me the most was the amount of information that companies can obtain on consumers. It’s astonishing and frightening all at the same time. The fact that a retailer could have info on what credit cards I have, websites I visits, my relationship status, or job history is unsettling. I knew retailers collected information about customers but not the sheer scope of that info or that customers are assigned an ID number.2. The Approach to Consumer Behavior Research being used is Primary. Pole observed customers and asked them questions. He did the research himself and didn’t get the info second hand. Pole used behavioristic segmentation to determine what types of products consumer namely pregnant women buy. So, he could determine whether a customer was pregnant or not to better advertise to them. Pole used an analytical program he developed to find patterns in the products the pregnant women buy in certain trimesters. As Pole’s computers crawled through the data, he was able to identify about 25 products that, when analyzed together, allowed him to assign each shopper a “pregnancy prediction” score (Duhigg, 2012). This will allow target to identify which women are in there second trimester and aid them in creating new shopping habits.

   3. The types of questions they are trying to answer with their research are: how consumer habits are created and what can we do to change or influence those habits? Can we collect enough consumer information to determine certain aspects of a consumers’ life like pregnancy without being told? When are consumer habits more flexible?

   4. This type of researcher is insightful and wroth the money because it allows companies to determine when consumer habits become more flexible and willing to spend more at their store. For instance, if companies can identify pregnant shoppers, they can earn millions because new parents are the most flexible consumers.

 

Organizational behavior BMGT 464

QUESTION FOR THE TWO LA 1 BELOW:

Complete the Big 5 personality test and Jung test given in our content area. NOTE: The Jung test is the same typology as the MBTI discussed in our Saylor text chapter 3. Compare your results and explain what you have learned from this: what did you learn about yourself? Was either test accurate or would you devise your own (if so, what components would you include?)? Based upon your own work experiences, would these be effective in the workplace—why or why not?

 

Erin Cullum LA1

I have always found these sort of test interesting and had taken similar ones in the past.  The results did not indicate anything new that I had not already learned in the past.  I do find them to be pretty accurate to how I perceive myself.  Where I work, we have an opportunity to take the MBTI test and go through a learning session to really understand what your results mean.

These sort of tests would be useful in the workplace.  The usefulness of these tests could help employees and managers know more about each other.  It can strengthen emotional intelligence by creating awareness of each other’s emotions (Organizational Behavior, 2014).  According to Rachel Green (2011), emotions can drive behavior and create motivation that can ultimately drive productivity.

These tests can also be an indicator of the self-esteem of the individual.  Those with higher self-esteem have lower scores in neuroticism and more likely to extroverts (Hitti, 2005).  The results can also be a gauge on the individual’s organizational citizenship behavior (OCB).  Those that are agreeable and conscientious are more likely to perform OCB which helps others and benefits the organization (Organizational Behavior, 2014).

My results for the Jung typology test I was an ISTJ (Introvert, Sensing, Thinking, Judging). In the Big 5 personality test, my results indicated that I:

• Openness: prefer traditional familiar experiences
• Conscientiousness: am organized and reliable
• Extraversion: enjoy spending quiet time alone
• Agreeableness: find it easy to criticize others
• Neuroticism: generally relaxed

My results would indicate I may not be as open to change, have a higher motivation to perform, may not have an easier time adjusting to a new job, am not as tolerant, and create a fair climate at work.  I also feel that I have a high locus of control which could be contributed by my high degree of conscientiousness.  High locus of control individuals believe their actions control their own destiny (Organizational Behavior, 2014).

While I said at the start of my post that I had not learned anything new about myself through these tests, I do now have a stronger understanding on how these tie to organizational behavior.  If everyone took these tests, they would have a much better understanding about their behavior and what it means in the grand scheme of the organization and organizational behavior.

Marguerite Van Ness

LA1, Peggy

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or Jung test has been a regular measurement in my life for many years. I am curious about human behavior so I tend to gravitate towards these kinds of resources. I have taken it at work for sessions that raise awareness about self and working with other personality types and I have taken it for 2 other classes – the last one being just a month or so ago for an Organizational Leadership class. I can say that I am consistent because I always get the same outcome and generally, the percentages that indicate degrees do not vary by any significant amount.

 

Even though I am very familiar with the indicator, I think it is a useful measurement tool both for self-reflection and for understanding others in a way that provides valuable insight into how to best work with them. I am an ENFJ (Extravert, iNtuitive, Feeling and Judging) with emphasis on the E and F (Human Metrics, n.d.). I have lots of energy, friends, and am highly organized. I care about social issues and believe that while there are great injustices in our world, most people are good people. I also know that I need to have high emotional intelligence to temper my enthusiasm to not overwhelm others of a more introverted nature. By self-monitoring and understanding the context of my environment I am able to act appropriately in most situations (Organizational Behavior, 2014).  Although I have to be aware of my extraversion and temper it appropriately for each context, it is valuable to be an extravert because we tend to have high self-esteem that can buffer against anxiety (Hitti, 2005) and anxiety can be dominant over knowledge and lead people to behave in ways that are in conflict with their intellect (Green, 2011). I believe that the MBTI is a very accurate reflection of my self-perception and the feedback that I have received over the years about my personality and behavior.

 

The Big Five Personality Test I also took in my last class and because it was new to me, I found it very interesting and insightful. I am an agreeable and conscientious extravert that is very low-strung and has a very low score for openness, meaning I do not like change and like to know what is going to happen all of the time – no surprises please (The Big Five Personality Test, n.d.). I was surprised to learn how low I scored on Openness to Experience/Intellect that indicates having narrow interests and being uncreative but I suppose compared to others this is a true reflection of my personality. This can be a real personal handicap for me as it limits my stretching out of my personal comfort zone and will constrain my ability to take my engagement to higher levels (Saylor Academy, 2013). The positive outcome is that I scored in the 97^thpercentile for conscientiousness and this is the best trait for predicting strong performance ((Organizational Behavior, 2014).

 

Both of the indicators that we took are subject to the interactionist perspective because few of us behave the same way in every situation, except perhaps those with very low self-monitoring, so we answer the questions based on our perception of how we behave most of the time (Organizational Behavior, 2014). These measurement indicators are not only valuable but can be a fun way to help teams to learn more about each other and share more experiences that make their bonds stronger lending to greater trust and therefore proactive behavior and stronger ties to their workplace.(Forret & Love, 2008). Because we tend to work in collective environments where people are have strong attachments to their groups (Organizational Behavior, 2014) better understandings of each other will help us to have a more positive work environment. These measurements should be taken in relative context, however, remembering that job performance variability is only influenced by personality by about 10%-15% so cognitive tests (Organizational Behavior, 2014), job history and references should be primary tools used to select individuals for jobs.

 

QUESTION FOR BOTH LA2 BELOW:

Review the information on locus of control (core self-evaluation), attitudes, self-esteem and efficacy, as well as looking back to perception. What connection do you see of these to self-monitoring? Why is this important to understand in the workplace?

Victoria Ojaomo

LA 2 LOC, attitude & self-monitoring

Perception which is “affected by our values, needs, and emotions” (Saylor, 2014) needs to be examined by individual.  For instance, people make judgement according to their surroundings or what they see which lead to stereotyping and the kind of impression they perceive when they see someone for the first time and how they relate with such individual from that moment on which can lead to bias of behavior. Meanwhile, some companies tend to know how the candidate perceive the company by trying to evaluate them so as to know their perceptions about the job.To get to know the candidate, some companies made their candidate to take a test, even though some candidate can lie on the test just to get the job which make it very difficult for the companies to know who are the best candidate for a certain position. So companies now tend to evaluate their candidate’s value by asking them to take a personality test (Saylor, 2014) in order to evaluate their characters and to know whether they are fit for the position they are applying for.” When hiring a candidate, some companies are interested in assessing at least two types of fit. Person–organization fit which refers to the degree to which a person’s values, personality, goals, and other characteristics match those of the organization and other characteristics match the job demands.” (Saylor, 2014) but employees tend to remain in a job where they value their contributions. (p. 6).

Locust of control

Locust of control is the ability of an individual to take responsibility for his or her life and be in control of it. It is important to know when to use the initiative to take steps to do the right things or starting something without being told or led. The ability to take charge of someone self-control drives one’s self-esteem which is the respect that you have for yourself. The respect you have for yourself lead to “self-efficacy” where one believes to succeed in a particular situation. So with the ability to have “internal self-control” that is ability to act on your own without being told to do something can reduce someone’s stress.

Emotion

Emotion drives behavior as one needs to pay close attention to one’s behavior as this can affect other employees in a company. For instance, if an employee has something bothering his or her mind before getting to work, if not control, it tends to go the workplace with the same feelings thereby acting in a strange attitude when at work as each individual emotion drive behavior as emotion drive productivity (Green, 2011) as the video shows how some employees come to work with their emotions but this has to be controlled by employee. This needs to be controlled by employee as most jobs are being carried out collaborate as a team (Emerald Group Publishing, 1980).

 Self-esteem

It is important for an individual to examine his or her self-esteem as this can determine the level of success it achieve in life. To this reasons, individual needs do a self-examination about how it perceives life what they like and dislike. Because failure to do the self-examination can lead to stress at work. When going through stress, someone start to having negative feelings about others which can eventually affect its self-image and the way people see them.  Furthermore, there are example of countries that are scored