consumer tech no segmentation

Development of consumer techno segmentation and its application to international marketsijcs_848 87..95 Heejin Lim 1 and Hyun-Joo Lee 2 1 Retail and Consumer Sciences, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA 2 Department of Design, Housing and Merchandising, Oklahoma State University, Tulsa, OK, USA Keywords T echnology , consumer segmentation, international markets. Correspondence Heejin Lim, Retail and Consumer Sciences, The University of Tennessee, 203B Jessie Harris Building, Knoxville, TN 37996-1911, USA. E-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1111/j.1470 -6431.2009.008 48.x Abstract This study aime d to dev elop consumer techno seg ments based on techn ology- rela ted psychographic variables in four different countries including the US, Canada, Spain and Italy . The respondents’ technology innovativeness , technology opinion leadership, network externality risk and technology anxiety were used as metrics to identify consumer techno segments. Cluster analysis identified three to four distinct techno segments in each country. Multivariate analysis of variance and univariate analyses were used to validate the differences amon g tech no segments in need for chan ge, leis ure orie ntati on and e-shoppin g preference in each local market. The similarities and differences of each techno segment were examined across different international markets. A discussion and implications were drawn to help marketers develop penetration and market strategies for different international markets by understanding an expected diffusion rate of a new product and of product life cycles for each local market. Introduction The consume r technology ma rke t has move d at a fa st pac e and has bec ome extre mely competiti ve for the pas t dec ade , attributable to the rapid development of new technology and an increase in consumer demand for innovative technological products. Although technology innovation and firms’ aggressive marketing activities have led to successful new products on a global scale, the success of innov ati on in a loc al mar ket does not guara ntee similar results in other internat ional markets . Since consumers’ technology readiness and the technology infrastruc- ture in a local market vary country by country, it is essential for firms to under stand local cons umer s’ characteristics and needs during international entry, and to make proper adjustments to their products and marketing strategies accordingly (Yalcinkaya, 2008). Market segmentation has been widely used in the development of strategic planning to satisfy diverse consumer demands (Dibb, 2005; Sausen et al., 2005). Consumer segmentation helps marketers ident ify poten tial custo mer segments , reco gnize diff erent values of each segment to their business, predict consumer behaviour and develop effective communication with each consumer segment (Bickert, 1997). Through a segmentation approach, firms with high mark et shar e can ensure continuo us profit abili ty by matching their marketing resources with the needs of a specific customer group; those with a low market share can focus on a target segment for which their own strength can be valued best (Dibb and Simkin, 1997). Previous consumer studies identified consumer segmentation base d on demo graph ic, lifes tyle and socio-economic var iables. Recently, however, researchers have emphasized the importance of psychographic variables in consumer segmentation strategies for their comprehensi ve and consumer-orie nted explanatory power (Blackwell et al., 2001). This study attempts to develop consumer typolo gies in the techn ology market by identi fying consumer techno segments in different countries based on a spectrum of domai n-spe cific psych ograp hic vari able s inclu ding tech nology innovativeness, technology opinion leadership, network externality risk and technology anxiety. This approach is expected to help rese arch ers and mark eter s under stand consu mer chara cter istic s in each segment and their expected roles in the diffusion of a new product. The objectives of this study are the following: (1) to develop consumer techno segments based on domain-specific psychographic variables; (2) to validate consumer techno segments by examining differences in demographics, lifestyles and technology adoption behaviour across different international markets; and (3) to identify similarities and differences between identical techno segments in different international markets. Wills et al. (1991) suggested that mark eter s exa mine diff er- ences in the learning process of a new product, the pace of learning and a way to avoid product or advertisement uncertainty in different cultures or subcultures in the development of a global product and its loca lizat ion. By ident ifying techno segme nts and their domain-specific characteristics and behaviour, the results of this study are expected to help marketers understand the difference and pace of the learning process between different consumer groups. International Journal of Consumer Studies ISSN 1470-6423 Interna tional Journal of Consumer Studies34 (2010) 87–95 © The Authors Journal compil ation © 2009 Blackwell Publishi ng Ltd 87

consumer tech no segmentation

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