Segmentation and the Beachhead

Why narrowing wins

The instinct with a new product is to keep the market as wide as possible so as not to exclude anyone. It is precisely wrong. A broad target produces generic messaging that resonates with nobody, diffuse marketing spend, a product pulled in conflicting directions and no word of mouth, because the customers have nothing in common and never talk to each other.

A narrow target produces the opposite: specific messaging that customers recognise as describing them, efficient channels because you know where they are, a coherent product, and referral because customers know others in the same situation.

The beachhead

A beachhead is a small, specific segment you can dominate completely, chosen as the base from which to expand. Selecting one well requires:

• Acute need — the problem is more severe here than elsewhere.
• Ability and willingness to pay.
• Reachability — an identifiable channel, community, publication or event where they congregate.
• Internal connectedness — they talk to each other, so success spreads.
• A credible path onward — adjacent segments to which success here is a strong reference.
• Small enough to dominate with the resources you actually have.

The last point causes the most discomfort. A segment that feels too small is usually the right one, because being the obvious choice for two hundred organisations is worth far more than being an option for twenty thousand.

Segmentation that is useful

Segment by anything that predicts different needs or buying behaviour: industry, size, region, business model, technology in use, regulatory exposure, growth stage, or — most usefully — the situation they are in. Situation-based segments are the most actionable because they identify when a prospect becomes ready to buy.

Expansion

Expand deliberately, into segments where your existing proof is relevant and your product needs little change. The classic errors are expanding too early, before dominating the first segment, and expanding into segments that require a materially different product, sales motion or support model — which effectively means starting again while carrying the cost of the first business.