Audience Segmentation: Describers vs Definers
A common argument against audience segmentation is that it’s too reductive: by segmenting people into groups based on shared characteristics, don’t we risk ignoring the complex identities we all have as people?
For some segmentation systems, the answer is yes.
Simple segmentation systems, such as demographics or past behavior, can fall into the trap of simplifying how we look at people based on characteristics that describe who they are, not define who they are. Describers are things like where people live, where they’re from, how old they are, and how many times they’ve visited a museum. While this kind of information can tell us more about a person, it doesn’t give us anything useful to influence future behavior.
Describers can, however, be really useful for identifying your target groups, which can help us find the audiences with whom we want a relationship, but that we’re maybe not currently reaching. But relying solely on describers only causes us to make unchecked assumptions or rely on stereotypes. Not only can this be dangerous and harmful, it’s actually not very useful to museums or other arts organizations and can sap our already precious resources and time.
Using definers, however, is where the magic happens.
Segmentation systems that use the deep-seated values and mindsets goes deep into the hard-wired parts of our identity, and gives us the tools to influence behavior. For example, knowing that I grew up in Arizona probably isn’t going to help the marketing team at an art museum convince me to see an exhibition about art and activism, but knowing that I love tackling big ideas in society arms the team with all they need to pique my interest.
So while you may need the describers to identify your target groups, it’s crucial to use a segmentation system that goes deeper and uses definers to truly make an impact. For example, at MHM, we use Culture Segments. MaP is a frequent advocate for Thinking Styles, and many museum professionals are familiar with the Visitor Identity Model.
On April 12th, I’ll co-facilitate the first of two sessions on segmentation models in a workshop with MaP Founder Kyle Bowen. I hope you’ll join me as we explore when to use these models and how they can be applied to your work.
Alexa
