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Factory focus: Segmenting markets from an operations perspective
Author(s) -
Berry William L.,
Klompmaker Jay E.,
Bozarth Cecil C.,
Hill Terence J.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
journal of operations management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.649
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1873-1317
pISSN - 0272-6963
DOI - 10.1016/0272-6963(91)90074-8
Subject(s) - market segmentation , factory (object oriented programming) , perspective (graphical) , marketing , market analysis , business , focus (optics) , segmentation , industrial organization , market share , computer science , artificial intelligence , physics , optics , programming language
Market segmentation techniques are routinely used by marketers to divide markets into groups of customers showing similar buying behavior. This paper addresses the role of market differences as they affect the development of an appropriate operations strategy, specifically factory focus. It discusses the problem of segmenting markets with regard to operations capabilities, and the application of cluster analysis to market segmentation using operations variables. We report on field research conducted to test this approach using actual operating data. The results demonstrate the feasibility of using market segmentation analysis to characterize the market served by a company in terms of the requirements placed on operations. We believe it is critical that marketing and operations managers understand and be able to relate to the different views of a market taken by the two functions. Different perspectives on market requirements, and an awareness of the capabilities required by the firm to support these requirements, are important preconditions for the development of coherent strategic plans for a company.