What is psychographic segmentation?

Psychographic segmentation divides audiences into groups based on interests, beliefs, values, and lifestyles. When B2C marketers divide their audience into psychographic groups, they can develop marketing campaigns that speak to the intrinsic motivations behind someone’s decision to buy a product.

For example, psychographic segmentation may reveal that a growing part of a brand’s audience is deeply concerned about climate change. This information can inform that brand’s shift toward local supply chains and sustainable packaging, with marketing campaigns to accompany that shift.

The benefits of psychographic segmentation

Whereas demographic segmentation is a broad representation of a brand’s audience, psychographic segmentation uncovers deep and evolving qualitative factors that contribute to a decision to buy. 

When B2C marketers invest in psychographic segmentation, they can expect:

  • Enhanced personalization: Psychographic segmentation leads to more personalized marketing campaigns that reflect the values and lifestyles of a brand’s core audience. It’s what marketers need to develop campaigns that speak to emotion rather than only logic. 
  • Higher customer engagement: A better understanding of customers naturally leads to better customer engagement. When customers see their values and beliefs reflected back at them, they’re more likely to keep buying from a brand because they see that brand as aligned with who they are.
  • Competitive advantage: Brands that make full and ongoing use of their psychographic data gain a competitive advantage because psychographic data helps brands adapt to shifting consumer attitudes and beliefs.  

Psychographic segmentation vs. other types of segmentation

Demographic segmentation

Demographic segmentation divides audiences into groups based on age, gender, income, education, etc. Unlike psychographic segmentation, which reveals the intangible and emotional, demographic segmentation reveals tangible (but broad) information about an audience.

Geographic segmentation

Geographic segmentation divides target audiences into groups based on location. Brands with physical locations may want to cross-reference geographic segmentation with psychographic segmentation so they can target the right people with the right in-store offers and event invites.

Behavioral segmentation

Behavioral segmentation divides audiences based on online interactions through a website, emails, social media, etc. When combined with psychographic segmentation to create a single view of a customer, behavioral segmentation is the best way to send personalized and sometimes automated messages that reflect recent behavior, such as a purchase, a product page visit, or an abandoned cart.

How to implement psychographic segmentation

  1. Gather data from multiple sources. Brands collect psychographic data through website forms, surveys, quizzes, website analytics, social media analytics, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, market research reports, loyalty programs, and customer reviews. Start by putting the systems in place to gather this data from multiple sources, then use integrations to consolidate that data in one place.
  2. Analyze the data in one place. Use data visualization tools to view and manipulate your psychographic data. Your dashboard should emphasize data points that make sense for your brand—pet brands will want to know who’s a dog person and who’s a cat person, for example. But you’ll also want to cast a wide enough net that you can learn something new about your audience, too.
  3. Match your data to your marketing strategies. The hardest part about psychographic segmentation is acting on what you learn. This is because you may find out that your audience isn’t exactly who you thought they were—and you may need to change your approach to keep their attention. But businesses survive by being adaptable, and ongoing psychographic segmentation is one way to stay ahead of attention spans.

Klaviyo has helped 157,000 businesses create deeply personalized, meaningful marketing campaigns that resonate with shifting audience preferences and values. Sign up for Klaviyo and get started today.