What is the Difference Between Behavioral and Psychographic Segmentation

The main difference between behavioral and psychographic segmentation is that behavioral segmentation focuses on how consumers interact and engage with products and brands, while psychographic segmentation focuses on customer personalities and interests.

Market segmentation refers to the process of dividing a target market of a product or service into smaller, more defined categories. And, in this process, customers are categorized into different groups with similar characteristics like age, gender, location, and interests. Moreover, there are four main types of market segmentation: they are demographic, geographic, psychographic, and behavioural segmentation. 

Key Areas Covered

1. What is Behavioral Segmentation
     – Definition, Features
2. What is Psychographic Segmentation
     – Definition, Features
3. Behavioral vs Psychographic Segmentation
     – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Market segmentation, Demographic Segmentation, Geographic Segmentation, Psychographic Segmentation, Behavioural Segmentation

Difference Between Behavioral and Psychographic Segmentation - Comparison Summary

What is Behavioral Segmentation

Behavioral segmentation is a type of segmentation that focuses on how consumers interact and engage with products and brands. It does not refer to the behavior of people, but rather refers to measurable actions and behavior of consumers in the marketplace. Thus, in this segmentation, it’s possible to group customers according to factors like purchasing habits, spending habits, browsing habits, brand loyalty, as well as various interactions with the brand.

Main Difference - Behavioral vs Psychographic Segmentation

Moreover, in an e-commerce business, behavioral segmentation is quite easy to do with user data gathered from the website. A loyalty store card in a physical store can also provide this type of information. In fact, it can inform the retailer what type of products the customers show an interest in, and their spending habits. For example, what product categories do they purchase regularly? do they buy new products? how much do they usually spend? what are the brands they are loyal to?

In overall, behavioral segmentation can improve personalization, help to predict future behaviors, and understand customers better.

What is Psychographic Segmentation

Psychographic segmentation is a type of segmentation that focuses on customer personalities and interests. As such, it considers how a person thinks, feels, and lives. Moreover, this segmentation involves factors like:

  • Hobbies
  • Personality traits
  • Life goals
  • Values
  • Beliefs
  • Lifestyles
  • Psychological influences
  • Priorities

Difference Between Behavioral and Psychographic Segmentation

When compared to demographic and geographical segmentation, this segmentation is more difficult to identify. This is mainly because this information is subjective and require considerable research to discover and understand. However, the main aim of this segmentation is first to understand the person and then connecting that back to their consumer purchase decisions.

Similarities Between Behavioral and Psychographic Segmentation

  • Behavioral segmentation and psychographic segmentation are two types of market segmentation.
  • Psychographic segmentation may take behavioral data into account, but behavioral segmentation does not consider psychographic data.
  • Both segmentations are equally important to reach the final target market.

Difference Between Behavioral and Psychographic Segmentation

Definition

Behavioral segmentation is a type of segmentation that focuses on how consumers interact and engage with products and brands, while psychographic segmentation is a type of segmentation that focuses on customer personalities and interests.

Factors

Purchasing habits, spending habits, browsing habits, brand loyalty, and various interactions with the brand are the factors to consider in behavioral segmentation, whereas hobbies, personality traits, life goals, values, beliefs, lifestyles, psychological influences, and priorities are the factors to consider in psychographic segmentation. 

Customer

Behavioral segmentation focuses on customer behavior, but psychographic segmentation analyzes customers as people.

Conclusion

The main difference between behavioral and psychographic segmentation is that behavioral segmentation focuses on how consumers interact and engage with products and brands, while psychographic segmentation focuses on customer personalities and interests.

Reference:

1. “4 Types of Market Segmentation With Examples.” Alexa Blog, 16 July 2020.
2. “What Is Marketing Segmentation and How You Can Create One.” Insider, 19 May 2021.

Image Courtesy:

1. “1440159” (CC0) via Pxhere
2. “Group of People” (Public Domain) via Open Clipart

About the Author: Hasa

Hasanthi is a seasoned content writer and editor with over 8 years of experience. Armed with a BA degree in English and a knack for digital marketing, she explores her passions for literature, history, culture, and food through her engaging and informative writing.

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