Psychological (market segmentation) of Hong Kong - Essay Example

Psychological (market segmentation) of Hong Kong Psychological (market segmentation) of Hong Kong In the context of market segmentation, the identification of the psychological status of consumers is necessary in order to understand at what point consumers in the target market are willing to support the product involved. From this point of view, psychological location is taken into consideration by marketers when having to develop a marketing plan for the local or, mostly, for a foreign market.

Foxall et al. (1998) stated that the term psychological location is used in order to show ‘the attitudes, personality, information processing style and prior behavioral learning’ (Foxall et al. 1998, 6) of people in the target market. On the other hand, Jakubiak et al. (1990) note that psychological or psychographic market segmentation is based on the research over specific characteristics of the target market: ‘sex, age, income and education’ (Jakubiak et al. 1990, p.15). In accordance with the above, the psychological market segmentation of Hong Kong could be analyzed as follows: In Hong Kong the high percentage of population (74.8%) is between 15 and 64 years old (Index Mundi 2011); men are approximately as many as women, with a slight superiority of women though.

The entire population is urban, at least referring to the structure of the population in 2010 (Index Mundi 2011). The life expectancy of the population has been estimated to 82 years; women are likely to live longer reaching the 84 years while men tend to live up to the 79 years, at least at an average level (Index Mundi 2011). In accordance with a recent governmental report, in 2009 the population of Hong was estimated to 7 million. In the same report it is noted that in 2009 females were more than males, ‘889 males for 1000 females’ (Hong Kong government 2011).

It is also mentioned that the educational level of the population has significantly improved the last 5 years; in 2009 the percentage of people attained a post-secondary educational institution reached the 25.7% - from 22.8% in 2004 (Hong Kong government 2011). As for the average income of local population, this was estimated to $17,500 – for the fourth quarter 2004 (Hong Kong Government 2004). Taking into consideration the above facts, the performance of Dippin Dots in the market of Hong Kong is expected to be significant; the specific product addresses a high percentage of the population – in terms of age and activities: from children in school to individuals at work.

Women, who are likely to consume sweets more than men and who are the majority in Hong Kong, are expected to love the specific product. In terms of its price, the product is approachable to people of rather high income levels, having in mind that the average price of the product reaches the $58 per gallon; at this point it should be taken into consideration the fact that the average income of people in Hong Kong is rather high indicating their potential to buy this product regularly.ReferencesDippin Dots (2011) Web.

Accessed at 16 September 2011.< http://www.dippindots.com/home.html> Foxall, G., Goldsmith, Ronald and Stephen, Brown. 1998. Consumer psychology for marketing. Belmont: Cengage LearningHong Kong – government (2011) Hong Kong Fact sheet. Web. Accessed at 16 September 2011.< http://www.gov.hk/en/about/abouthk/factsheets/docs/population.pdf> Jakubiak, Susan, Mudge, Richard and Robert, Hurd. 1990. Using market research to improve management of transportation systems. Transportation Research BoardIndex Mundi (2011) Hong Kong Demographics Profile 2011. Web. Accessed at 16 September 2011.

< http://www.indexmundi.com/hong_kong/demographics_profile.html>