Market Segmentation: Positioning and Branding through Analysis.

Stephen Holmes PhD

We have consistently identified systemic weaknesses over the past decade on brand and positioning in the university sector in Australia, UK, NZ and elsewhere. This is most notable in the over reliance on visual identity as the main manifestation of the brand rather than behaviours, service delivery and service portfolio/programs/staff (more appropriate for service based institutions). Efforts to position universities (with differentiation) have been weak and often are not related to the core business (teaching, learning, research). As such positioning remains embedded only in marketing communications and is not perceived as being relevant to the internal work of academics and externally to prospective student markets. Creating distinctive positioning is also difficult when typical marketing budgets in universities are only around 2% of turnover!

Universities generally cast a relatively bland landscape, typically with weak images, indistinct from their competitors. Most universities try to cover all the bases (inclusive). Given that there are powerful forces of homogeneity at work in higher education (quality, shared sector culture, shared pedagogy etc) and a risk avoidance mentality, to the market, many universities do indeed look, sound and feel very similar. Other than location (strategic and specific) little differentiates them at a corporate level. The more established universities can to a greater extent call upon history, alumni networks, established research profiles and more varied real estate (campus, ancient, red brick, etc) as means of differentiating themselves.

So what are the options for further enhancing positioning and branding? Higher education can be classified as a mature and crowded market that offers low financial returns on traditional marketing investment. In this context marketing theory suggests one of three strategies:

1.    Compete on price

2.    Diversify into new products/growth markets

3.    Focus on target groups you are best able to satisfy i.e. segmented approach, and take a more differentiated position.

Dr Holmes’ presentation will focus on the third option- segmentation- as a potential lever for university marketers and senior managers to build brand and competitive strength.

There is no longer (If there ever was) a homogenous student, and yet segmentation is typically implied in universities. They promote their strengths and hope to connect, with minimal genuine knowledge about the specific student markets they seek to service beyond the most basic levels. Rarely is there a conscious investment in differentiating factors to resonate with defined and selected market segments.

The key goal of market segmentation is to identify like ‘groups’ of students on some reliable basis to enhance targeting, positioning and branding and to feed into the institutional positioning process. The key to building this understanding lays in undertaking market segmentation research.

Dr Holmes will also make reference to current international best practice marketing around segmentation based in part on The Knowledge Partnership’s recent (2008) benchmarking research across Australia, UK and New Zealand with almost 60 universities.

Higher education staff of all levels that are responsible for marketing, communications, student recruitment, fundraising, alumni relations or institutional advancement. More

To help make sure topics that are most relevant to your needs are addressed by the conference, please take the 3 minute survey.