Finding out what makes customers tick

Businesses which treat their customers as one large homogenous mass are failing to spot subtle age, gender, occupation and behavioural differences. Identifying these differences can help you generate targeted marketing messages which resonate with your customers.

Creating an evidence base to inform marketing

City & Guilds asked QA Research and The Buzzz to conduct a learner segmentation study. The research would give City & Guilds a clearly defined set of relevant and valid ‘learner segments’ which would be used to enable more effective communication with learners now and in the future. The research could also investigate, interpret and report back on attitudes to learning.

The research campaign included:

• Contacting 100 City & Guilds centres to warm them up and secure permission for subsequent stages of the research
• Creating postal and online questionnaires, along with supporting posters and flyers
• Sending postal surveys to 125 centres (including colleges, training providers and businesses)
• Analysing learner segmentation information
• Conducting six focus groups with selected learner segments

Analysis of the learner segments - from young people preparing for future careers to professionals undertaking courses for occupational development - revealed a broad range of motivations and attitudes.

Implementing new plans

City & Guilds has never had such detailed and specific information about its learners and how they behave. The findings give City & Guilds the opportunity to develop ways of appealing to and dealing directly with learners of all ages. The segmentation findings recently informed a review of the implications of the research for marketing, customer relations, sales and new ventures across the organisation.