Market Segmentation: INTRODUCTION

Scope

This guide covers resources on marketing to particular segments of the population as well as other sources that are important in determining the size and power of particular market segments. Below are listed some general online and print resources that may be helpful in identifying such resources. Please see the individual sections of this guide for marketing resources focused on specific ethnic, generational, geographic, or other groups.

There is much information that is tailored for specific groups that can obtained from marketing firms dedicated to marketing to specific segments: for example, the Hispanic & Asian Marketing Communication Research, Inc., Abbott-Wool, Niche Marketing Research Center, and Internet Marketingology to name just a few. While the Library of Congress does not endorse any of these companies or their data, some of these marketing firms include research and other sources of information and insight into the particular target markets that may be useful to researchers. It should, however, be noted that some of their information may be limited to members or subscribers.

There are many boutique consulting/research firms that publish material on various demographics. Many such firms offer their reports for sale on their web sites. However, some of these reports have been aggregated into products like Marketresearch.com. This is a paid database (which the Library of Congress does not subscribe to) and many of the reports are quite expensive, although it is frequently possible to buy only sections of the reports. The reports are grouped by topic, often with more detailed or specific categories; Most publishers also will make available a list of all the reports which they produce.

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Other Groups
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Image caption: Advertisement for lemonade, 1955. Prints and Photographs Division (Library of Congress) Reproduction number: LC-USZ62-75888

Subscription databases like ABI-Inform, Business & Industry (RDS/Gale), Infotrac, and EBSCO Masterfile have a large selection of full-text articles and citations. All four offer some sort of index term searching which can be helpful in those cases where what you are looking for is not easy to put into words. For example, Business & Industry has a field called Concept Term. which includes various terms, many of which are applicable to target marketing, such as:

Print Resources

The American Marketplace: Demographics and Spending Patterns. Ithaca, N.Y.: New Strategist Publications, 1997 - present. Biennial.
LC Call Number: HA203 .A635
LC Catalog Record: 97642103
Publisher's Website: http://www.newstrategist.com

An American Profile : Opinions and Behavior, 1972-1989 : opinion results on 300 high-interest issues derived from the General Social Survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center / Floris W. Wood, editor ; Chronology of world events, 1972-1989 by Edward Weilant ; with a foreword by Tom W. Smith. Detroit : Gale Research, c1990.
LC Call Number: HN90.P8 A53
LC Catalog Record: 90220322

Americans at Play: Demographics of Outdoor Recreation & Travel [by Alison S. Wellner]. Ithaca, N.Y. : New Strategist Publications, c1997.
LC Call Number: GV191.4 .W45 1997
LC Catalog Record: 98157389
Publisher's Website: http://www.newstrategist.com

Best Customers: Of Consumer Demand by Cheryl Russell. 2nd ed. Ithaca, N.Y. : New Strategist Publications, c2001.
LC Call Number: HC79.C6 R87
LC Catalog Record: 2002511430
Publisher's Website: http://www.newstrategist.com

Consumer Sourcebook. Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research, c1974 - . Irregular.
LC Catalog Record: 84640200
LC Call Number: HC110.C63 C638

Household Spending: Who Spends How Much on What. Ithaca, N.Y. : New Strategist Publications, c1997 - . Biennial.
LC Call Number: HC110.C6 O34
LC Catalog Record: 98658564
Publisher's Website: http://www.newstrategist.com

Snapshots. New York, NY : Media Market Resources, c1996 - . Annual.
LC Call Number: HC101.S62
LC Catalog Record: 97642311

Statistical Handbook on Consumption and Wealth in the United States edited by Chandrika Kaul and Valerie Tomaselli-Moschovitis. Phoenix, Ariz. : Oryx Press, 1999.
LC Call Number: HC110.C6 S73
LC Catalog Record: 99038530

Yankelovich, Daniel and David Meer. "Rediscovering Market Segmentation," Harvard Business Review, February 2006, pp. 122-131.
LC Call Number: Consult reference librarian
LC Catalog Record: 25010769

Statistics

Statistics.com
http://www.statistics.com

Census
http://www.census.gov/

Associations

American Association of Advertising Agencies
http://www.aaaa.org

American Marketing Association
http://www.ama.org

American Advertising Federation
http://www.aaf.org/

Asian American Advertising Federation
http://www.3af.org/

The Direct Marketing Association
http://www.the-dma.org/

Datamonitor
http://www.datamonitor.com/

EPM Communications
http://www.epmcom.com

Market Segment Research
http://www.marketsegment.com/

Marketlooks from MarketResearch.com
http://www.marketresearch.com

Mintel International
http://www.mintel.com/

National Opinion Research Council
http://www.norc.org/

New Strategist
http://www.newstrategist.com

Packaged Facts
http://www.packagedfacts.com/

Simmons Study of Media and Markets
http://www.smrb.com/

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Additional works on market segmentation in the Library of Congress may be identified by searching the Online Catalog under appropriate Library of Congress subject headings. Selecting a subject headings below will link you directly to the Catalog and automatically execute a search for the authorized subject selected. Please be aware that during periods of heavy use you may encounter delays in accessing the catalog.