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Chapter 6 Targeting Attractive Market Segments
Case: Target the Right Market
Author(s): Avery, J.; Steenburgh, T.
Publisher: Harvard Business Publishing
Publication Date: 2012
Reference: R1210K.
Abstract: SparkPlace is a two-year-old business with a hot new product: software that manages
and measures the effectiveness of permission-based marketing campaigns for social media. The
company is in the process of deciding on which of two customer segments to focus its strategy.
Each segment has demonstrable advantages, but developing the product for and marketing to
both segments simultaneously could pose big challenges. Is the argument against being "all
things to all people" a valid one? If so, which customer segment should SparkPlace target? Or is
there a single strategy that can capture the potential value of both types of customers without
draining the company's resources? These questions are at the heart of this fictionalized case by
Jill Avery, of the Simmons School of Management, and Thomas Steenburgh, of the University of
Virginia's Darden School of Business. Expert commentary comes from regular HBR contributor
Roger Martin, of the University of Toronto, and from Mike Volpe, chief marketing officer at
HubSpot, the company on which SparkPlace is based.
Case: Granny’s Goodies, Inc.
Author(s): Narayandas, Das; Korman, Kathy
Publisher: Harvard Business School
Publication Date: 1999 Revised 2000
Reference: 9-500-049
Abstract: The young entrepreneurs of Granny’s Goodies, Inc., a corporate gift package specialist,
face the challenge of finding ways to create consistent revenue streams and reduce sales costs.
Outside of a few long-term contracts, the two founders have had to work very hard for each sale.
Using extensive customer information that the firm has diligently collected over the previous two
years, students need to develop a plan that covers market selection, product policy, and
relationship management strategy for the firm.
Case: Vistakon: 1 Day Acuvue Disposable Contact Lenses
Author(s): Silk, Alvin J.; Isaacson, Bruce; Bell, Mar
Publisher: Harvard Business School
Publication Date: 1996 Revised 1999
Reference: 9-596-087
Abstract: Vistakon, an independent and entrepreneurial subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson,
pioneered the production and marketing of disposable contact lenses with the 1987 launch of
Acuvue, the first disposable extended-wear lens—a soft contact lens that patients wear for a
period of less than two weeks and then abandon. By 1993, Acuvue was the leading brand of soft
contact lens in the United States. In March 1994, Gary Kunkle, president of Vistakon, was
presented with the test market results for an addition to the firm’s product line, 1 Day Acuvue,
the world‘s first daily disposable contact lens. The test market results raised a number of
strategic issues relating to: 1) the positioning and pricing of the new daily wear disposable
product; 2) cannibalization of the firm's existing extended-wear disposable lens; and 3) the mix
of push and pull components required for the introductory marketing campaign to be effective in
generating and coordinating demand from both eye-care professionals and consumers. In
deciding how to proceed, Kunkle must evaluate the risks associated with commencing an
immediate launch with an unproven strategy as opposed to extending the test market.
