Page 136 - DMGT510_SERVICES_MARKETING

Unit 7: Service Segmentation and Targeting

The segmentation of the market on different bases and the resultant reorganisation of the Notes
banking behemoth towards addressing the chosen segments did make it effective. Up and
down the chain in SBI, the staff had clearer idea of the business and the wherewithal to deal
with management issues:
At the branch level the staff could address their customers who trooped into their

divisions appropriately. Even with limited staff, with no computerisation to speak
of, they were able to deal with the customers’ needs.
At the Regional Office level, the managers had better idea of different businesses

and the performances at different branches. They could now know with certainty,
for example, that at SBI Nagda, Ujjain, MP there was more non-fund business in the
form of Letters of Credit and Bank Guarantees coming from the Viscose Staple Fibre
business of Grasim, the flagship of Aditya Vikram Birla Group in Nagda than savings
and other deposit accounts. Appropriate personnel skilled in the respective business
could be placed for greater effectiveness.
At the Local Head Office level, the Circle could function with sufficient autonomy

and be as agile and effective as any public sector bank. Thus Bhopal Circle could,
after analyzing its truly cosmopolitan staff (it was a joke amongst the staff that MP
was better known as Metropolitan Pradesh reflecting its diversified linguistic
background), take important steps in developing innovative Human Resource
initiatives like Quality Circles, Key Performance Appraisals, Behavioural Science
training and other Organisational Development programmes.

At the HQ, in Mumbai, the Chairman with two Managing Directors reporting to

him had a better idea of the monolith’s functioning. A lot of path breaking strategic
decisions like alliances with General Electric for the credit card business,
bancassurance ventures through SBI Life, the formation of SBI Capital Markets, etc.,
could be taken. With segmentation, SBI could now get a better idea of the size of the
market, its unique characteristics and needs. After evaluating and choosing them, it
could use its different marketing mixes appropriately to target them successfully.
Initially it had one eye-hole view of the market; now, with a better perspective, it
was able to address its constituents more efficiently.
Questions
1. Did SBI have to reorganize itself to make its segmentation exercise effective?
2. How could it have used its different marketing mixes to uniquely address the
different needs of its customers?
3. Can small service firms, like cooperative banks, go in for segmentation? Explain.

Self Assessment

State whether the following statements are true or false:
7. The marketer should determine the basis for segmentation based on the area of business.
8. Each segment thus formed will have similar preferences.

9. A company should develop its marketing mix keeping customer profiles in mind.

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