ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS AND MARKET SEGMENTATION INFORMATION SYSTEM ( AN APPLICATION TO A TEA DRINK MARKET)

Although market segmentation is very important for marketing management, it is difficult for marketing managers to segment an unfamiliar global market. Employing the artificial neural network technique, this study develops an approach that uses lifestyle variables to aid the attribute-based segmentation in a new market. The approach helps marketing managers quickly to analyze the preference of product attributes in the unfamiliar markets. Using the tea drink market as an example, this study demonstrates the implementation process of the model. This approach has the following strengths: (1) Insights gained from an existing market segmentation study can be used aid the segmentation efforts in a new global market. (2)Only lifestyle and demographic data are needed, eliminating the difficulty and unreliability caused by potential consumers answering unfamiliar product attribute question. This model has the potential to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of market planning.