In today’s dynamic market landscape, understanding your audience is more crucial than ever. As businesses navigate post-COVID consumer shifts, rising economic pressures, and evolving privacy laws, traditional segmentation research approaches are quickly becoming outdated.

That’s why we’re hosting a masterclass webinar on segmentation research. We’ve been hearing from many of our clients at Reach3—both B2B and B2C brands—that they need help refining their segmentation strategies to stay competitive.

In preparation for the webinar, we reached out to a few of our clients to understand what’s fueling the renewed focus on segmentation in 2025. Here’s what we found.

1. Post-COVID Market Shifts

The world has changed dramatically since 2020, and consumer behavior has followed suit. Companies are reassessing their customer bases as work environments shift between remote, hybrid, and full return-to-office models. These changes influence purchasing decisions, product usage, and engagement with brands.

Additionally, consumer priorities have evolved. Many people are now prioritizing convenience, flexibility, and digital-first experiences—making older segments outdated and ineffective. Companies that fail to understand their audiences risk missing out on new opportunities and misallocating their marketing resources.

2. Economic Sensitivity & Rising Costs

With inflationary pressures and economic uncertainty, businesses are becoming increasingly price-sensitive. Every dollar spent on marketing and customer acquisition must be optimized for maximum return.

The cost of acquiring new customers has also risen significantly, making precise audience targeting more critical than ever. By investing in ongoing segmentation studies, businesses can ensure that they are reaching the right customers with the right messages, ultimately improving marketing efficiency and customer retention.

3. Privacy Laws & Data Limitations

Regulations around consumer data continue to tighten, particularly with laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe and various privacy measures in North America. These laws limit a company’s ability to track users through traditional internal analytics, making segmentation studies a necessity.

To stay compliant while still gaining valuable customer insights, businesses must shift to first-party data collection and sophisticated market research methods such as insight communities. Segmentation studies provide a legal and effective way to understand customer needs and behaviors without violating privacy laws.

4. Industry-Specific Consumer Shifts

Different industries are experiencing unique shifts that require updated segmentation strategies:

• Retail & E-commerce: Competition is fierce, with international sellers—especially price-competitive Chinese resellers—disrupting the market. Brands need precise targeting strategies to maximize their Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) and customer loyalty.

• Entertainment & Recreation: The rise of new player demographics, including younger audiences and more female gamers, is reshaping traditional customer segments. Streaming services and gaming platforms must adapt to these shifts to maintain engagement.

• Technology & Telecom: As 5G, AI-driven personalization, and cloud services continue to expand, tech companies must understand shifting consumer expectations. Staying ahead requires ongoing segmentation research to optimize revenue opportunities and reduce customer churn.

• Financial Services: Banks and financial institutions are in a race to attract Gen Z and Millennials as they enter the world of credit, loans, and investments. Understanding these younger audiences and their financial behaviors is crucial to building long-term customer relationships.

5. Aligning Internal Strategy & Execution

A well-executed segmentation study does more than just refine marketing campaigns—it creates alignment across an entire organization. When teams share a common framework for customer understanding, everything from product development to customer service benefits.

Segmentation research also enables more effective audience-building for digital platforms, including social media, video marketing, and paid ads. As traditional media channels continue to decline, digital platforms are now the primary way to reach customers, making precise segmentation even more valuable.

Market and Customer Segmentation Research are Essential in 2025

Consumer segments are evolving at an unprecedented pace due to post-COVID shifts, economic challenges, regulatory changes, and new competitive pressures. To remain relevant, brands must invest in modern segmentation research—one that is fast, accurate and cost-effective. Doing so will allow them to sharpen ad targeting, enhance personalization, and align internal strategies across teams.

Want to learn more? Watch our webinar, Modern Research Techniques for Segmentation, where we dive deeper into how you can use conversational research approaches to go beyond demographics to create needs-based, behavior-driven segments. 

Looking to hire a full-service market research firm to help bring your segments and personas to life? Our team of experts can help.