[Mageia-dev] Identifying Target Markets

[Graham Lauder]

On Friday 01 Oct 2010 10:11:18 Wolfgang Bornath wrote:
> Reading all this one thing comes to my mind: the world is not the same
> all over the world. Same applies to your assessments of school
> decisions, families and the Linux/WIndows issue.
> 
> Over here the public office of a state controlls what computers and
> operating systems are used in schools, money is not a criteria there.
> It is, of course, in the sense that many schools can not have
> computers at all or just 10 machines for a school of 500 students. Ah,
> yes, I'm talking about Germany, not somewhere in central Africa.
> The public office makes deals with Microsoft (sometimes Mr. Gates
> himself came to visit before a new contract was signed), the largest
> local t-com provider sponsors the internet access and the schools have
> no say in that.

It used to be like that here too, but governments don't like exclusivity and 
given the option they will contract other players with the right sort of 
pressure.  Novell did it here in NZ, got the same deal as MickySoft.  
Education departments respond to pressure from industry, simple

> 
> The families: if the kid wants a computer then either Dad buys a new
> one and the kids get the old, or they buy a new one but mom has no
> say, it's either Dad or the kids because the parents don't know
> anything about computers.

Nonsense, It's interesting I know quite a few German families here in NZ, 
perhaps that's why they migrated, so the wife could make the majority of the 
purchasing decisions.  ;)  I'm afraid that your impressions fly in the face of 
all the real marketing intelligence. Dad or kids buy the computers because Mum 
has been left out of the demographic, typical given the number of women in the 
industry, but target that demographic and Mum becomes decision maker.

In this day and age everyone knows about computers even if they don't know how 
to operate them.  They also know the significance of computers in modern 
society and In this target group they would invariably know how to work them.  
I'm talking young parents here, they've likely had computers to work and play 
with right through their Secondary school career and now they have school age 
kids of their own who demand technology


> 
> One of the largest and fastest growing groups of computer users over
> here are people of age, retired persons who visit computer courses in
> the neighborhood center (I'm teaching there sometimes). They are a
> target group also.

Agreed wholeheartedly and guess what, many have Grandchildren and families 

> 
> I think the one you picked (young couples with kids) are those who are
> the unlikeliest targets - Mom and Dad are working, perhaps with
> computers, most times with Windows. Kids will learn their computer
> knowledge in school, not at home because Mom and Dad have no time for
> that.

Nonsense, this group understands that education is nonstop process and for 
their children to make the most of their educational opportunities then they 
need the tools at home to do it.  It is a market that is ripe for the plucking 
because the only people targeting them right now is Microsoft.  

> 
> See, this is quite different to the picture you are painting, and I
> can imagine that it may be still different in other areas of the
> world.

Every place is unique, but not as unique as we'd all like to believe, one 
thing that marketing tells you.  A good example is Micky Ds, the same 
everywhere, with slight local variations. 

> 
> Therefore picking one target group for a worldwide project like this
> is the wrong way IMHO.

I am not picking one target group, I am identifying an untapped market and a 
potentially large one.  It's also a small network of 4.2 people and more when 
you include a third generation, and personal network is our weakest link and 
MS's strongest  

> 
> wobo

cheers
GL


-- 
Graham Lauder,
OpenOffice.org MarCon (Marketing Contact) NZ
http://marketing.openoffice.org/contacts.html

OpenOffice.org Migration and training Consultant.

INGOTs Assessor Trainer
(International Grades in Open Technologies)
www.theingots.org