Audience Segmentation

Have you ever noticed the difference between the commercials played on ESPN opposed to the ones played on HGTV?  I have to admit that I do watch both of these channels.  I watch ESPN's SportsCenter religiously every morning and I do watch HGTV during the holidays with my Mom.  The main  

Breaking down the audience into different groups is the best way I can define audience segmentation.  In advertising, a brand can choose where to place their ad so that it will reach their maximum target audience.  ESPN's targeted audience is for male viewers (as much as I hate to admit it to all you girl sports fans out there, it's the truth) and HGTV's targeted audience is for female viewers.  The commercials you are most likely to see on ESPN are for beer, athletic equipment, action movies, and the newest sports cars available.  Now on HGTV, the commercials are aimed towards women (aka mothers) who shop for products such as ziplock bags, Clorox products, food to cook for their families, and often times I have seen Home Depot commercials and Lowe's commercials advertising for gardening and remodeling.  

Audience segmentation has also put people with similar interests in contact with one another.  For example: blogs, forums, Facebook, and Twitter have all allowed for people with similar interests to communicate and share ideas with one another.  It has allowed for people to come together and communicate on practically any interest or topic from anywhere in the world.