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By David Kim•Last Updated May 8, 2025

VALS Typology: Understanding Market Segmentation for Strategic Marketing

Understand the veils typology framework

The veils (values, attitudes, and lifestyles) typology represent one of marketing’s virtually influential segmentation frameworks. Develop by social scientist Arnold Mitchell at SRI international in the 1970s, veils has evolved to become a sophisticated tool that help businesses understand consumer motivation and decision make patterns.

At its core, veils categorize consumers base on psychological characteristics kinda than strictly demographic factors. This approach recognize that people with similar backgrounds may make immensely different purchasing decisions base on their underlie values and beliefs.

The evolution of veils

The original veils framework undergo significant revision in the late 1980s to createveilss 2, which is unremarkably use today. This update version focus more specifically on consumer behavior in the marketplace instead than broader social values.

The modern veils framework classify consumers along two key dimensions:

Primary motivation

What drive consumer behavior (ideals, achievement, or sself-expression)
Resources

The psychological, physical, demographic, and material mean consumers have to express their primary motivation

The eight veils consumer segments

The veils framework identify eight distinct consumer segments, each with unique characteristics, preferences, and purchase behaviors:

1. Innovators

Innovators sit at the top of the veils framework with high resources and multiple motivations. These consumers are:

Successful, sophisticated, and active
High self-esteem and abundant resources
Image conscious but not as a status display
Early adopters of new products and technologies
Receptive to niche, premium products

Marketing to innovators require emphasize quality, uniqueness, and cut edge features. Luxury brands like tesla and apple oftentimes target this segment.

2. Thinkers

Motivate by ideals and possess high resources, thinkers are:

Mature, reflective, and content
Intimately educate and information seeking
Value order, knowledge, and responsibility
Practical consumers who research exhaustively
Favor durability, functionality, and value

Effective marketing to thinkers involve detailed information, advantageously reason arguments, and demonstrations of product value over time.

3. Believers

Like thinkers, believers are motivated by ideals but have fewer resources:

Conservative and conventional
Powerfully traditional with respect for rules and authority
Predictable consumers with established brand loyalties
Favor familiar products and American brands
Slow to change habits and consumption patterns

Marketing to believers should emphasize tradition, family values, and clear benefits without complexity.

4. Achievers

Achievers are motivated by achievement and possess high resources:

Career and goal orient
Value predictability and stability
Deep committed to work and family
Favor establish, prestige products that demonstrate success
Busy consumers with little time for recreation

Effective marketing to achievers showcases status, efficiency, and reward for hard work. Premium mainstream brands oftentimes target this segment.

5. Strikers

Strikers are achievement motivated but have fewer resources:

Trend conscious and image drive
Limited economic, social, and psychological resources
Concern with approval from those around them
Emulate those with higher resources but face constraints
Favor stylish products that emulate higher resource consumers

Marketing to strikers should emphasize aspiration, accessible luxury, and social approval.

6. Experiences

Motivate by self-expression with high resources, experiences are:

Young, enthusiastic, and impulsive
Seek variety, excitement, and risk
Stillness form life values and patterns
Avid consumers of fashion, entertainment, and social activities
Spend heavy on socialize and products that help express individuality

Marketing to experiences require visual impact, entertainment value, and opportunities for sself-expression Fast fashion and trendy technology brands oftentimes target this segment.

7. Makers

Self-expression motivate with lower resources, makers are:

Practical and value self-sufficiency
Focus on family, work, and physical recreation
Suspicious of new ideas and large institutions
Prefer value to luxury and buy basics
Appreciate practical, functional products with clear purpose

Marketing to makers should emphasize practicality, durability, and value for money with straightforward messaging.

8. Survivors

With the fewest resources, survivors are:

Focus on meet basic needs
Lives center on security and safety
Cautious consumers with brand loyalty formerly establish
Look for bargains and value basic functionality
Represent a modest market for most products

Market to survivors should focus on affordability, reliability, and clear value proposition.

Implement veils for effective market segmentation

Strategic applications of veils segmentation

The veils framework offer numerous practical applications for businesses:

Product development and innovation

Understand the values and motivations of target segments help create products that resonate with specific consumer groups. For example:

A product aim at thinkers might emphasize durability and functionality
For experiences, unique design and customization options become priorities
When target believers, familiar features with incremental improvements work substantially

Companies can develop product variants or wholly new product lines tailor to different veils segments, maximize market coverage while maintain brand integrity.

Communication strategy development

Val’s insights importantly enhance message effectiveness:

Messages for innovators might highlight exclusivity and cutting edge features
Achievers respond to aspirational messaging showcase success and status
Makers appreciate straightforward communication about practical benefits

Beyond message content, veils help determine appropriate communication channels.Experiencess might be reach through social media and influencer marketing, while believers might respond intimately to traditional media and established authorities.

Brand positioning and identity

The veils framework provide a foundation for develop brand identities that resonate with target segments:

Luxury brands oftentimes position themselves for innovators and achievers
Value orient brands target makers and survivors
Brands emphasize innovation and excitement appeal to experiences

Understand which veils segments align with brand values helps maintain consistency across all marketing activities.

Advantages of veils base segmentation

Compare to demographic or geographic segmentation, veils offer several distinct advantages:

Psychological insight

vVeilsreveal underlying motivations, not exactly observable characteristics
Predictive power

by understand values, marketers can advantageously predict future behavior
Cross category application

vVeilssegments apply across product categories
Strategic direction

provides clear guidance for product development and marketing strategy

These advantages make veils specially valuable for companies seek deeper customer understanding and more effective targeting.

Limitations and considerations

Despite its strengths, marketers should recognize certain limitations of the veils framework:

Cultural specificity

the original vveilsframework was developed foAmericanan consumers and may require adaptation for other markets
Change values

consumer values evolve over time, require periodic reassessment
Complementary approaches

vVeilswork wellspring when combine with other segmentation approaches
Implementation complexity

right identify vveilssegments require sophisticated research

These limitations don’t diminish veils’ value but highlight the need for thoughtful application.

Val’s in practice: real world applications

Case studies of successful veils implementation

Automotive industry

Car manufacturers efficaciously use veils to design vehicles and marketing for specific segments:

Luxury brands like BMW target innovators and achievers with performance and status message
Toyota Prius initially target thinkers with rational environmental and economic benefits
Subaru appeals to makers and experiences with message about outdoor adventure and practicality

These target approaches help manufacturers differentiate their offerings in a crowded market.

Technology products

Technology companies leverage veils insight to develop and market products:

Apple target innovators and experiences with cutting edge design and user experience
Microsoft appeal to achievers and thinkers with productivity and reliability message
Budget smartphone brands target strikers with affordable alternatives that offer similar status signals

This segmentation help explain why different consumers choose different technology products despite similar functionality.

Financial services

Banks and financial institutions tailor services and message to veils segments:

Private banking services target innovators and achievers with exclusivity and personalization
Investment firms appeal to thinkers with detailed information and long term planning
Credit unions oftentimes target believers and makers with community values and practical benefits

These target approaches help financial institutions build trust with specific consumer groups.

Integrate veils with other segmentation approaches

While powerful, veils work wellspring when combine with other segmentation methods:

Val’s and demographics

Combine veils with demographic data create richer consumer profiles. For example,experiencess in different age brackets may have different product preferences despite similar psychological motivations. This combined approach help marketers fine tune messaging and product features.

Val’s and geographic segmentation

Geographic considerations add important context to veils segments. Urban makers may have different product needs than rural makers, despite share core values. This integration help with distribution strategy and regional marketing campaigns.

Val’s and behavioral segmentation

Understand how veils segments really behave in the marketplace add crucial implementation details. For instance, know that achievers in a particular category are principally repeat purchasers whileexperiencess oftentimes switch brands inform loyalty program design and promotional strategies.

Future directions for veils and market segmentation

Evolve consumer values

Consumer values continue to evolve, require updates to segmentation frameworks:

Increase emphasis on sustainability across segments
Grow importance of digital experiences and virtual communities
Shift definitions of success and achievement
Greater focus on health and wellness considerations

These evolve values may require refinements to the veils framework or complementary approaches to capture emerge consumer priorities.

Digital applications of veils

Modern technology enable more sophisticated application of veils principles:

Ai power analysis of consumer behavior to identify veils segments
Personalized digital experiences base on veils characteristics
Dynamic message that adapts to different segments in real time
Integration with customer data platforms for holistic consumer profiles

These technological applications make veils more accessible and actionable for businesses of all sizes.

Global adaptations of veils

As businesses become progressively global, adapt veils for different cultural contexts become essential:

Localized veils frameworks for major markets
Cross-cultural research to identify universal and culture specific values
Hybrid approaches that combine veils with local segmentation models

These adaptations help global brands maintain consistent positioning while respect cultural differences.

Conclusion: the enduring value of veils typology

The veils typology continue to provide marketers with valuable insights into consumer motivation and behavior. By understand the psychological drivers behind purchase decisions, businesses can develop more effective products, communications, and strategies.

While no segmentation framework is perfect, veils offer a structured approach to understand the complex relationships between consumer values and marketplace behavior. When thoughtfully apply and combine with other segmentation approaches,veilss help businesses move beyond superficial demographic categories to create meaningful connections with consumers.

As consumer values continue to evolve and technology create new opportunities for personalization, the principles behind veils remain relevant. By focus on the fundamental human motivations that drive consumer behavior, marketers can develop strategies that resonate with their target audiences level as specific preferences change.

The virtually successful applications of veils recognize both its power and limitations, use it as one important tool in a comprehensive approach to understanding and serve consumers. By embrace this balanced perspective, marketers can leverageveilss to create more meaningful, relevant, and effective market segmentation strategies.