User-Based Targeting: The Segmentation Approach That Builds Your Strategy Around Who Your Customer Actually Is

I'll admit something that might sound obvious: for years, I defaulted to thinking about marketing audiences as clusters of behaviors. Click patterns, purchase histories, time-on-site metrics. And those things matter. But at some point I realized I'd been so focused on what people do that I'd lost sight of something more fundamental: who they are.

That's the core idea behind user-based targeting. It's the practice of segmenting and reaching audiences based on their identity characteristics (demographics, psychographics, firmographics, stated preferences) rather than solely on their behavioral signals or purchase occasions. It's the "who" in the classic marketing question of who, what, when, where, and why.

What Is User-Based Targeting?

User-based targeting is a segmentation and targeting approach that groups consumers based on persistent personal attributes rather than transient behaviors or situational contexts. The idea is straightforward: different types of people have different needs, and your marketing should reflect those differences.

Where occasion-based targeting asks "when is the customer most receptive?" and behavioral targeting asks "what has the customer done?", user-based targeting asks "who is this person, and what do they need?"

The approach draws on several established segmentation dimensions:

• Demographics: Age, gender, income, education, household composition
• Psychographics: Values, attitudes, lifestyle, personality traits
• Firmographics: Company size, industry, revenue, tech stack (for B2B)
• Technographics: Device preferences, platform usage, digital literacy
• Needs-based attributes: Pain points, goals, motivations

User-Based vs. Other Targeting Approaches

I find it helpful to think of targeting approaches as answering different questions about the same customer. Here's how they compare:

None of these approaches is inherently better than the others. The smartest marketers layer them. But user-based targeting gives you the foundation, the stable identity profile that other targeting signals can be mapped onto.

How User-Based Targeting Actually Works

The process follows a logical sequence that aligns with the broader strategic targeting framework:

Step 1: Define User Attributes That Matter

Not every attribute is relevant for every business. A luxury fashion brand cares deeply about income and lifestyle. A B2B cybersecurity company cares about company size, industry, and compliance requirements. The first step is identifying which user attributes actually predict purchase behavior in your category.

Step 2: Collect and Unify Data

User-based targeting requires identity data, which comes from CRM systems, customer surveys, registration forms, third-party data enrichment (tools like Clearbit, Apollo, and ZoomInfo), and increasingly from zero-party data (information customers voluntarily share).

Adobe notes that the data collection foundation includes "browsing history, purchase history, demographics, search history, app usage, and social media activity," but for user-based targeting specifically, the focus is on the persistent identity attributes rather than the transient behavioral signals.

Step 3: Build User Segments

Group users into segments based on shared attributes. The key here is that each person is assigned to one primary segment and typically stays there. This is different from behavioral targeting, where someone can move between segments hourly.

Step 4: Develop Segment-Specific Value Propositions

Each user segment gets tailored messaging, offers, and even product configurations. This is where user-based targeting connects to positioning and the marketing mix.

Real-World Examples of User-Based Targeting

When User-Based Targeting Works Best (And When It Doesn't)

I think the honest answer about user-based targeting is that it's necessary but often insufficient on its own.

User-based targeting excels when:

• Your product serves fundamentally different needs for different types of people
• Purchase cycles are long and considered (B2B, financial services, healthcare)
• You're building a brand identity that needs to resonate with a specific audience
• Your product line has clear segments (think Honda Civic vs. Honda CR-V vs. Honda Odyssey, each targeting a different life stage)

User-based targeting falls short when:

• The same person has wildly different needs depending on context (I buy different coffee when I'm working at my desk versus meeting a friend versus grabbing something at the airport)
• Purchase decisions are driven more by mood and moment than by identity
• Your category is high-frequency and occasion-driven (QSR, snacks, beverages)

As Escalent points out, "traditional person-based segmentation works well for many brands, but it can fall short when dealing with higher frequency categories" where the occasion drives the purchase more than the person does.

The best approach, in my experience, is to start with user-based segments as your foundation and then layer occasion-based and behavioral signals on top.

What's Changed: User-Based Targeting in the Privacy-First Era (2020-2026)

The biggest shift in user-based targeting over the past five years isn't strategic; it's technical. The tools available for identifying and reaching user segments have undergone a massive overhaul due to privacy regulations and platform changes.

The old model relied heavily on third-party cookies and data brokers to build user profiles across the web. You could buy demographic and psychographic data from Oracle Data Cloud, Acxiom, or LiveRamp and target users across the open web with reasonable precision.

The new model (post-GDPR, post-iOS 14.5, post-cookie deprecation) requires:

• First-party data strategies: Building your own identity graph through direct customer relationships
• Zero-party data collection: Quizzes, preference centers, progressive profiling (companies like Typeform and Octane AI have built businesses on this)
• Unified identity platforms: CDPs like Segment and mParticle that stitch together user identities across touchpoints
• Contextual alternatives: When you can't identify the user, target the context instead

Sprinklr notes that by 2025, marketing personalization moved "beyond traditional segment-based audience targeting to dynamic, individual-level targeting, driven by unified identity graphs and predictive analytics." The identity graph is the new backbone of user-based targeting.

User-Based Targeting and the Broader Marketing Ecosystem

User-based targeting connects to nearly every major marketing concept:

• Brand Positioning: Your positioning should speak to a specific user segment's needs and worldview
• Competitive Value Map: Different user segments may plot your product differently on the value map
• Customer Equity: User segments have different lifetime values; allocate accordingly
• Brand Equity: Strong brands have a clear user identity they attract and serve
• Conversion Rate: Conversion improves dramatically when messaging matches user identity

Thought Leaders and Key Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

What is user-based targeting in marketing?

User-based targeting is a segmentation approach that groups and reaches audiences based on persistent personal attributes like demographics, psychographics, and firmographics, rather than transient behaviors or purchase occasions. It answers the question "who is the customer?" as the foundation for marketing strategy.

How is user-based targeting different from behavioral targeting?

User-based targeting segments by who people are (age, income, values, company size), while behavioral targeting segments by what people do (pages visited, items purchased, emails opened). User-based segments are relatively stable over time, while behavioral segments can change rapidly.

What data do you need for user-based targeting?

You need identity data: demographics (age, gender, income, location), psychographics (values, interests, lifestyle), and for B2B, firmographics (company size, industry, tech stack). This data comes from CRM systems, registration forms, surveys, customer data platforms, and third-party enrichment providers.

Is user-based targeting still effective after cookie deprecation?

Yes, but the mechanisms have shifted. Instead of relying on third-party cookies and data brokers, marketers now build first-party identity graphs through direct customer relationships, zero-party data collection (quizzes, preference centers), and unified customer data platforms.

When should you use user-based targeting vs. occasion-based targeting?

Use user-based targeting when your product serves fundamentally different needs for different types of people (B2B, financial services, durable goods). Use occasion-based targeting when the same person has different needs depending on the moment (food, beverages, entertainment). Most sophisticated strategies layer both approaches.

What is the STP framework and how does it relate to user-based targeting?

STP stands for Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning, a framework attributed to Philip Kotler. User-based targeting is the "T" in STP, specifically the approach of selecting which user segments to serve based on segment attractiveness and the company's ability to serve them.

Can user-based targeting be too narrow?

Yes. Byron Sharp's research at the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute suggests that hyper-segmentation can limit growth by reducing reach. The counterargument is that targeting should be broad enough to allow for category growth while focused enough to make messaging relevant. It's a tension every marketer has to manage.

How does user-based targeting work in B2B marketing?

In B2B, user-based targeting uses firmographic data (company size, industry, revenue, tech stack) combined with the individual buyer's role and seniority. Account-based marketing (ABM) is essentially user-based targeting applied at the company level, with personalized campaigns for specific high-value accounts.

Sources & References

1. Kotler, P. and Keller, K.L. Marketing Management, 16th Edition. Pearson, 2021.
2. Sharp, B. How Brands Grow. Oxford University Press, 2010.
3. Adobe. "What is Behavioral Targeting." Link
4. Sprinklr. "Top 10 Marketing Trends of 2025." Link
5. Escalent. "Occasion-Based Segmentation." Link
6. Smart Insights. "STP Marketing: Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning." Link
7. Aerospike. "What is Customer Targeting?" Link

Written by Conan Pesci | April 5, 2026 | Markeview.com

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