A marketing consultant recently narrated his experience in selling market research services to businesses. He had diligently segmented his market and zeroed in on his target segment. But to his dismay, the businesses that he thought needed his services the most, were the ones who were dragging their feet on decisions. Many of us have had this experience. Is there a way to proactively avoid this situation?

Classical segmentation – revenue, size, vertical, geography – is a good way to get started. But as professional service providers, we need to be recognize that our buyers within the target company might have an agenda that needs to be negotiated. The model below of prospects is one way of segmenting the market.

Do not see the benefits of your offering.	Buyer of your services sees the benefit. But he is faced with the dilemma “This is my job. How can I outsource this to you?”	Have a huge need for your services. Lack the skills internally. No one in the organization currently performs the job.	Large organizations with well-established practices for outsourcing. Typically time-constrained. Appreciate the value of your services.
Should not be pursued.	Should be engaged if only to unearth objections to your offerings.	Should be pursued aggressively. Qualify early for their ability to buy your services.	Should be pursued aggressively. Have ability to pay. Need to have a clear and crisp story on why your service offering is better than others.

The above model provides a quick and easy way to segment prospects for your professional services. It may need to be tweaked for your industry and offering, but the pattern plays out quite often across industries. Following this model helps you cut through the initial noise and stay focused on where you are most likely to succeed.