attitudes. By determining groups of people with similar attitudes, we understand why individuals and these groups behave as they do.
The chart supports this viewpoint reporting on the 30 years of research Strategic Directions Group, Inc. and its subsidiary Motivo|consulting have done on the attitudes of the 40 and older market regarding health. As is evident from the chart the sizes of each of our four Health segments based on attitudes has hardly fluctuated through three decades
The Proactives who smoke the least and exercise the most still represent about one in three persons who are 40 and older. In contrast, Faithful Patients who put their entire faith in their doctors and the pills they dispense remain about one in four of those 40 and older.
To our Health segmentation which covers health attitudes in general, we have also developed two additional health segmentations based on attitudes: Health Information and Health Compliance. Detailed descriptions of all three of our psychographic segmentations on health can be found here.
To these psychographic segmentations we routinely layer other data we have tracked over the past 30 years. These run the gamut from prescription drugs taken to doctor visits, diseases to hospitalizations, as well as scores of other measures. This layering process helps us to arrive at a rich, deep, and textured view of what motivates each segment.
Over the years we have found a high level of consistency between our psychographic variables and these additional measures. For example, those in our Optimist segment have continued to exercise frequently.
By comparing the segments with such things as actual or potential products, services, and government programs we can predict adoption or rejection. By knowing which psychographic segment or segments find a product or service most appealing, advertising messages, media, and markets can be far more effectively chosen.
As experts in the mature market we have, in addition to our Health segments, developed eight additional segmentations of the U.S. 40 and older market including psychographic segmentations on finance, lifestyle, travel, food, and cars. Our nine psychographic segmentation strategies are described in our book Marketing to the Mindset of Boomers and Their Elders available at Amazon.com.