An extremely popular and effective form of segmentation categorizes consumers in terms of product, service, or brand usage characteristics, such as usage rate, awareness status and degree of brand loyalty. Rate of usage segmentation differentiates among heavy users, medium users, light users, and non-users of a specific product, service or brand.

Most marketers prefer to target campaigns to the heavy users, rather than spend considerably more money trying to attract light users. Marketers of a host of other products have found that a relatively small group of heavy users accounts for a disproportionately large percentage of product usage, and targeting these heavy users has become the basis of their marketing strategy. Other marketers take note of the gaps in market coverage for light and medium users, and profitably target these segments.

Marketers also consider the current versus the future potential of consumer segments when setting marketing strategy. Non-users represent a special challenge, marketers have to decide whether non-users are a potentially worth-while segment, or whether the resources needed to convert them into users can be better spent in trying to lure present users away from competitive products (i.e. is increasing their own market share).

Awareness status encompasses the notion of consumer awareness, interest level, or buyer readiness. Marketers have to determine whether potential consumers are aware of the product, interested in the product, or need to be informed about the product. Sometimes Brand loyalty is used as the basis for segmentation.

Marketers often try to identify the characteristics of their brand-loyal consumers so that they can direct their promotional offers to people with similar characteristics. Other marketers target consumers who show no brand loyalty, in the belief that such people represent greater market potential than consumers who are loyal to competing brands. Brand switchers or non-brand-loyal consumers also suggest a different type of marketing mix to the marketing practitioner.

Increasingly, marketers reinforce brand loyalty by offering special benefits to consistent or frequent customers. Such frequent usage or relationship programs often take the form of a membership “club”. Relationship programs tend to provide special accommodations and services as well as free extras, to keep these frequent customers loyal and happy.