Innovative entrepreneurial ventures need to focus on solving the problems of a well defined group of users or beneficiaries. In the process, they will also need to deal with other groups or individuals involved in the purchase, adoption, and expansion of the solution.

Who are Stakeholders?

For many ventures, there are more than one person involved in the evaluation and decision to purchase and use a solution. Stakeholders are these individuals or groups in the roles you need to deal with to make your venture succeed. The types of stakeholders you need to understand may vary from venture to venture, but these are some of the most common:

• End-user: The person who will directly use/interact with and benefit directly from your solution.
• Economic buyer: The decision-maker who controls the budget and “signs-off” on the purchase of the solution. This may be the same person as the end-user (as is often the case with consumer products), but not always. In many B2B, non-profit, or social impact ventures, the economic buyer and end-user are different.
• Champion: An internal advocate who will push for your solution within the organization. Champions are invaluable for startups, especially when entering organizations that are risk-averse or bureaucratic.
• Veto power (blocker): Anyone who can say ‘no,’ even if others say ‘yes.’ For example, a security team may have veto power over a software purchase that deals with sensitive data.
• Influencers: People who decision makers look to and respect to help make their decision. A strong endorsement from an influencer can de-risk a decision. They can reside either inside the company or outside; for example, in media, industry groups, or consultancies.

See https://www.d-eship.com/articles/the-decision-making-unit-the-who-is-who-of-your-b2b-sales-process/ for more information on the types of stakeholders you may define for your venture.

What is a segment?

A set of customers who have the same or similar need/pain, and who share similar attributes which makes it easier to find and reach them.

For example, "parents" isn't a good customer segment; it's far too broad! You could break it down into stay at home parents vs working parents, younger parents or older parents, parents of young children or teenagers, etc. You could keep breaking it down further until you’ve found a set of potential customers with the same need. For example, working parents of a young child with food allergies.

Here are the most recognized types of segmentation:

1. Demographic Segmentation - objective population characteristics. For example: age, gender, income, education, family status.
2. Psychographic Segmentation - focuses on psychological traits, lifestyle, motivations, and values. For example: "outdoorsy," career oriented, eco-conscious, hedonistic, values quality over price, pressed for time, status-seeking.
3. Geographic Segmentation - based on location. For example: country/region, urban/rural, climate (colder northern regions vs tropical areas).
4. Behavioral Segmentation - based on actual customer behavior and purchase activities. For example, frequent vs occasional shoppers, mobile device vs computer users, people who commute to work.
5. Firmographic Segmentation (For B2B) - similar to demographics, but for organizations. For example: industry, company size, growth rate.