Global marketing and branding news for May 29, 2026. Today’s curated issues from Soulpapa Marketing.
Marketing Budget Targeted at Average Market Is Like Attacking an Already Shrinking Pie
Many attribute declining ROI to ad fatigue or budget constraints, but the more fundamental issue lies in the target market itself. While many brands design campaigns based on the abstract group of “average consumers,” that market was already substantially shrinking.
Consumer behavior is rapidly fragmenting. As populations divide by age, lifestyle, and purchase context, messaging premised on the average consumer becomes effective only in an increasingly narrow range. Strategies targeting the middle while ignoring diverse segments lose efficiency in both reach and conversion.
The precision of target definition is emerging as the key variable determining ROI. It is now an era where the decision of who to target matters more than budget size or creative quality in determining results.
This content is excerpted from Brand Marketing Issues/News for May 29, 2026. Check out the daily marketing news briefings curated by Soulpapa Marketing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I determine if our brand is targeting the ‘general market’?
If your campaign message is being delivered identically to all consumers regardless of age, lifestyle, or purchase context, it’s a signal of general market targeting. If you’re only tracking average performance without segment-specific conversion data, your target definition is not precise enough.
What criteria should I use when starting to segment targets to improve ROI?
Age, lifestyle, and purchase context are the key criteria for dividing consumer groups. Since ‘who you target’ determines performance more than budget size or creative quality, the starting point is to analyze existing customer data across these three dimensions and first derive segments with actual purchase patterns.
Insights from Soulpapa Marketing — Korea’s digital marketing agency.
Original Korean article: https://soulpapa.co.kr/2026/05/29/news-2026-05-29-%eb%a7%88%ec%bc%80%ed%8c%85-roi-%ed%95%98%eb%9d%bd-%ec%a7%84%ec%a7%9c-%ec%9b%90%ec%9d%b8%ec%9d%80-%ec%9d%bc%eb%b0%98-%ec%8b%9c%ec%9e%a5-%ed%83%80%ea%b2%9f%ed%8c%85/
