The Universe

Our discussion of the marketing mix made the point that in today’s business environment, products are developed with a target market in mind. The sum of all occupants of the target market is known to salespeople as the universe. It is the largest possible number of potential customers. For example, suppose you are a photographer who specializes in portraits of newborns and young children. The target market/universe for your photographic services consists of all parents—those of newborns as well as of young children—within your territory or area of business (we specify parents because they, and not their children, make this buying decision), as well as school districts that provide individual and class portraits, youth sport organizations that provide individual and team pictures, and gift givers (such as grandparents).