The Measures of Market Demand

There are many productive ways to break down the market:

• The potential market is the set of consumers with a sufficient level of interest in a market offer. However, their interest is not enough to define a market unless they also have sufficient income and access to the product.

• The available market is the set of consumers who have interest, income, and access to a particular offer. Eligible adults constitute the qualified available market—the set of consumers who have interest, income, access, and qualifications for the market offer.

• The target market is the part of the qualified available market the company decides to pursue.

• The penetrated market is the set of consumers who are buying the company’s product.

These definitions are a useful tool for market planning.