Low-end and high-end consumers

"Instead of producing a one-size-fits all offer and hoping for mass market take-up, smart competitors are instead going to focus on tailoring what they do to the needs of the different segments. To win, you need to dig deeply into the specific behaviors that motivate customer groups.
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At the low end, is price really all that motivates a buyer? If that’s what you think, you’re highly unlikely to develop a winning strategy.
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Smart retailers like dollar stores are winning by figuring this out. One strategy they use might be called the “good things in small packages” approach. If shoppers don’t have the money, you can’t expect them to buy the large, economy size. If the small, wasteful size is all they can manage, that’s all they will buy. (Moi ici: Nunca, entraram numa dessas lojas que nos dizem que têm os preços mais baixos e, por uma questão de conveniência, procuraram uma embalagem unitária e só encontraram packs familiares, mas para famílias numerosas?)
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At the high end, the challenges are different. The first problem is that it is increasingly difficult to promote the lure of exclusivity. Not only are products for the high end remarkably similar to those which the low end can aspire to, but there are so many other high-end customers that the offers are commoditized. High-end customers, too, are driven in their shopping habits by behaviors, but because they have more resources to act on their choices, it can be bewildering to try to navigate through them. Scholars have found, for instance, that more choices often mean less choosing.
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For the high end, three complements to the usual offers of “new and improved” can make a difference.  The first is to add a component of virtue to the consumption experience.
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The second is to add an experiential element that differentiates an offer...
The third approach is to recognize that at the high end, consumers are drowning in choices and to give them an easy path through the confusion.
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The point about the hourglass is that customers are not defined solely by their economic circumstances."

Trechos retirados de "How companies can win both the low-end and high-end consumer"