4 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Use MBTI for Market Segmentation
It’s true that modern marketers often try to borrow ideas from psychology to understand customers more deeply than just via demographics. Among the psychological tools widely known on social media, few are as familiar as the MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator). It helps us understand differences in people’s work styles, communication, and preferences.
Because it can “categorize” people somewhat neatly, MBTI seems like an attractive “shortcut” for segmentation. But trying to apply a tool meant for understanding “the work-self” to “the consumer self” becomes problematic.
It’s an example of using the wrong tool.
When you try to use a screwdriver to hammer a nail
Imagine you have a toolbox. Inside is a high-quality screwdriver designed for turning screws. But today you need to hammer a nail into the wall. Would you pick up that screwdriver? Probably not
because it’s not built for that job. Using MBTI for segmentation is analogous.
- The job of MBTI (the screwdriver): to understand personal preferences and internal thinking processes, often in a self or team development context.
-
The job of segmentation (the hammer): to identify groups of people who share buying behavior, needs, or similar motivations — so you can drive sales or build loyal customer bases.
A Closer Look: 4 Reasons Why This Screwdriver Just Can’t Hammer Nails
To make the picture clearer, here are four key reasons that emphasize why MBTI simply isn’t the right tool for market segmentation:
- The data is unreliable and unstable A strong marketing strategy needs stable, credible data. But MBTI results can shift over time. A truly reliable MBTI assessment requires a certified professional, not just an online quiz. Building segments from unstable, fluctuating data invites flawed interpretations.
- It’s almost impossible to collect at scale Practically speaking, how do you find out your entire target market’s MBTI types? Conducting appropriately rigorous surveys to collect that data is extremely difficult and not scalable.
- It leads to overgeneralization and overlooks complexity. Good marketing sees nuance. MBTI squeezes people into 16 boxes, which is a dangerous simplification. Buying behavior is influenced by values, lifestyle, context, and situation — far more than just personality type.
- It doesn’t directly tie to purchase behavior This is perhaps the most crucial point. There’s no clear evidence that people sharing the same MBTI type will buy the same products or exhibit the same consumer behavior. Investing marketing efforts in such segments becomes risky if those segments don’t correspond to meaningful demand.
So what is the marketer’s “hammer”?
Instead of forcing a psychological tool into a behavioral task, use tools that are built for marketing segmentation:
- Psychographic Segmentation — dividing audiences by lifestyle, values, interests. These are far more aligned with consumption decisions.
-
Behavioral Segmentation — grouping based on real actions (purchase frequency, brand loyalty, benefits sought).
-
Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) Framework — thinking about the “job” a customer “hires” a product to do in their life, which reveals deeper motivations beyond surface-level traits.
In Summary
Being professional doesn’t mean owning the fanciest tools — it means knowing which tool fits which job. MBTI is undeniably a great tool… but best reserved for internal development, not for mapping out your customer segments. When it’s time to strategize for growth and capture customer hearts (and wallets), pick the tools designed for marketing — and you’ll get sharper, more powerful results.