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Article: Customer Segmentation & City-based Opportunity Discovery
If we have any question that
“Who are your business’s gold customers?”
It sounds like a simple question… but the answer is far more complex than we think.
About Dataset
Indian Personal Finance and Spending Habits.csv
8.6 MB
I had the opportunity to analyze spending behavior data from over 20,000 individuals in Indian personal finance and spending habits, aiming to identify the customers businesses should truly focus on – not just those with money, but those who have disposable income, the willingness to spend, invest, and stay loyal.
Here’s the story the data told me…
🏃♂️ : 20,000 People Income Distribution
I started by analyzing the Income distribution of the dataset from Descriptive statistics:
I found that:
The distribution was heavily skewed toward high-income earners, making the average higher than the median.
To find those who were “exceptionally rich”, I applied a Z-score threshold (Z > 2).
Tableau Calculated field
IF [Z_Score]>2 then "Wealth Outlier"
ELSE "Nornal Group"
END
1. Who are the Wealth Outlier and Normal Group?
Using Z-Score segmentation on 20,000 individuals, we find:
In contrast,
2. Income and Expense Relationship: Correlation = 0.9468
The scatter plot shows a nearly linear trend:
This high correlation suggests:
3. Spending Behavior of Each Group: What and Why?
From the average expense chart:
Other categories like Transport, Education, Utilities also show higher values across the board.
📌 Key Insight:
🚪✨Unlocking the Goldmine: What Disposable Income Can Reveal
Disposable income is a goldmine of insight that leads us to discover the “golden customers” — what business professionals call High-Value Customers, or as we like to say, “walking profits”
🧾 Dashboard Analysis: Where Do “Walking Profits” Live?
If you only look at income, you may miss the real opportunity. But when you look at what’s left, you’ll discover profits that walk.
1. Dashboard Deep Dive: Disposable Income in Focus
📊 Left Chart – Disposable Income Distribution
👨👩👧👦 Middle Chart – Demography Breakdown
🏙️ Bottom Chart – City Tier Analysis
2. What Are “Walking Profits”?
“Walking Profits” are customers who spend little but save a lot. They are resilient, reliable, and recession-proof.
This dashboard helps us:
3. The Big Reveal 💥
The most exciting insight:
City Tier 3—small, often overlooked cities—have the highest average disposable income!
While big cities chase luxury, the small cities quietly raise stable, financially sound customers.
These are the “Walking Profits” that pass us every day. If you analyze deep enough, you’ll discover value hidden in plain sight.
Why does City Tier 3 exhibit a higher level of disposable income?
Tier 3 – The Frugal Winners with the Highest Savings
Although City Tier 3 does not have the highest average income (just 42,031 THB, comparable to others),
what stands out is their average disposable income, which is the highest at 13,718 THB.
Why is this the case?
Let’s break it down based on the Dashboard visualization:
1. 📉 Lowest Spending Across Categories (Avg. Value)
2. 🏠 Lower Cost of Living in Key Categories
while Tier 1 pays as high as 12,321 THB
are also consistently cheaper in Tier 3 cities
💡 Business Insight
Tier 3 residents can be labeled as “Low Spenders, High Savers”
Their frugal lifestyle isn’t just a necessity—it’s a value-based behavior
→ This makes them financially resilient and ideal targets for long-term financial products, savings plans, and sustainable consumer services
🏠🌾 Golden Customers May Not Live in Big Cities
When Insight Reveals That Small Cities Hold the Real Growth Potential
Traditionally, we assume that High-Value Customers live in major cities — with high income, extravagant spending, and access to premium goods.
But our latest insight challenges this narrative:
“Small cities, where people have a high Disposable Income, turn out to be more fertile ground for growth than big cities.”
It sounds surprising at first — but makes perfect sense once we break it down.
Why Are Small Cities a Hidden Goldmine?
📌 1. Small cities = Room for development
Unlike overcrowded metropolises, small cities still have space — physically and economically — to grow. Investment here can bring faster and clearer results.
📌 2. High disposable income = Hidden purchasing power
People in small cities who consistently save money are not just surviving — they're ready to spend, invest, and elevate their lifestyle when given the right opportunities.
📌 3. Better quality of life = More intentional spending
With less stress, lower crime, and more leisure time, residents of small cities tend to spend on things that improve happiness and well-being.
📌 4. Lower costs = Higher ROI
With lower costs of living and operations, launching products or businesses in small cities often yields a better return on investment compared to saturated big cities.
Conclusion
When seeking your next high-value customer, don’t limit your view to high rises and highways.
Look to the quieter towns — where money may not shout, but potential speaks volumes. 🌱
💻📦 Digital Products & The Untapped Goldmine of Small Cities: When Surplus Money Meets Smart Opportunities
Here’s the surprising insight:
Small cities, often overlooked in major market strategies, are now emerging as fertile ground for digital commerce. Why? Because they house people with disposable income but fewer spending channels. This makes them perfect candidates for the rise of Digital Products.
Why Are Digital Products a Smart Fit for Small Cities?
Business Intelligence Lens:
If we think like BI Analysts…
Small Cities = High Savings + Low Cost Structure + Digital Accessibility
This equation makes Digital Products a scalable, affordable, and smart investment for consumers in small towns. These residents aren’t just potential buyers—they’re potential creators, ready to join the digital economy with their savings.
Small towns are no longer small players — they’re the silent engine rooms of the digital future.
📊 Summary Conclusion
The data analysis of over 20,000 lives challenges the traditional belief that “gold customers” are found only in big cities with high income and extravagant spending. Instead, it reveals that small Tier 3 cities—often overlooked—hold the highest average disposable income. This surprising insight stems from their lower cost of living, mindful spending habits, and a greater tendency to save. While Wealth Outliers in urban centers spend as a lifestyle investment, residents in smaller cities quietly accumulate savings, making them financially resilient and ideal long-term customers. These individuals, dubbed “walking profits,” may not flaunt their wealth, but they represent consistent value. Through a Business Intelligence lens, small cities emerge as untapped goldmines—where high savings, frugality, and digital readiness converge. In today’s economic landscape, growth isn’t just found in skyscrapers and capital cities—it may well be hiding in plain sight, in the quieter corners of the country.
In addition, this analysis of over 20,000 lives is more than a storytelling exercise — it is a fusion of statistical rigor and intelligent data visualization using Tableau. The journey began with Descriptive Statistics to understand the distribution of income, capturing key metrics like max, min, average, and standard deviation. This formed the foundation to distinguish the norm from the extraordinary.
Next, the Z-score method was applied to segment individuals with exceptionally high income—designating them as Wealth Outliers based on a statistical threshold (Z > 2). This objective segmentation allowed the analysis to go beyond assumptions and into data-driven personas.
A key statistical insight came from analyzing the correlation between income and expenses. With a coefficient of 0.9468, the data revealed a strong positive relationship—those who earn more tend to spend more, especially on rent and groceries, highlighting lifestyle-driven financial behavior among Wealth Outliers.
The use of Tableau elevated this storytelling into a visual experience. Calculated Fields were employed to classify income groups by Z-score, while interactive dashboards unveiled layers of insight across disposable income, generational behavior, and city tier comparisons. It was this dashboard-driven lens that exposed an unexpected revelation: Tier 3 cities, often ignored in conventional strategy, boast the highest average disposable income.
This isn’t just about finding patterns—it’s about uncovering human stories hidden in data. By applying statistics and visualization with purpose, this article transforms raw numbers into a compelling narrative that leads to real business insight and reveals where the true gold customers reside.
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