I Thought I Could Do It Myself.

One of the paradoxes of the leisure age is that people complain that they have no time and thus spend their money on "getting someone in" when their parents would have been more inclined to do it themselves.

Underlying this is a combination of factors such as the increased financial value we place on free time, the disposable society and a realisation that we have focussed our expertise to such an extent that previously basic tasks are beyond us. However, as costs rise and personal motivations change, there is inevitably going to be a fluidity between the two groups.

This is reflected in the Geek Squad's addition of another segmentation; that of the "I thought I could do it myselfers" which is immediately self-explanatory as that group of people who thought they were technically adept. In Britain, the Automobile Association (their version of AAA) presented themselves as the fourth emergency service to piggyback on the positive feelings of respect and authority engendered in the traditional emergency services of police, fire and ambulance.

I think it's a fertile source of potential growth in so many sectors combining, as it does, the three powerful and thus valued Rs - rescue, reassurance and re-education. If that's not a premium repackaging of your company's existing skills, then you should be taking the steps to ensure that it is and that you identify that group of consumers to whom you can become the heroic knight in shining armour. After all, hero worship is an even stronger emotion than mere enthusiasm.