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Anonymous A
on Feb 27, 2020
Global
I want to receive updates regarding this question via email.

Market sizing

Hello community.

So most market sizings have two main segments (B2B & B2C). (e.g number of matresses, or number of light bubls). In a typical interview setting, would it be acceptable to clarify with the interviewer on which segments I should place emphasis on? and secondly, how could I pose the question? 

thank you 

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Top answer
Udayan
Coach
on Feb 27, 2020
Top rated Case & PEI coach/Multiple real offers/McKinsey EM in New York /12 years recruiting experience

If you were to estimate something like mattresses which arguably are sold in both B2C and B2B channels you could do the following

1. Clarify in the begining of the interview - just ask something like 'I believe mattresses can be both via B2C and B2B channels. For now would you like me to focus on B2C or both?'

2. The easiest way is to calculate B2C numbers and then add a multiplication factor in the end for B2B sales

All the best,

Udayan

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Luca
Coach
on Feb 27, 2020
BCG |NASA | SDA Bocconi & Cattolica partner | GMAT expert 780/800 score | 200+ students coached

Hello,

It's completely fine to ask clarification before to start, but usually the question will be like "Could you estimate the number of matresses in London?" or "How many light bulbs are sold every year in USA?" In these cases is already clear what are the cluster that you have to consider.

Could you make an example where you could consider both segments?

Best,
Luca

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Clara
Coach
on Feb 27, 2020
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

Agree with Luca: altough your question is a valid one and you should be aware of the different segments, normally  it is embebbedin the prompt . 

Cheers, 

Clara

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Francesco
Coach
on Apr 01, 2020
#1 Coach for Sessions (4.500+) | 1.500+ 5-Star Reviews | Proven Success: ➡ interviewoffers.com | Ex BCG | 10Y+ Coaching

Hi there,

it is totally fine to clarify the segments. You could simply state something as the following “I believe in this case we could consider Segment A and Segment B; would you like to have an estimate for both of them or could we concentrate on Segment A only?”

Best,
Francesco

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Vlad
Coach
on Feb 27, 2020
McKinsey / Accenture Alum / Got all BIG3 offers / Harvard Business School

Hi,

Yes, you absolutely should ask any clarifying questions that can remove ambiguity:

  • Units or dollars?
  • B2C / B2C / Both?
  • Timeframe
  • Etc

Best

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Ian
Coach
edited on Aug 26, 2021
Top US BCG / MBB Coach - 5,000 sessions |Tech, Platinion, Big 4 | 9/9 personal interviews passed | 95% candidate success

Yes, clarifications are generally advised if they help you formulate your solutions.

Like with any questions, you need to "pro-actively" ask in a hypothesis-driven way, rather than just ask.

So, for example, instead of asking "what are the segments," say "I believe the 2 main segments are this. I think I can just focus on this one because the 2nd is quite small...does that sound reasonable?"

Take a look here for additional practice! https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/brain-teaser/intermediate/taxis-in-manhattan-market-sizing-229

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Antonello
Coach
on Feb 29, 2020
McKinsey | NASA | top 10 FT MBA professor for consulting interviews | 6+ years of coaching

Hi,
yes, it's totally fine asking clarifying questions at the beginning of the case to fully understand the objective. However, I recommend to do it in a proactive way, by stating your hypothesis instead of asking a broad question, e.g. "I would include in the estimation both mattresses for privates, in their houses, and for hotels, hospitals, ... Can I proceed with it?"

Best,
Antonello

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