Women are in charge of the money more now than ever before – so it’s no surprise that marketers are targeting them specifically. Many sources (Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus) purport the differences between the sexes, and the approach from a marketing standpoint has been to speak to the heart of a woman.
Society has repeatedly stereotyped women as the emotional sex and men as the logical sex, but in real life things are never so succinctly divided. However, much research has gone into finding messages that reach women in particular and how to tap into their emotions in order to make the sale. Studies show that women will be engaged more by how a product/service will support their family & relationships (whereas men will connect more with how a product/service gets to a desired end result, and how well it does that), so stories/anecdotes will be more engaging for women (rather than performance stats). Also, how a product/service will help a woman be a better wife, mother, daughter, sister, etc., will speak to women more than men (again, the “relationship” piece). This is a gross generalization, of course, but there’s a lot out there that’s been expanded since brain research has shown some clear gender differences. For instance, look at this excerpt from a blog we enjoy(One Woman Marketing):
Women make up just half the population, but they make over 80% of all household purchases. And they’re not just shopping for stereotypically feminine products such as clothing and cosmetics. Women also make:
- 65% of new car purchases
- 91% of travel purchases
- 57% of electronics purchases
- 63% of all purchases made online
Despite their consumer power, most women feel that marketers and advertisers just don’t get them. (91% of women, according to one recent study.)
Angela Shupe’s blog post discusses how consultants Sandie Glass and Laura Wolfram head up a consultants group run by women in order to provide solutions to marketers looking to reach their female audience.
What do you think? Do you have to be a woman in order to reach a woman? Share your comments with us below!
Tags: internet marketing, Marketing, Reno
