Did you know that when it comes to buying decisions, women are doing the majority. Impressive right? Women account for 85 percent of anything and everything purchased according to Marti Barletta, author of the book Marketing to Women: How to Increase Your Share of the World’s Largest Market.
Well turns out, we don’t always keep women in mind when we are planning our marketing campaigns. And this just seems downright silly when you think about the downright power females have. With women accounting for 85 percent of spending decisions, you definitely want to capture their attention.
So, how do we do that? How do we target this extremely powerful market in a way that grabs their attention?
Well, you can start by asking yourself these questions as you continue to develop your marketing campaign:
What is the message?
Your message needs to be strategic and involve more than just “being great for women”. Take advice from some current advertisements. For example, laundry detergent commercials typically feature a stain that just won’t come out. That is, until the advertiser’s brand or product magically solves the problem! It’s important to showcase a problem your target audience might have, then offer a solution to that problem. Really you want to emphasize the value you and your product can offer.
Who is the audience?
You may think you have your target audience pinned down. But it pays off to take a second look. Barletta suggests that another big mistake that marketers and advertisers make is spending too much time looking at the Millenials. The Millennials are younger and are thought to sway often by changing fashion and other trends. But it is true that, in general, young women have less money than older women. Of course your product might be fit for a cross-generational campaign. The idea here is that you really consider what type of women you want to target. Nailing down “all women” as your target audience might not be the smartest or most tactful strategy.
Which media outlets are best for reaching women?
Print has proven to be a very efficient and effective way to reach women. Newspapers tend to carry feature stories that appeal to women and there are a myriad of magazines that target women. Daytime TV talk shows have a large audience which tends to be primarily female. You’ll have to be more tactful on social media sites as they tend to be genderless. In order to make the best moves on social media, try targeting specific female-oriented groups. There is one social media site that tends to be utilized by the ladies and that is Pinterest. This is a great site to advertise products and brands that center around home decor and DIY projects.
Of course, you shouldn’t forget about the men when you are working on your marketing campaign. But with women in control of a big slice of the buying power pie, you don’t want to miss out on targeting them. You absolutely must appeal to women if you hope to succeed in your campaign.