November 8, 2005

There are more women online today than men. Check out these stats from Jupiter Research:

>> 70 percent of all U.S. women will be online in 2006
>> 67 percent of women online make online purchases - and this number is expected to grow to 74 percent by 2010
>> in 2010, 85 million women will purchase products and services online

I got an e-mail invitation today to complete a survey about how I purchase technology products from WITI and IDC, titled "Let your Voice be Heard." It stated:

"WITI and IDC invite you to participate in an important research study about purchasing technology products.
This research will help technology vendors to develop, market, and sell technology products more effectively to you. The study will examine which technologies women are buying this holiday season and who they are buying them for. Individual responses will be kept strictly confidential and results will only be used in an aggregate manner.

We want to hear about your shopping experience for technology products this holiday season!"

It's gotten me thinking - Marqui markets a software service to women:

1) do we provide the right information to them in the right way to satisfy their needs?
2) how are women's informational needs different from men's?

In the survey, I noted that comparisons are important to me. As are recommendations from third-parties. It makes me realize we don't do a very good job online of providing comparisons. And our case studies (arguably third-party recommendations) are kind of buried in the client section of our site. I have to do a better job - based on my own admitted needs - for our prospects and clients. Imagine that!

I'd love to hear from others about companies (either technology or not) who do it right. I know Dove and Nike are making a lot of noise in their "unique" approaches to marketing to women... who else has the right voice?

Posted by at November 8, 2005

Comments

Emily email - emily.prblogs.org/

Marketing to women is particualry interesting to me mainly because it has changed so much in recent years. I remember past ads appealing strictly to a woman's desire for attractiveness. And, in the past, it worked. But now it's different.

Dove and Nike have finally identified with a "real" woman and push their products to those real women. Models are nice, but neither myself, nor my friends are quite the model type, so I enjoy seeing products with real women, over 90 pounds, trying to sell me a product.

Nike and Dove are one category though. Technology is another. Technology doesn't make me pretty, keep my skin oh-so-soft, or provide air shocks in my shoes. From my very unexpert opinion, real women in technology are smart women in technology. We know what we're talking about, and marketers need to recognize that and stay far, far away from dumbing down the information because they think some of us are incapable of understanding the technicalities.

I hate nothing more when people, intentionally or not, water down information because they don't think I'll understand since I'm female or young, especially when most of the time I know just as much, and sometimes more, about the service or product their trying to sell me.

I'm sure that your company has already encompassed this, and what I'm saying is nothing new. I'm just glad that other companies, other than beauty and health companies, are focused on marketing to women.

Kelli email - kelli.prblogs.org/

I love the Dove beauty campaigns and I am thankful that both Dove and Nike have taken the time to listen to what the consumer wants. I don't know how many times I have heard women say how sick they are of seeing stick skinny models in ad campaigns.

It is nice to see these two companies going against the norm and using their ad campaigns to show the average woman. I remember the actress Jaime Lee Curtis had herself photographed in a magazine in just a sports bra without any airbrushing to show that as a woman in her 40s, she is not super skinny and perfect. I think it is important for companies and even role models to depict real women and I am glad that Nike and Dove are finally stepping out.

I think it is so important that your company is researching to find out what a woman wants. I think it is great that Nike and Dove give their target women what they want, but it is nice to see that companies in fields other than apparel and beauty are looking into how to market to women.

Women in the business world are smart and savvy and deserve to be marketed to just like the next segment. I applaud your company on finding out how to market to a woman rather than as Emily said, "water down information because they don't think I'll understand since I'm female or young."

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