Marketing to Women Online

Volkswagen's Accident Commercial

When was the last time you saw a car commercial and actually paid attention to it?  And, if it got your attention, did it make you want to drive that car?

This is a question that came up when I was discussing Volkswagen's TV commercial with the unexpected accident (click films).   Jeffrey asked me if "safety" was a women's thing.  When it comes to cars, I believe it is.   Women are often the ones driving precious cargo (kids, dogs) so I believe they are very safety conscious.

But how did Volkswagen do with their accident commercial?  Is it effective?  Does it make you want to buy a Volkswagen?

Jeff Sexton has an insightful look into why he feels the commercial does NOT work, but even better, he has suggestions for how it could be altered to be more effective.   

The Difference One Letter Can Make

I was sitting at a dockside restaurant with an old friend.   He was visiting me for the first time in years and we were enjoying a beautiful sunset gawking at the "dingies" (aka huge friggin yachts) in the harbor.

It was quite a sight, so he pulled out his phone, took a picture of us, and sent it to his girlfriend with a nice message.

So imagine his surprise when he got a nasty text back from his gal.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that instead of typing, "Wish you were here", he typed "Wish you were her".   

Ah, the power of a single letter.   Mary Schmidt knows the power of single letter as well.   Plus the power of truly understanding your audience.   See how the difference between Chili and Chile helped doom a local festival.   There's a powerful message here.

When you're trying to speak to a particular audience (like women) pay attention to every detail.   Little things make a big difference.

How Long Does It Take Her To Make Up Her Mind?

If a woman comes to your website and looks at a product (visits a product page), but then leaves without taking any action, most websites would consider that an unsuccessful visit.  She did not convert (buy the product she looked at).  But was that really an unsuccessful visit?    

ScanAlert has a fascinating new study out tracking how long it takes people to buy products online (from first visit to the website to completing the transaction).   This study measures all visitors, not just women, but the results are still very relevant.   

Grokdotcom studied the results from the report.

A new study suggests that online shoppers are taking twice as long to buy as they did just two years ago. From May 2005 to May 2007, the difference between customer's first visit to a site and the time they bought increased from 19 hours to over 34 hours.

Many are attributing this rise to more comparison shopping.    Women are big comparison shoppers.  But don't be fooled into thinking it's all about price.   Finding something that is "just right" is very important to her.  She also has a lot of people to please.   If she's planning a vacation, it may take a while to get consensus from the whole family.

But there's another factor to take into consideration.  Women are extremely time starved.  They grab a few minutes here, a few minutes there.  She might start her search at work during her lunch break, then continue it at home when she has a free moment.   

Plus, some sales cycles are just longer than others.   A new book or shirt might be an impulse buy, but choosing health insurance, or buying a new car will likely take more time, thought, and research.

So, she may have visited and left without buying, but that may not necessarily be an unsuccessful visit.   Make sure you measure more than just conversion to a sale.   Is she visiting pages where she's getting important information about your products?   Is she checking out your return policies?   Is she signing up for a newsletter or downloading a pdf or viewing a video?   These are all measurable actions she is taking.   Make sure you are planning for and measuring these actions as well.

Check out the full report.

LPGA Stars Are Racking Up Sponsors

Have you watched the LPGA lately?  Have you watched the LPGA at all?   If not, you're missing out. 

Sure The PGA has Tiger Woods.   And there are certainly some exciting young players moving up the ranks.   But the LPGA has something the PGA doesn't have - pretty girls.   

Yes, they are very attractive, but they are also competitive, and driven, and athletic.  These ladies are smashing the snot out of the ball. 

Advertisers are taking note. 

I recently ran across a magazine ad for Audemars Piguet watches featuring Cristie Kerr, Morgan Pressel, and softball star Jennie Finch.   Yes, the ad had that windblown airbrushed feel.   But all three women were smiling, looking poised, confident, and, in my opinion, powerful.

What a wonderful change from the watch ads with some fake-looking model with a pouty look on her face.   

I often wonder who our role models are for our daughters.  Who do you look at and go, "What a wonderful young woman.  I hope my daughter can grow up to be just like her"?  Seriously....who are our daughters looking up to?  Who are their role models?  Paris Hilton?  Lindsay Lohan?   God help us all.

I was watching the final hole of the U.S. Open as Cristie Kerr was collected and business-like down to the last 8 inch putt.   She gutted it out, never lost her cool, and won one of the most prestigious events in women's sports.   When I grow up I want to be just like her.

Marketers - if you're targeting women - and you want celebrity endorsements- check out the LPGA.    But you better get to these amazing women fast, because their plates are going to fill up quickly.