By MaKenzie Hall
Written for: HellaBlack @ Layla Nielsen & Co. Internship
Published on: HellaBlack and Layla Nielsen & Co.
By the end of 2021, women are expected to control $43 trillion of global consumer spending and they already drive about 80% of all consumer purchasing decisions; however, 91% of women believe marketers and advertisers don't understand them. Why is that? In simple terms, women are undervalued. Most marketing still relies heavily on stereotypical behaviors, colors, imagery, and calls to action that are outdated and tacky. Treat your women consumers at an equal footing and respect level given to your male consumers. This simple idea will truly upgrade the customer experience women receive from your company and more often than not will lead to other women gaining interest through word-of-mouth. Continue reading for ways to improve your current marketing strategy to involve women.
How to Market to Women?
Values-Based Marketing - This is no longer an expectation just from women consumers, but millennials, and gen-z consumers, as well. 85% of women will remain loyal to a brand they like regardless of price. What is your company representing? What is your company making convenient? Do you have women in your c-suite or on your marketing team? Are you listening to women’s influence?
Diverse Messaging - Work with women from all walks of life because different women respond to different messaging. Give them flexibility to relate your company to their audience. Work with women whose lifestyles align with what you’re selling for more authentic messages.
Updated Messaging - Say goodbye to shrinking products and making them pink. Try implementing women’s history, issues, and progression into your messaging. Address what current women are wanting and needing to make their lives easier. Consult your women consumers specifically on what they are expecting and wanting from your company. Consider trending content and women influences in pop culture to get an idea of what messages are currently working.
Expand Social Profiles - Look at other trending social media platforms outside of Instagram and Twitter, like TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, and Twitch. 94% of 15- to 35-year-old women shop online for over an hour a day. Each of those platforms holds a unique female audience unlikely to be reached through other platforms. Pinterest in particular is an underutilized platform.
71% of global Pinners are female
Pinterest reaches 83% of women aged 25–54 In the U.S.
80% of these pinners make the buying decisions in their households
58% use Pinterest to make shopping and purchasing decisions
Sit down and reflect and brainstorm on how you are catering to your women consumers, not just for profit, but in treating them as an equal in the consumer space and respecting the power their dollar and decisions hold.