I swear I feel like a broken record. I remember creating a presentation 20 years ago (before PowerPoint) on why and how marketers ought to target women. And every year, I read more research and articles on that very topic. The stats change, but the conclusion is almost always the same: ignore women at your peril.
Today’s addition to the target women research pile is from Nielsen. Nielsen has released data on what it is terming PowerMoms. You know, women like . . . well, like most of the women you know. PowerMoms work (more than 78% work outside the home), they read blogs, they tweet, and oh yeah, they shop. Online and off. They tell others about their favorite purchases through their social networks — both online and off.
And women just want to be heard. Smart husbands already know this. Smart marketers are learning that they need to listen to what women want, engage them in a conversation and dialogue about their brand. Talk with us, not at us.
You may have heard about the big KFC free chicken marketing promotion. You know the one where Oprah told everybody they’re going to get free chicken (you! and you! and you!) and everyone showed up at KFC’s door expecting — imagine this — free chicken and they were overwhelmed, ran out of free food, and had to stop the promotion.
As my mom say, “it’s a good problem to have” when people are responding so favorably to your marketing that you’re overwhelmed. Better than the alternative. Unfortunately, KFC didn’t handle it well (rumor has it their franchisees were not all on board) and is now facing a PR problem. And not the good kind of problem, Mom.
So what’s a fast food restaurant to do? Give away free chicken! Or at least that’s what some of the local Chick Fil-A restaurants are doing every Monday in the month of May. I wouldn’t have known about it except I was craving a milk shake (and no, I’m not pregnant) and Chick Fil-A was on the way. They had this groovy sign in the drive-thru. So not as big a promotion as having Oprah tell everyone about it, but I’m sure it’s bringing some folks in on what would otherwise be a slow night.
Which brings me to a marketing point. Promotions are great for driving traffic or business during off hours. That’s why minutes cost less during “off-peak” times on your cell phone. And why Macy’s has a sale during every lame holiday in the winter months when everyone’s broke from Christmas and too cold to go to the mall.
So I was reading a business article in the New York Times the other day and noticed a column to the right that said “News for Marketing Professionals.” My little marketing brain went “How’d they know what I do?” I’m registered with NYTimes.com, but I don’t think they asked for my profession. So I clicked on the link that says “what’s this?” and it turns out that they have partnered with Linked In to provide more relevant content to the user. I’m not sure how they figured out who I was on LinkedIn; I don’t recall giving them that info, either, but it’s possible I did.
Most people won’t even think about the behind-the-scenes technology that makes this possible. Heck, most people won’t even think it’s unusual to have relevent content seamlessly woven into their online experience. But I think it’s pretty cool. Incidentally, the New York Times does a lot of things right as far as online news goes. They do way more than just put up their print text. Lots of photo galleries, videos, and more that make it a much more interactive and informative experience.
Early this year, we drafted a marketing plan for ourselves — a top-level outline of what we need to do to be successful this year. One of the organizing principles we used is how to grow a business in a recession. At the time, nobody was sure if we were in a recession, but plenty of people thought we were headed for one. And now, with the financial market meltdown, it seems more and more likely. As business owners, what can we do to make sure our businesses survive, or better yet, thrive?
We’ll start posting tips for you to consider. If you have additional ideas, please post them in the Comments section.
Tip # 1 — Shore Up Relationships with Existing Customers What are you currently doing to service your existing accounts? Do your customers LOVE you? I mean, really, really think you’re amazing? What can you do to consistently amaze and delight them? Make a commitment, today, to surprisingly good — outstanding — customer service. Pull your team together and brainstorm what that might look like. Here are some ideas to get you started:
Ask your clients what you can do to help them sell more (or do more of whatever it is they want to do).
Surprise them with a gift, discount, extra service. No reason. Not a holiday surprise, but “just because.” Expect nothing in return. (Simple gift ideas: a subscription to a relevant business magazine, Starbucks gift card, gourmet food items)
Call them. Don’t e-mail. Call and say “hi.”
Take them to lunch, dinner, a movie, a play.
Keep your eyes out for relevant articles, research, etc. Send it to them with a personal note.
Ideally, you should do a combination of things. We encourage you to get your team together today and talk about “creating customer evangelists.” There is, in fact, an entire customer evangelism movement over at the Church of the Customer blog.
We're the brains behind New Thought Marketing, a consulting firm based in Atlanta. When it comes to marketing, we know how to push the envelope and we know when to keep it simple. If you need assistance in strategic thinking, contact us. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy our blog.
Today’s addition to the target women research pile is from Nielsen. Nielsen has released data on what it is terming PowerMoms. You know, women like . . . well, like most of the women you know. PowerMoms work (more than 78% work outside the home), they read blogs, they tweet, and oh yeah, they shop. Online and off. They tell others about their favorite purchases through their social networks — both online and off.
