Here’s how to sell to women, and what women know that you don’t:
Last week, I happened to pick up a copy of a magazine called ShopSmart.
Apparently, it’s a sister publication to Consumer Reports, only it’s geared towards women. Like Consumer Reports, it provides independent reviews about products and it doesn’t accept advertisements or sponsorships.
Few things you notice when reading a magazine like this:
1. You actually miss advertisements. Article after article, gets a little stale.
It’s nice to see what people are buying. Plus, let’s face it… we all like to have opportunities to spend money — even if we don’t pull the trigger on it.
2. This is a really smart way for a business to clone themselves.
In fact, duplicating yourself in the consumer goods industries, is very common.
For example, you might not know this, but PepsiCo owns Lays, Fritos, and Ruffles…
Wrigley owns Juicy Fruit, Big Red, and Orbit…
And Kraft, which is owned by Mondelez International, owns Kraft Mayo, Miracle Whip, and Cool Whip.
This is a GREAT way of re-creating yourself, and if you’ve been looking for a new niche to develop, using “gender” is an excellent way to go. Simply because you can do it in almost ANY service industry.
Just think, you can market “financial planning for women”… salsa dancing for women… golfing lessons for women… google ad words for women (because you don’t want to market yourself like a man, right?) — the list is virtually endless.
Any time your product or services are PERCEIVED to be either used, applied, or enjoyed differently, by different genders, you’ve got a potential opportunity to clone yourself to that particular gender.
This gives you a great differential your competitors won’t have.
Now things like “industrial piping”… or “restaurant hood cleaning”… probably can’t be marketed by gender. Because there really isn’t any actual or perceived difference in the gender-based usage of these items.
Although if you sit down and think hard enough, you can probably come up with some… the REAL question is, will it benefit you? And the only way to figure this out, is to decide whether or not, there’s a specific perceived benefit to your female or male buyers, that warrants gender separation, in their mind.
In other words, will a female-based marketplace perceive there’s a benefit to working with someone who specializes in cleaning restaurant hoods owned by women?
Probably not.
In a case like this, you’re better off NOT using gender, as a niche differential.
You’re better off going after a specific TYPE of restaurants, like Italian… or Chinese… or Fish and Chips, or else base it on the size of the restaurant, or the particular quirks or needs of some specific restaurant customers in some specific locations.
Make sense?
Good.
By the way, in this month’s issue of Seductive Selling, there’s a great article on “How To Measure The Effectiveness Of Your Advertising.” The article also discusses a pretty common problem — being “believable” — especially online.
You can try the newsletter for free, right here.
Comments? Leave ’em below
Now go sell something, Craig Garber
P.S. On Sale, PLUS Free Shipping: How To Make Maximum Money With Minimum Customers
Get INSTANT access to these 12 Free Reports:
How To Make Maximum Money With Minimum Customers – Amazon.com
Garbageman – The Sheepdogs (2008)