andHow To Reach Women

Have You Watched A Ford Ad Lately?

There is something about marketing that companies can learn from Ford. Yes, I typed that right - Ford, the US automaker who has been bleeding money for years now. But I'm not talking about running a business - yet. What I am referring to is their new marketing campaign, "Ford. Drive One," which leverages three key lessons in marketing to women extremely well - and not at the expense of alienating men.

1) The campaign is centered around the consumer, featuring multiple spots addressing 4 specific needs: Quality, Green, Safety, Smart (or technology)

2) Employees deliver the messages - not actors or scion Bill Ford (remember how bad those were?) - who work in the areas featured and can tell of the benefits in their own words, connecting the consumers to the real people behind the products vs. some faceless, out-of-touch corporation.

3) The nods to women's needs are there, but they are subtle and contextual. For example, the Quality spot features Elizabeth Baron, a virtual reality and advanced visualisation technical expert at the company, talking about the Ford Fusion and how her work allows them to experience the vehicle how the consumer sees it. As she speaks a young man wearing goggles reaches for a virtual rear view mirror. "Now try it as a small female," Baron instructs. "Different, huh?" she says. Then the action moves on, but the point is made - we're thinking about ALL drivers. And it wasn't about the vehicle color or room for kids or any of the other typical women/mom areas. Pure functionality. Nice.

Not a surprise that this smarter approach to marketing comes with the hire of former Toyota marketing veteran James Farley as Ford CMO. The spots even directly reference Toyota, stating that Ford now matches them in quality. If their product can live up to the campaign, we may see a turnaround yet. Read more about the campaign here.

Just A Matter of Time Until The Niche Is Back

Like it or not, pop culture is still hugely influenced by TV.  Two articles in today's edition of the Wall Street Journal illustrate the benefits and pitfalls that technology and expanded choices have brought to marketers.  Once the haven of purists and enthusiasts, cable channels catered to audiences who wanted to dive deep into music, food, news or sports.  As television columnist Joe Flint (reg. required) points out, now these channels are shedding their niches like old snake skins in favor of a more generalist approach in an effort to tap into a wider, younger audience.  This means that you are as likely to find "Cheerleader Nation" on OLN as you are on Lifetime (which recently dropped it's "television for women" tagline).  From a  growth strategy this may seem like a great idea.  More viewers, more advertisers, more money, right?  What seems to be missing is any kind of brand strategy.  How do I know what to expect from Bravo vs. TLC vs. TNT or NBC for that matter?  The only thing we can really count on cable for now is to be a bit racier.  More than ever these channels are setting themselves up to only be as good as their last hit show - if, God willing, they have one. Advertisers who have long depended on cable as a more targeted and cost-effective means of reaching niche markets will have to turn to other mediums.  Perhaps each of these channels has a larger programming strategy and we're just missing it, but I bet we're not the only ones.  As we never fail to point out to companies trying to reach women, it's far more effective to think of women as several market segments vs. one amorphous target. Trying to please everyone often translates to pleasing no one. Moving from the very general to the ultra specific, WSJ's Suzanne Vranica (reg. required) profiles a new e-commerce company called Delivery Agent that has created a very useful service, which allows viewers to purchase the products they see on their favorite programs, down to, say, the specific brand and color of paint on Bree Van De Camp's wall.  As Seen On sites can be accessed from the network's home page, such as www.asseenonnbc.com, and shoppers can find that shoe or bag that caught their eye, plus a bunch of stuff they didn't even know they wanted.  Fast, convenient and smart, this service enhances the brands of the network, program and company behind the featured product by giving customers an easy way to bring their favorite programs into their daily lives.  Can you imagine if this would have been around when Sex & The City was in it's heyday?