Women’s Web Sites: Consumer or Advertiser Demand?
There’s been a recent flurry of “women’s site” activity:
- I’ve just read news of Dove.com’s new more social media-style web site. – Mom-blog, Dooce.com also recently got big coverage for its advertising sales numbers, even given the take-no-prisoners writing style of its founder, Heather B. Armstrong. – Yahoo just launched it’s “women’s site” – Shine, and; – A month or so ago, Wowowow (say that three times fast) launched with the mission of serving Baby Boom women better than all the other sites out there.
What is going on? These sites are not launching because loads of female consumers are begging brands and media entities for them. No, I’d say it was more a matter of advertisers getting all psyched about this “women’s thing” and rushing to do whatever it takes to seem more involved/committed to female consumers. But, women see right through it.
There is a difference between being a “me-too” online presence and actually delivering something uniquely relevant to an as-yet under-served group of consumers (men, women or both). The former is all about the advertiser, while the latter actually bubbles up from consumer needs or interests. In this recent rash of coverage for women-focused sites, I’d say Yahoo’s Shine was most certainly developed as yet another advertising vehicle for the brand, while Dooce.com launched without a thought to all the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of advertising it now sells. Heather Armstrong, it seems, began that blog as her own thing, and her readers LOVE Dooce.com for its irreverence and individuality – and that’s why the advertisers have come a-callin’.
The new Dove.com is a more creative take on a “women’s site.” and that very female-savvy brand knew they had access to a community of women who already loved their products and mission. So, they developed a site that they hoped would better connect those women to one another, but still also lead to selling more products. In a way, Dove stepped back a bit from their Self Esteem and Evolution video buzz, for instance – and took some time to figure out a way to leverage the goodwill they’d created. Now, they’d like to see some sales growth, of course, so it will be worth keeping an eye on. If any brand could make this happen, Dove would be the one.
All in all – I remain a bit of a skeptic (as is my way). So, what’s the cautionary tale for you? Step back and make sure that any site or blog, “community” or ‘social networking” presence you build or become involved in is really driven by the interests of the consumer and not by your advertising needs first and foremost. Otherwise, it may look flashy and get media coverage, but won’t make a lasting connection with anyone.
By the way, do you think that men feeling slighted because they don’t have as many “men’s sites” to sample?
