I can see it already.  When Dove first started releasing their various more noticeably women-focused, Campaign for Real Beauty ads – and they were effective/much talked about – brands all over the place went nuts trying to be similarly clever in jumping on the women’s thing.  Except, the women Dove was reaching so well were a very specific group of women, and no other brand, product or industry could simply slap a real women/not models campaign together and succeed.

Oh, but they tried.

“Marketing to men” may be the latest shiny object for marketers. But, I’m advising you to take a chill pill, step back – and perhaps revisit the “transparent marketing” guidelines in my book, Don’t Think Pink. Here are three:

1. Narrow your focus (and narrow it more and more and more – almost to pinpoint).  There’s no way you are ever marketing to all men everywhere.  Dove knows that, and did a ton of research.  That’s why the reality their Super Bowl ad depicted seems to resonate.  Guys are not being represented as uber-manly but more like the normal guys many of us know and love.  Life for adult men isn’t ALL about drinking beer and ogling hot chicks (who knew?).

2. Get to know and understand your customer community intimately. Dove found out that men connect with life in real ways – first you are young and goofy, then you get a job and find a great mate, then have kids and so on.  Life is rich and full.  The idea is to understand a day in the life of the man you are trying to reach, and also to understand a day that he may dream of (even if you don’t pose the question to him in quite that way).

3. Gather, utilize and acknowledge feedback. Without really talking to a few of the people they were trying to reach in developing the Dove Men+Care message, the skin care brand would never have gotten the tone and humor of this ad right –  just as was the case with their ground-breaking Campaign for Real Beauty women’s efforts.  And now, I’m guessing they are keeping track of how the ad campaign resonates and what is being said in blog comments and on Twitter to refine their future efforts.  Women are not the only ones who appreciate being heard, and given all the lame caveman vs. superwoman ad representations running now, guys are probably very receptive to brands countering that  theme (which has become cliched, in case you haven’t noticed).

Being guided and inspired by the customers you serve is the definition of transparent marketing.  Male consumers would likely say they don’t need a manly/blue filter on campaigns trying to get their attention.  Like women, they’d much rather be respected and connected with around values and ideas that are important to them.  So leave the grunting and burping for the beer ads – they do it so well.

*I’d give this ad campaign an  “A” for concept and execution.

The reverse mentoring programme, which was piloted for six months in the EMEA region last year, aims to give male bosses an insight into the challenges women face in the workplace, helping more women into senior roles. Participants in the pilot met at least once a month, usually off-site to allow both sides to be more objective.

***

My advice? Read the article and get ideas for doing the same in your organization or corporation.  If helping more women into senior roles isn’t a compelling enough reason (!), what about helping the participating senior male executives learn a bit more about how women think, process and make decisions in order to give them fresh perspective on their core consumers?

Believe me.  There’s a wealth of information and insight into how women buy within the workplace thought processes of your female colleagues – and it doesn’t involve hiring a research firm!

Dell’s UK program sounds like it should set up a great environment for men and women to make strides in workplace gender relations.  The bonus: their teams, men and women, mid-level and senior together, will very likely make better marketing decisions, as well.

Note to Dell – I’d love to hear the results, and help tell the positive stories when the results can be measured!

*Thanks to TheNextWomen for the twitter tip.

So… why has the pistachio industry used those situations or “celebrities” for a new advertising campaign?  Apparently in hopes of overcoming the bad pistachio blood from a salmonella scare, Bruce Horovitz writes in USA Today about how the industry’s marketers think this approach is a sure bet.

While I know a fair number of men likely eat pistachios by the handfuls (if my dad and brother are any indication), I’m less sure men are the core grocery store decision-maker on that purchase..  That’s what makes it all the more odd that the “sexy” campaign is so obviously more geared toward men than women.  What would the industry do if this effort ends up being, in fact, so very lame that women who’d otherwise choose pistachios might head to good old peanuts from now on?

I have blogged about this over the years.  The way traditional industries get this marketing to women thing wrong seems to be a fairly common occurrence, especially with their first attempts at really focusing in on that demographic.  Going the sexy route, often adds a whole other dimension of stupidity.  The marketing for the  wine brand, “Seduction” (in 2005) – which emphasized the “O” in their vineyard name, for one (go ahead, undress the bottle!) – would make for a great Sarah Haskins satire today!

Were there women involved in the pistachio industry’s development process who cleared the approach?  With transparent marketing, instead, the idea would have been to be guided and inspired by women – who,  I suspect, are the biggest pistachio buyers.  But, even if that sort of consumer interaction wasn’t a possibility (or within budget), I’d think that any of the women on the pistachio marketing team might have voiced a bit of concern (as in: “now, wait a minute…”).  Involving a few more women in this overall effort would likely have helped the team find a “sexy” way to sell pistachios that actually spoke to women.

So, I’m not saying that sex is always the wrong approach -but that, with women, there will have to be a lot more subtlety.  A dominatrix, Levi Johnston and “Greg Brady’s” adventures are just not in that category.

I’ve long believed that a great way to teach marketing to women is to start by taking a hard look at plain, old excellent marketing.  The idea is to make reaching the women’s market less “a whole new thing,” and more a focused version of what a lot of skilled marketers do already.  Start with the common ground or the existing “good” of previous marketing efforts, and re-build from there.  Remember: women are not from outer space, they are just tough customers.

Below, I offer the latest from Walker and Elliott as examples, and note key marketing to women influences in the campaigns:

1) Rob Walker’s column on Naked Pizza.  Women’s market influence: there is more than one consumer entry point, from just wanting good tasting pizza to seeking full-on explanations and long blog posts about the ins/outs of nutrition and food supply. This serves the pizza buyer, male or female, who is more linear (“just give me the pizza already…”) as well as the one who is taking a more holistic view of the product/brand and experience (“wow, this really can be healthy for my family and I love learning more about nutrition!”).  It is typical of a woman’s buying process to be more holistic and to appreciate a variety in depth of information – but delivering such is really a best practice in marketing, in general.

2) Stuart Elliott’s piece on Cloudveil’s new ad campaign.  Women’s market influence: The humor appeals to anyone who has or aspires to have an outdoor sports obsession so strong it gets in the way of other life obligations.  The effort also offers up an easy solution for making amends.  Outdoor sports fanatic clothing is not gender-specific but passion-specific, so the Cloudveil tone appeals to both men and women.  And, though tongue in cheek, the campaign really does offer a solution for the time-starved consumer.  (Usually, the time-starvation comes from daily responsibilities and obligations and is considered an especially big issue for multi-tasking women.  But, THIS time it comes from the choice of a man or woman to do something fun instead!)  Getting the humor right and providing a “solution” are best practices in marketing that are extra effective with women.

These campaigns – and all good campaigns that have some foundation in marketing to women truths – reflect an awareness of how THE CONSUMER thinks and goes about making a purchase decision, as opposed to what great features and specifics the BRAND wants to tell the world about.  Old-fashioned and ineffective marketing was not guided by the consumer much at all.  Twenty-first century, effective marketing is being guided and inspired by how women – or the toughest customers they represent, male or female – make purchasing decisions.

Go ahead and dig around in your own best practice history.  I bet you’ll find some marketing to women basics therein – like offering several layers of information (rather than assuming there’s one) to educate about a fairly complex product, or  connecting your customers to one another around a shared passion or shared sense of humor.

My point is: who cares if serving a “women’s way” was part of the plan?  The resulting best practices in marketing are the kicker.

Here’s an excerpt:

A number of truck commercials have begun to market their vehicles as being the epitome of what a true man needs. If it’s big, tough and can get the job done, then it’s for real men. These stereotypes aren’t exactly new to media, especially not in truck commercials.

If the commercials had stopped there, they’d still remain somewhere in the realm of our biased norm. But as with anything truly manly, Chevy decided they had to take it to the extreme.

Let’s take a look at Ford and their F-150. They had the foresight to include a small step that would help truck owners enter and exit the bed of the vehicle. A pretty obvious step forward if you ask me, seeing as many trucks have included small steps to enter their cabin for quite some time now.

While this could have been an outstanding opportunity for truck companies to come together and help make trucks more accessible, it turned out that such a wonderful future simply can’t exist.

Instead, Chevy decided to openly mock Ford Motors, calling the step a “man-step” and poking fun at any real man who would ever possess such a thing. Real men claim they don’t need a man-step, as though manhood becomes null and void the second you buy a truck with a step on its bed.

***

Consider Jason a particularly perceptive male voice of the younger generation of consumers.  Any twenty-first century marketing or advertising professional should take note of his thoughts (or hire him):

1)  Guys today don’t relate to the traditional view of “manhood,” and the ridiculous notion that F150s (or Chevy trucks) express it best.

2) Guys today are sick of media/culture representing them as idiots or via stereotypes that have nothing to do with their daily lives.

Sound familiar?  It looks like marketers have done it again.  They’ve ignored the long-time coming signs, taken the lazy way out, and lost touch with their core customer.  Now, that customer is peeved and starting to talk loudly about it. He is calling out lame media and ad campaign representations that have stereotyped his gender down to a macho caricature.

Isn’t that a lot like what women experienced for decades? They’ve come a long way in standing up for themselves, putting a stop to the madness and forcing media and advertisers to change their ways. And, now guys are taking their cue from women’s “assertive consumer” stance.  No more just shrugging shoulders and assuming nothing can be done.  More consumers today, male and female, understand they have the power to say no to such beyond recognition stereotyping.  They are spreading the bad word on brands and it is influencing their purchases (or lack thereof).

Gender stereotyping is absolutely an equal opportunity mistake.  The younger generations of consumers most marketers want to reach, no matter their gender, are even more likely to ignore brands that make it.  Mark Jason’s words.

To be clear: I am no expert on the topic, and very much realize the different life experiences of women and men from different generations, and how that might influence one’s perspective on it.  That may be why this list of fifteen aspects of third wave feminism caught my eye.  The writer, even without demonstrating his/her credibility in some way with academic or “intelligentsia” ties (as far as I know), still made the list seem worth mulling. The tone is not an “absolute” stand (as in: “this is the way it is”) but seems to posit ideas to start helpful and engaging conversations.

As the writer called it, the article is an: “incomplete list of my many thoughts, objections, and suggestions concerning the current state of feminism and where we should be headed. All of the following points could be expanded upon. They are listed in no particular order.”

A few of my favorite points (with my emphasis) from within that list:

- There must be a widespread understanding that feminism does apply to men. It is counterproductive and hypocritical to discuss gender equality while simultaneously creating a double standard towards males who share feminist values. (An interesting perspective on this via a man’s questions for a feminist comes from  John DeVore. )

- Applying make-up, nail polish, shaving legs, and most other sexist, cosmetic double standards are NOT antitheses to being a feminist – the motivation behind the products are.

- Making sexist comments against men, in favor of women, is a directly un-feminist action.

- Reaching out to younger people is one of the most important actions that third-wave feminists need to accomplish.  (The Undomestic Goddess has published a series of interviews with mainly millennial generation women and men that might open your eyes a bit to this reality.)

While feminism never really was only about women even in its earlier waves, that seems to have been a fairly common perception.  But, during this phase, it is even more important to get some background.  If you are marketing to women today, old-fashioned gender stereotypes about the “dreaded feminists” will truly backfire.  Huge polarization of men vs. women is “out,” assumptions about bra burning or leg shaving is ridiculous (always was), and members of the younger generations will be very vocal about how your marketing doesn’t reflect any world THEY know (Current TV’s Sarah Haskins comes to mind).

I’m not saying that all is perfect between men and women now. I’m suggesting it might be a good time to accept that there is no easy answer but to study up on how the women in your market fit into this wave (or not).  They might consider themselves feminists, but that could be VERY different from your mother’s feminism.  And, today, there may well be a lot more men who consider themselves feminist or identify with the movement (whether they say so or not), and by making assumptions, you could potentially lose trust with them as well,  Remember, too – parenthood tends to put most guys into a gender transcending role that changes their behavior in other ways.  So, feminism can just creep up on you (in a good way)!

An awareness of third wave feminism is not for women’s studies majors only.  Instead, it is a movement that may offer up the insights you need on how/why your consumers live and make decisions the way they do.  There are lots of thought-provoking articles and books on the topic of third wave feminism – so take a minute or two to familiarize yourself.

Now, will that make you feel like a girl… or, like a very savvy marketer?

Satire isn’t only for Jon Stewart and politics (though he surely reigns eternal).  It is also a great mechanism for consumers or the pop-culture media to raise up the disconnections in a brand’s understanding of their markets.  One (with its many sub-segments) that can be so misunderstood – and, thus, its related marketing efforts so well satirized – is the women’s market.   But, don’t be afraid for your brand!  Rather, realize that the easy access today to the video, audio and written words of YouTube, Twitter and Facebook is actually a huge, modern technological gift.  How else could we so quickly tap into the consciousness of the consuming masses?

And, for good and bad, what gems we do find therein…

I recently spent some time watching Sarah Haskin’s Current TV Target: Women clips, and they were incredibly telling.  Her storytelling work – not unlike Stewart’s – in collecting snippets from history and various forms of media to make a broader point, should be considered a major learning tool for any brand marketing to women.  If you can take the heat, step into her kitchen and observe:

• “science-y” terms may not be helpful for selling skincare.
• “women who murder” may not be the most relevant theme for a women’s cable channel.
• most women don’t find eating yogurt the answer to all life’s problems.

By reviewing Haskins work and monitoring other online or social network conversations, a brand can really get a feel for whether or not a particular angle will resonate or be ridiculed.  Perhaps the simple wrinkle-smoothing skincream message, without the technical discussion and bizarre imagery of epidermal layers, IS enough?  Read the comments on any of the Target: Women snippets and see for yourself.

And, yes.  It is certainly very hard for a human being (this means you) to take on even the most constructive of criticism.  But, those that learn how to take it in, evaluate and possibly make changes in their lives because of such input, can really grow into themselves.  There’s a level of maturity apparent in those people and brands that are clearly comfortable with self-examination and known for taking responsibility when issues arise.

To be sure – Haskins’ work is particularly appealing for the Gen Y and younger set.   However, don’t automatically discount the lessons in her sarcastic and humorous take if your target isn’t exactly that particular woman! However you do your research and whichever segment of the women’s market you seek, the idea is to look for the elements of your messages or delivery that scream for satirization.  And, they do exist.

The discovery process may hurt a bit at first.  But, where there is the space for open discussion and constructive criticism, like Target: Women, much wisdom can be gained (in work and life).  If you laugh and learn along with it – the hotseat shouldn’t burn so much.

A MediaPost article by Karl Greenberg describes the scene well:

The new ad is the sixth in a series that launched last year to promote the 2009 F-150. The campaign, using voiceover by actor/comedian Denis Leary, takes a sharp detour from the traditional truck-as-hero mythology to focus on more straightforward illumination of features and benefits.

What I see is a interesting balance of classic, male appeal via status/positioning/machismo combined with a “softer” (more typically female) sell of safety and other features and benefits of “belonging” to the Ford F-150 brand: including being able to hang out with a celebrity who is basically known to epitomize the typical buyer.  For instance, there is an assumption (always beware of that!) that safety is lower on the list of priorities for the average macho truck fan, but perhaps not when it is served up with Dennis Leary’s voice ranting about the dumb guy in the next car over.  Or, maybe the idea of hanging out with celebrities is a promotional strategy most frequently used with a women’s market.  But, deliver Toby Keith, in all his macho glory, and.. hmmm… the guys who would be F-150 buyers may well take you up on that – as long as the promotion is called “Biggest & Baddest.”

You see, the language and style of a campaign can always stay more male-pitched, even as the actual framework of the marketing strategy is inspired and guided by what we know of how women buy.   No one will be the wiser.

A heavier emphasis on a brand or products’ benefits and features is a commonly touted way to better serve women, for certain – but could it really be about better serving any consumer who is seeing things with a more balanced – right and left brain – perspective?  Yes.  And, more consumers – no gender about it – are seeing things that way today.

Ford has done a good job with this new campaign.  They know that they must still appeal to a specific core market of men, so they leveraged some of the usual status and macho positioning.  But, with an awareness of this down economy and a more energy efficient culture, Ford also recognized that the men they need to reach are taking a lot more in than size, price, and well.. size – as they weigh a decision about what vehicle is really, and holistically, the best fit.

A male consumer’s path is starting to take a few more curves than it used to, especially on the bigger ticket items.  Good thing you all already know how to identify and serve the most important curves along a buyer’s path!  Thanks to your long study of how women go about it, you have no trouble delivering your product to both left and right brain traits.

What about the now infamous Dove example, you say?   Even though that brand is an obvious award-winner in reaching women in a whole new way, its best practices may not translate as much as they should.  Their products are so obviously for and about women that I’m not sure a lot of other industries can see the applications for their own marketing.  And, that’s why ad campaigns that really reach women well, and seemingly inadvertently, can be such powerful teaching tools!  One of those was recently reviewed by Barbara Lippert for AdWeek: the new Hoover vacuum spots.  As she puts it:

At last, a vacuum campaign that defies gender and every stereotypical demographic; this new work for Hoover, from The Martin Agency, offers a fresh and funny take on vacuuming by separating humanity into two clear camps: clean freaks and the not so neat (OK, slobs.)

When you hear about an ad for a vacuum, doesn’t your mind still jump to the vision of a 1950s housewife – despite the fact that such a vision no longer applies to yours or anyone’s modern life?  Why, oh why, is that?  Well, the Martin Agency really got down to the root of the issue with Hoover: A vacuum is neither for men or for women, but for any human who prefers to neatness to slovenly ways.  According to Lippert’s description, these ads wisely use humor to tell the tales of the two very opposing types of people in nontraditional situations (toddlers and college dorm-mates), rather than using the tired woman = housewife cliche.

While, women may still play the key roles in these ads, and have perhaps guided the development of this Hoover effort, that is not the point.  Gender is not the divider or “dramatic tension” for the vacuuming story.  But, cleanfreak vs. slob is – with all the humor that entails.  Women will surely find that this campaign resonates and seems like a slice of life, but so will a lot of non-women who also have to live and clean up their own spaces.

Gender stereotypes in so many industries were made up and assumed by the mainly men who, lo so many years ago, were the key decision-making marketers in those realms.  Now’s the time to wake up, like Hoover, and defy such ridiculousness!   The real dramatic tension in the marketing of your product or service or comes from the foibles and fascinating behavioral, and not gender, differences of the humans using them.

The Super Bowl is a greeting card holiday in a way – a made up reason to run ads that otherwise wouldn’t get made and don’t really do the job of reaching consumers (other than for the fun of watercooler discussions).  Do they generally correspond with the brand’s other messaging?  No.  Do they generate so much interest from consumers that they remember the brand name and switch products the next time they are in their grocery store?  Not likely.  Would many of them (if any) be cited as part of a great marketing case study by a business school professor?  Nope.  Will a one be remembered next year about this time?  You can answer that.

Applying a general marketing or specific marketing to women filter to Super Bowl ads as well, seems like an exercise in futility.  I should know, I have tried it in previous years – and, my passion just wasn’t behind it. I kept  wondering why I was spending time calling out advertisers for not doing their best work in reaching women, when the truth has always been that Super Bowl ads are not about doing a great job reaching anyone. Instead, they are about grabbing a consumer’s attention for 30 seconds in the hopes of generating search engine play.

How can we possibly measure a brand’s marketing brilliance to any degree with such a set up?

As for the women’s market – from what Elliott wrote in his post-Super Bowl ad wrap up, and from the sampling of ads I actually saw (when not distracted by my newly adopted dog’s disappearance and recovery trauma), none of them did much by way of innovation or engagement (and that would be no matter the viewer’s gender).  Can we rake the advertising brands over the coals for not understanding the women’s market?  Sure.  But, that’s beside the point.

It seems that Super Bowl ads are fun and goofy, which may be worth the cost for a select few brands, but they are largely irrelevant for consumers.  And thus, they are a waste of time for most advertisers.  This has long been the case, but given this economy and struggle to connect with penny pinching consumers, the truth became more evident in 2009.  It is an uphill battle to be more clever or exciting than the last ad of the day or than the ads from last year’s game.  Brands that are fine-tuning their media buys and larger marketing efforts in hard times might want to stick with improving on and innovating their own “game,” rather than jumping ship for the glory of one big ad and football-obsessed day (enjoyable though it may be).