If you're serious about marketing your product or business to women, then you already know how important it is to target your market.

Is she a Baby Boomer or a GenX? Was her British invasion The Beatles or Duran Duran? Whats her income range? Is she urban or rural? Red state or blue state? Married with kids or single and loving it? Is she Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, or Samantha? (If youre in the womens market and you dont know who they are- catch up!)

Youre probably thinking Yeah, yeah. Tell me something I dont know.

Heres the thing. Pinning down the demographics of your target market only scratches the surface. What you may not realize is this: with women, you have to go deeper.

At least 50% of my current clients are with me because they didnt go deep enough. Even after crafting campaigns that match the age, sex, income, and education levels of their market they sought me out because their results told them they missed the mark. Striking the mother load of the womens market goes further than conventional market segmentation.

You see, once you know your prospects age, affluence, and social tendencies you need to drill down several more levels. Because just like populations can be segmented by desired characteristics for effective targeted marketing, an individual - particularly a woman - can be as well.

On any given day, one woman fulfills a multitude of roles. Mom, wife, ex-wife, daughter, boss, employee, volunteer, caregiver, sister, friend you get the idea.

To really sell your product you need to know what role shes fulfilling that generates a need for your product or services her idiodemographic.

Step into her shoes as shes filling that role and get under her skin. If your product is for exasperated mothers, appealing to her competency as a leader in the corporate world can cause your campaign to fall flat on its face. She may be a skilled vice president who is proud of her work, but believe me, youre pushing the wrong buttons at the wrong time, and she isnt going to buy.

Smart companies rely on funnel vision for their marketing. By starting with the broad demographics most businesses are intimately familiar with, then drilling down to the idiodemographic characteristics of your ideal prospect, your marketing message pierces to the heart of her motivation.

You need funnel vision to reach the one woman who has agonized, fretted, and lost sleep over the very problem you can solve when your ad hits the newsstands or airwaves. And shell know, deep in her core, that your product or service is exactly what she needs and she wont rest until she has it.

Done right, your deeply targeted message will have a domino-effect transmission, moving from emotion, to pocketbook, and into the complex referral network so characteristic of women who are satisfied customers. Funnel vision is the one of the quickest ways to devise an effective campaign strategy that resonates with your ideal prospect immediately. Its the difference between reaching and connecting. Anyone can reach women. To sell to women, you have to connect with women.

Here's a weird quirk I've discovered about myself since I became a work-at-home copywriter: I'm not the best time manager in the world.

Why is this weird? Because when I worked for "da man" (actually I was in an all woman department-it was a hoot!) I managed the bejeebers out of time. Multiple projects, training teams, proposals, grant applications, you name it, I managed it. On schedule and under budget.

The thing is, everything at the university was predictable. So, I databased, spreadsheeted, and mail-merged my way to uber-efficiency. I haven't reached that level in my own business, but it is one of my longer term goals.

In the meantime, I'll share a bit of time-management savvy that I learned very quickly.

Set boundaries.

It's that simple.

Set office hours that work for you. Transact business during that time. If your family needs attention, do a quick reality check.

Pretend you're in a cubicle surrounded by your coworkers and ask yourself "If this was the first week at a new job, would this activity be acceptable?" A quick phone call probably would be. The visit from your sister-in-law to review People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive! issue is probably not appropriate.

Now if George Clooney stops by for a visit, well, there are exceptions to every rule. But I digress…

I know it's hard to resist family, especially if they're home at the same time you're trying to work. But if your children are old enough to entertain themselves responsibly, or if another adult has agreed to watch them during your business hours - take advantage of these precious productive moments - once they're gone, you can't get them back.

The hidden benefit of sticking to your guns on this one is the freedom you'll have when you aren't working. Never again will you feel guilty about decorating cookies with your kids rather than working on your client's project.

Why? Because you know you put in an honest and productive day's work, and you'll do it again tomorrow.

Trust me, you'll get far more satisfaction out of work AND personal time if you set boundaries.

Less forgiving than men's.

Okay.  Now that Valentine's Day has passed (hope yours was a good one!) I can share some juicy dirt with you without harshing the love vibe.

I mentioned Harlequin's Romance Report 2007 (available at their website) a couple of posts back.  It's packed with information that you can use to your advantage when trying to reach the emotional core of your market.

Here's what Harlequin learned about romance and forgiveness:

• Flirting with someone else is fairly forgivable, with 74% of men and 72% of women claiming they would forgive their significant other for flirting.
• Over half of the men (56%) and over two-thirds of women (67%) feel that workplace romance is taboo.
• When it comes to forgiving a significant other for kissing someone else more than half of the men (54%) said they could forgive their partner while over half of the women said they would not forgive their partner for kissing someone else.
• While nearly half of men (47%) said they would forgive their partner for participating in cybersex, 63% of women would not forgive their partners.
• 68% of men and 77% of women said they would not forgive their partner if they had sex with someone else.

Unless you're in the romance, dating, or seduction biz, you may think this information doesn't apply to you…  but it does. 

Think about the images or backstory that you may be intentionally or unintintentionally conveying in your marketing campaigns. 

Are wedding rings visible on the man and the woman.  Is one of them focusing their gaze, even for a second, on someone else?

If so, you may be triggering emotional responses in your market that allign with the data uncovered by Harlequin in their survey. 

Just be sure that that response is congruent with the action you want your prospect to take when she or he encounters your ad.

Happy Valentine's Day!

My husband Joe & I love Valentine's Day, but we keep it pretty low key.

Our special night will involve Apple Martinis, Baked Brie and Godiva chocolate in the "no reservations required" comfort of home. 

Dog extraordinaire, Scampers will be with us of course and he'll get a special minty chew bone. Scamps is thrilled that he has outgrown his Flying Hearts collar that we put on him as a puppy. 

He doesn't understand that we all can get carried away on Valentines Day.  He's just happy to indulge in his treat without suffering the indignity of a novelty collar.

Hope your day is a happy one too, filled with whatever indulgences bring you closer to the one you love.

Can you feel it? 

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and it seems (to me anyway) that there's a "love vibe" in the air.

Or maybe I've had too much coffee and conversation hearts before I sat down to write this.

But after reviewing Harlequin's Romance Report 2007, I may indeed be picking up on a love vibe.  According to Harlequin, a Romance Revolution is underway. 

What does this mean to you as a marketer?  It means that if you're relying on stale cliches, you may be hitting the wrong note with your market and missing out on sales.

Here's what Harlequin discovered through its survey…

• 92% of men and 94% of women consider themselves somewhat romantic.
• Nearly as many men (64%) as women (72%) yearn for more romance in their lives.
• Over two-thirds of both men (68%) and women (69%) believe in the concept of soul mates. 
  

So what's the number one barrier to romance?  About one-third of men (32%) and women (34%) agreed that lack of time is their biggest barrier to romance. 

Maybe it's a case of prioritization.  According to Harlequin's survey, in a typical week the average US adult spends:

• 18.1 hours watching television
• 10.2 hours on household chores
• 6 hours indulging is something special for themselves
• 3.8 hours having sex

and

• 3.8 hours doing something romantic for someone else.

Did y'all notice that the hours having sex and the hours "doing something romantic for someone else" is exactly the same. 

Hmmmm….

If women make up a significant portion of your target market, one of the simplest – and most overlooked - ways to make it easy for them to choose your product is to keep in mind this one characteristic that is common among virtually all female consumers…

When deciding whether or not to purchase a product or service, virtually all women stop to consider what effect their purchase will have on those around them.

Always remember when you’re marketing to women, that women are inclusive. Whether husbands, parents, sisters, children, friends, bosses and virtually everyone else in their inner circle realize it or not, women think about them as part of the pre-purchase process.

In their book Don't Think Pink Lisa Johnson and Andrea Learned describe this as constituent-driven decision making.

Will these heels make me taller than Mike? Is this new flooring going to trip Mom when she visits? How will changing my investment strategy affect our plans to buy Lindsey’s car in April? Which week will my vacation least impact everyone at the office?

Women’s heads race with questions like this constantly.

My mother is a perfect example, but you need a little background for this to make sense. Back in 1999, my husband Joe had brain surgery (he’s doing very well, thanks!) which slightly impaired his left side of his body.

Now, although we live over live over 800 miles away and visit less than once a year, Joe played a prominent role in Mom’s decision making when she shopped for new sofas and chairs. For her, one of the make-or-break factors when buying furniture was “Will my son-in-law be able to sit and stand easily?”

If making a decision on a sofa based on an annual visit from your son-in-law who lives 800 miles away isn't constituent-driven decision making, I don't know what is!

What you need to know about constituent-driven decision making is this: If you fail to address how the benefits of your product or service ripple out beyond her personal experience, then you’re missing a critical component in your sales message.

After you’ve fully demonstrated how your product or service will make life easier for her, go a little further. Let her know how her loved ones and friends will benefit, even tangentially, after she makes her purchase.

Doing so will help you stand out among your competition and just may win you a lifelong customer!

And Wonder Men too!

I may be showing my age here, but I grew up on Wonder Woman.

 Ask any of my neighbors:  if I was outside,  I was Wonder Woman. 

I'd run around the neighborhood in blue shorts, a red leotard, and red go-go boots.  You could probably build a functioning airplane with all the foil I used over the years to fashion my bullet-deflecting cuffs and an Amazonian princess crown.

Of course, Wonder Woman would be lost without her "Lasso of Truth."  We had two German Shepherds named Hercules and Troubles.  I hooked their yellow leashes together and clipped them to my blue shorts with a clothes pin to complete my ensemble.

These days, I still have red boots.  I actually can't think of a time when I haven't owned a pair of red boots.  And I really do feel like Wonder Woman when I wear them.  And, as you can see by the photo of my desk that Wonder Woman is always with me.

When I heard that Donna Fox was putting on a Wonder Woman of the Web conference, focusing on marketing to women, I nearly fell out of my chair in excitement. 

Then, I saw the date and realized that I probably won't be able to make it, given a looming project deadline.

So, I'll be burning the midnight oil trying to get ahead enough so that I can join the fun in Los Angeles February 9 - 11.  In the meantime I hope you'll consider attending the conference.  Trust me, learning how to market to women will put you way ahead of the curve. 

Chances like this don't come often.

http://www.leahcarson.com/recommends/WonderWomenOfTheWeb/

Have something in common now.

I've read more than once that Gary Halbert has missed several planes although he was at the airport sitting at the gate.  Apparently, he often worked on projects while he waited for his flight and would become so absorbed in his work he didn't hear his flight announcements.

Well, after my Copywriting Express weekend, I was booked on the last Southwest flight out of Oakland.  I arrived at the airport more than 2 hours early, settled in at my gate and began working on a project for one of my clients. 

Southwest flights are open seating with boarding groups of A, B, and C.  Two flights had already lined up, loaded and left, so I figured it was finally time for my flight to get in place.  I checked my computer clock & noticed that, yes, my departure time was 10 minutes away.

So, thinking it was odd that only a few people were in line, I took my place in the "A" line.  Then, I noticed that the flight wasn't headed to Albuquerque.

Long story short… my flight had been switched to a different terminal and I didn't hear the announcement because I was working.

So, I get a night at La Quinta, and have to wait one more day to see Wonder Husband Joe and Dog Extraordinaire Scampers.

I hear the question a lot from both men and women.

A lot of the time, their marketing is doing okay, but they know it could be better.  Even so, they're a little hesitant to jump into uncharted waters.  It feels safer to just "do it they way we've always done it."

 I can understand that.  It can be a little scary to be a pioneer.  A leader instead of a follower.

So if you're worried about making changes…

If you're wondering why the status quo isn't good enough…

If you're afraid that building a strategy to market to women won't be worth the effort…

Let me put your mind at ease.

Women's combined earnings in the U.S. alone total one trillion dollars and their spending power tops over $2 trillion dollars a year. 

Women currently control 51% of private wealth in the USA — and by the year 2010, women will control two thirds of the nation's private wealth.

As business owners, it’s important to know where the money is, but it's even more important to know who’s spending it.

This is where it gets good…

Women Are Responsible For

• 52% of new vehicle purchases
• 57% of consumer electronics purchases
• 70% of all travel purchase decisions
• 80% of all consumer purchases
• 85% of all new vehicle purchase decisions
• 94% of all consumer purchase decisions

I'm going to let thos staggering numbers soak in for a wile.

Stay tuned to learn why the benefits are even greater than the numbers reflect…

Hey Y'all -

Back in November, I spent a week in Boca Raton with my mentor Harlan Kilstein.

The thing about Harlan is, he's addicted to yoga.  So during that week, I enjoyed the luxury of joining his private yoga lessons with Sara Varona, one of the premier yoga instructors in Boca.

Well, I loved working with Sara, so I tried to keep it up at home with a DVD.  I'm still searching for a DVD that I like.  (Sara, will you HURRY UP with your DVD, please???).

Anyway, dog extraordinaire Scampers has gotten in on the act.  Scampers is a Pembroke Welsh Corgi whose stubby legs barely reach the ground.

Here he is with his favorite toy (it's actually a foot massager that vibrates when pressure is applied) in downward dog position.