Female Fever

This TrendWatching report give a pretty detailed overview of the exponential growth in the number of 'marketing to women' initiatives in various industry sectors.

Looking at the various products aimed at women being launched in so many different industries, my first thought was "wow! Companies are finally waking up to the enormous (sales) potential of marketing products specifically designed for women."
But as I kept reading, my frustration kept growing. It seems some stereotypes - very irritating stereotypes, by the way - die hard. As I kept scrolling through the photos and texts on each product I kept thinking "why do I see PINK everywhere? And what's with all the curly-thingies all over the place?" So even though some of the initiatives really hit the spot (check out the ABN AMRO 'Lady Delight'(bad name, great concept) investment fund!) many just 'paint it pink' - both literally and proverbially - in order to attract the attention of female consumers.

A fluorescent pink Swiss-Army Knife? Hummmm...no thanks.
A pink road-side safety kit for women? And exactly why would I want that in pink???
A beer called 'Hoegaarden Rosee'?
Pink taxis, pink shoes, pink yoghurt tubs, pink, pink, pink, pink. Really guys: some of the ideas are great, but the (pink) marketing really kills it!
Its quite an eye-opener to realise many brands are still stuck in the 'pink phase' when it comes to marketing to women.

But ok, Rome wasn't built in a day, they say...so here's hoping we all move out of the pink phase really soon...before I go completely crazy.

Mercator Insurance - funny or not?

When this ad first came on TV and I began to watch it, I found it quite funny. I could so totally imagine myself trying to drill a hole in the wall - with very little success (and a lot of damage to the wall). But then, as the ad comes to an end and the tagline is shown, I ain't laughing no more. I'm not going to give away the tagline here, you'll have to judge for yourself whether you think it's funny...or not.