A few good women.

The automotive industry is one of the traditional male bastions in business. All men and (almost) no women. But the industry is changing...slowly. Here's a team of female engineers at Ford, making a case for why the industry needs a female touch.

(...and what great PR for Ford, don't you think!)

Denim diapers and the storms they can create.

Here's a perfect example of a great idea for a product and a bad execution on the communication: denim diapers from Huggies.

The new Huggies campaign touts a denim-look diaper design available for a limited time this summer. The online version of the spot has a fashion-conscious toddler strolling pants-full in his jean diaper, with a voice over declaring, "I poo - in blue".

Have a look at the ad here:



I don't particularly like the ad, for two reasons:
- The verbal innuendo is superficial, simplistic and not funny at all. (ok, but that's my personal opinion).
- The baby is portrayed as a grown man strutting his stuff down the street, whilst women and men look on jealously. Sexualization of children, however mild or "cutely" packaged, simple feels wrong. It leads to cognitive dissonance, which of course, negates exactly what the ad is trying to do: sell the product.

I don't find the ad disturbing per se, it's simply a bad ad that markets the product to its target audience (mothers) in an inappropriate way, which I am willing to bet does not appeal to them. Top that off with an irritating VO about "Pooing in Blue" (how creative) and I bet the wear-out factor of his ad is about 1 view.

What's interesting is to look at the creative team at JWT, who designed the ad.
Chief Creative Officer: a man
Executive Creative Director: a man
Creative Director: a man
Art Director: a man
Copy writers (2): both men
Director: a man

This illustrates why mixed gender creative teams are so important - whether you're marketing diapers or tires! The balance of insight, perception and concept and message affiliation brought by both genders would have avoided a costly, horribly ad for what is, no doubt a really cool summer product.

Speaking of inappropriate communication, have a look at this ad: the "Baby version of David Beckham's Armani underwear ad"

The future of marketing: give, get given.

The future of effectively connecting with your consumers lies herein:
if you want their attention, you have to give something first.

No, we don't mean give free product samples, coupons or host competitions to win stuff.
We mean give. Really give. Jump in boots and all. Take part. Put your money where your mouth is, so to speak. Talk the talk, walk the walk. SHOW US YOU CARE. REALLY.

Think Enron. Think Nestle (KitKat) Think BP. They didn't care, and if there is one truth that will increasingly manifest itself in consumers' behavior the coming years it is this: they don't care, unless they know you care. It's the reason why ethical investment funds - the "profits with principle" approach - are booming.

Here's one company who has put the "I care" principle to great use.

Orange Rockcorps is a pro-social production company. It uses the power of music to inspire people to volunteer and give to their community. Over 45,000 volunteers have attended more than 20 live events by artists including Lady GaGa, Snoop Dogg, Buster Rhymes and Nelly. You can’t buy a ticket. You can’t win a ticket. You have to earn a ticket.



Rockcorps was launched in the US in 2005 by 7 friends. In less than 3 years, an audience of millions has heard their message: Give, Get Given.

The concept is simple: give 4 hours for your community with Orange RockCorps; Get Given 1 ticket to an amazing gig in return.

Thousands have already given their time and the organizations goes from strength to strength as it continues to outgrow its 'baby shoes'.

Astute marketers will take note: this project represents huge opportunities! (BlackBerry, Orange, SonyEricsson and UK's Channel 4 have already partnered with Orange Rockcorps).
But before you dive in, a few key prerequisites for success:

1. Be brave. Don't think traditional marketing. If you're going in to "campaign" and not to converse, to take part, to collaborate you can just as well stay in your traditional ivory tower.

2. Don't sell your brand, sell your values. Actually, don't just sell your values: show your consumer that you live them too.

3. Belong. Become a part of your consumer's world. Know what drives them, what they care about, what they are willing to fight for. Now help them.

4. Think partnership marketing. Your consumers don't listen to you as much as they do to each other. Get involved. Foster relationships. Help make their world a better place.

I forgot to mention the word "women". That's because these truths are applicable to all consumers - including women.

Killing your campaign in 3 words.

LONG-TERM, ORGANIC, PARNTERSHIP. These are the three words that explain why your campaign(s) are not delivering the results - over time - that you had hoped for.

Reading the MobileYouth blog this morning, these wise words by Graham Brown really went straight to the heart of the problem:

"Marketing’s biggest weakness is its own soil – it’s inorganic. Marketing seeks short term results and as every caffeine fuelled overworked agency exec knows, short term is the client’s push-button.

TV doesn’t work like its used to but we’re still prepared to pour resources into the channel because it’s what we know, we have the relationships and we’re never going to get fired for committing the bulk of our budget to youth programming.

The future lies in a more organic process – one that requires nurturing the soil, one that requires innovation beyond the ability to wield buying power, one that requires marketers to think up why youth should consider your product the choice of their generation."

And even though Graham is specifically talking about youth marketing in his post, I believe the argument is as applicable to other consumer segments too - whether they be young career women or the 'Second Lifer' women of 55+.

Attention is a brands biggest cost. Demand far outstrips supply. Across all consumer segments.

The answer? Desire Paths.
Desire paths are uniquely individual, organic ways in which we navigate the interests and passions in our lives. Like a woman's 'web thinking', desire paths connect the dots in our lives.

We need to rethink traditional marketing models. We need to show some vision, some courage to break away from a model we all know is dying but which we cling to because it keeps the client happy (today) and delivers results (this quarter).

Food for thought...

Desire Paths: Branding for Digital Lives

View more presentations from Mike Arauz.

A soft approach to a harsh topic.

There's been quite some talk about the video below. It deals with a harsh topic, in a very 'soft' manner.

Right or wrong?

Should it have been more provocative and shocking? Or does it drive home the message just as effectively exactly because it is in such sharp contrast to the gentle 'packaging' of the message?

You decide...

Marketing to women: how to get it wrong twice - by HP.

Seems there is still a lot of misunderstanding out there about women's behavior as consumers and how we come to make the purchase decision we do. A computer, for instance, can be an impulse buy, according to HP. Or a handbag, for that matter. (read our review of the HP that thinks its a handbag here)  


This article, titled "HP thinks it needs sell computers to women as if they were stilletos" shows how a company can get its female consumers completely wrong - twice in a row.


As so many companies will surely do in the coming months, HP is also trying to jump on the Sex and the City (2) bandwagon, hoping no doubt, that it will get them a little closer to there female customers. And they're doing it in a big way. In the coming months, HP will open a series of stores - pardon, boutiques - across the globe that will feature notebooks and mini-computers alongside handbags, shoes and jewelry to launch what the company calls its "spring collection", because as HP's marketing director (rightly) points out "traditional computer-electronics stores are not female friendly" and (wrongly) concludes "...in many ways computers are accessories. They could be impulse purchases". 


Yes, computer stores are often not female friendly - because the staff is not trained to understand what drives women's purchases in this segment, not because they don't feature handbags and Manolo Blahniks on the same shelf. 


No, we don't see our laptop as a handbag or an accessory that needs to match our shoes or our outfit.


No, a 700 Euro purchase will never fall into the "impulse buy" category unless you're Paris Hilton.


Yes, we actually quite a lot of research - online and by asking people we trust - about the computer we want to buy.


And no, I don't feel more comfortable shopping for that computer just because its surrounded by shoes and handbags.


Rule number one of smart marketing to women: don't dumb it down, which is exactly what you're doing by implying women want to shop for computers - on impulse - while they are surrounded by fashion.


Rule number two of smart marketing to women: understand your consumer. There are people out there who can help you. Do some simple online research, have a look at what the ladies over at Lady Geek have to say. It will give you a good start.


And with that, I hope its the last time we'll see you here in the Bad Marketing to Women Hall of Fame.

Why YOU should attend the JUMP Forum on April 29th in Brussels!

JUMP Forum 2010: The Extraordinary Impact of Women in the Economy!

Join the fourth edition of the JUMP Forum that inspires hundreds of professional Women and Men across Europe, featuring the most successful Women and the most brilliant experts in gender diversity!

For Women: why YOU should attend!
The JUMP Forum is the biggest single day event dedicated to enhancing the professional lives of women. Each year, it offers professional women the opportunity to attend workshops by top business leaders, network with other professional women and to think about and develop their careers.

For Companies
Gender balance is above all a business issue. In a constructive and optimistic way, JUMP helps companies unlock the market and talent potential. It is simply a strategic and economic priority.

The JUMP Forum offers Women practical tools to realise their professional and personal aspirations, and supports organisations to implement a successful gender balance initiative.

Business leaders and gender balance experts will share their views, strategies and advice.

Topics include:
- To quota or not to quota? Europe's best practices on policies, quotas and targets.
- How to profit from a gender balanced business.
- Powerful strategies for your career success.
- How to find your true vocation.
- Using social networks to benefit your career.

This is your chance to learn strategies for success by leaders including:

Avivah Wittenberg-Cox (Canada-France), CEO of 20-first, Consultant, Coach and Author of Why Women Mean Business and the forthcoming How Women Mean Business 

Mirella Visser (Netherlands), Author of De Zijderoute naar de top and Founder-CEO of the Centre for Inclusive Leadership

Rohini Anand (USA), Senior Vice President and Global Chief Diversity Officer, Sodexo

Marleen Temmerman, Professor, Member of the Managing Committee of UZ Gent and Member of the Senate
Lieve Verplancke, Managing Director at Bristol-Myers Squibb Belgium 
Dominique Leroy, CEO of Unilever

You can view the day's program here. Register here

The Netherlands: not as liberal and emancipated as we think.

Many countries look to the Netherlands as the example of liberated thinking. A country where "live and let live", tolerance and a willingness to discuss (and embrace) everything from recreational Cannabis use to televised pornography is part of the fibre of the nation's national identity. Everything, it seems, but opening the corporate Old Boys Club to include women. That, until today, seems to prove a bridge too far.

A study just out spotlights the dismal situation:

60% of the top 10 companies in the Netherlands do not have a single woman in their Executive Committee.
Giants such as Shell, ING, Philips, Akzo Nobel and Heikeken don't have a single woman on their boards.

Even worse?
Of the 4 women who do actually sit on Executive Committees, 3 are in line/operational roles, 1 in a staff function. The harsh truth of this reality? One women alone on a board will never have enough weight in the group to affect change. There is a rule that says you need 3 people in a group of 10 to affect change.
3 in 10. Not 1 in 10. So those 4 women are in effect, "invisible" committee members: present but unable to make a fundamental difference.

This situation needs to change. Urgently.
Today, more than 50% of all college graduates are women.
Research has proven that gender-balanced companies perform better than those who's boards consist only of men and that the current economic crisis probably wouldn't have been as fundamental had more women held executive positions, participated in more key decision-making.

Women need to be encouraged to participate at strategic level. Our future - not just women's future - depends on it.

What she's not telling you.

I've written before about the questionable validity of results obtained from focus groups (you know, those demographically aligned groups of strangers we put behind one-way mirrors to fiddle with and discuss our products or ideas). Then along comes the book "What she's not telling you" and confirms what we have always dreaded: our focus group research is worth Nada. Zero. Nil.
Because the participants (women, in this case) weren't telling the truth (but that could go for men too).

Recommended reading BEFORE you finalize and test that one winning 'big idea' on yet another focus group:

"What She’s Not Telling You: Why Women Hide the Whole Truth and What Marketers Can Do About It."

Just for Fun: "Forehead Tittaes"

Forehead Tittaes w/ Marion Cotillard from Marion Cotillard