Digital Dames: How to Market to Women in Your Copy

Though women make over 85% of all purchasing decisions—and account for 58% of all online spending—you probably wouldn’t know it based on the copy you read across the web or the ads you see on TV.

Truth is, many companies and advertisers insist on catchall, generic messaging…and it’s losing them an interested and thriving market.

That means a one-size-fits-all approach just doesn’t cut it these days—your (largely female) prospects will click away just as fast as they came. Do you blame them?

Here are a few of our tips on how to keep your female customers invested in what you have to say:

Avoid pandering to generic gender roles. Sure, plenty of women are mothers, but women are also CEOs, engineers, public speakers—you name it. We are not all wives. Not all of us are inherently domestic. In fact, some of us don’t even know how to cook! Yet this dynamic is stripped away from most marketing copy. Perhaps this is why, according to The Next Web, 91% of women feel like advertisers don’t understand them.

The solution? Make sure your copy doesn’t treat your female prospects like part of the herd. Remember, women’s purchasing decisions include “male-oriented” purchases, too, such as cars (not just mops, shoes, and baby formula).

Don’t be negative. Every day, women are bombarded with messages about how they are failing to live up to some kind of standard (beauty products are built on this dynamic).

And the fact is, we are sick of it.

Instead of preying on insecurities, focus your message on the benefits of your product or service and specifically how it makes their lives better.

Tap into women’s daydreams and desires—not our dreads.

Listen to what women want. Most women-targeted messaging goes awry by highlighting problems and agitating them to encourage a decision.

Instead, ensure your copy reflects that you “get” where the women you are marketing to are coming from. Acknowledge our challenges, rather than our problems, and then move to a solution. In turn, your message will resonate with a rapt audience and invite a natural, positive response.

Which companies do you think do the best job of marketing to women? Tell us in the comments section below!