One Small Step for “Womenkind”

 

 

I recently read an article in the November 21st issue of the Wall Street Journal, “Ads Made for Women, by Women,” that presented a new advertising/marketing company, Womenkind, looking to address the gap in female run marketing firms by “harnessing the power of female ad and marketing executives.”  I subsequently noticed another blog article on the company, that was actually written before the WSJ article (in the blog aptly named Agency Spy) that provoked quite a few comments.   

So it got me thinking… 

This all served to remind me that there are other industries that lag in promoting women, and, although I wasn’t aware that the advertising business was one of these areas, it turns out, judging from text of the  article, that there are obvious  similarities that can be noted between the “old boys club” in advertising and the auto industry.  The parellels between the two areas of business are striking, as Jerry Judge, CEO of Womenkind, describes “advertising wears the clothes of modernity but is actually very conservative.”  And that “companies repeat what made them successful long after it starts to damage them.” [Now is that thought every more appropriate than in the car business – I mean, Detroit ignored cars for trucks for over a decade, now look how its effected their business…]  It is clear to me that Mr. Judge’s statements address not only the advertising industry, but the same issues of how females are regarded, (or disregarded for that matter), in the car business, which, by the way, spills over into general manufacturer and dealer-based automotive marketing and advertising campaigns. 

The concept of “Ads Made for Women, by Women” seems deceptively simple in logic, but as the article indicates, it is not so often done in practice, particularly in a male-dominated industry like the car business.  I think it speaks to all [male-dominated] industries to “harness the power of female executives to narrow a…gap.”  What does this mean?  Well to me the point being made is that in order to efficiently and successfully target and reach women consumers, which are increasingly becoming prominent in almost all buying sectors (85% of the purchasing power), the movers and shakers of the companies and corporations should be well represented by women.  Just as in advertising there was the “sexual revolution,” as Judge states, and “advertising looked away from the growing importance of women in commerce,” the auto industry needs to stop placing women in the “girl Friday” positions, and start looking at their perspectives as equal contributors to the workforce.  I think that because these two “old boy” networks work equally strongly, they have had a double effect on inhibiting the correct focus and marketing to women’s needs in automotive retailing, from the manufacturer outreach down to the process and treatment at dealerships. 

Let’s get drunk and talk sports & chicks here…

From what I have seen and experienced, the automotive industry has a very similar mentality as the advertising industry, as described by Judge, “a lot of the men want to talk about sports and chicks and get drunk” (in the car business? Ya think?).  One of the biggest impediments to reaching efficiency in these industries that lack women power is, like Judge says, that “they don’t speak the right language.”   

So who do you suppose naturally speaks better to women, a man or a woman? Or on a broader (no pun intended) scale, how can a man more efficiently identify and satisfy the needs of a female automotive consumer?  Don’t get me wrong, advertising professionals of both sexes are good at their jobs in the “old school” sense of their sales presentations, but how much more intuitive would their message be if the advertising strategy had dominant qualified women’s input from the top?.  I was actually quite amazed when I read the article surrounding the formation of Womenkind in the Wall Street Journal. I had assumed that the advertising industry used their best people, male or female, on the job based on the consumer target and the message.  On the other hand, demonstrably, the car manufacturers and their dealers have done a pretty dismal job thus far, when it comes to targeting and addressing the needs of women in most car advertising (again, there are some notable exceptions to this as well), so I probably should not have been surprised.  

I’m very pleased and enthusiastic that Mr. Judge has created Womenkind.  It is described to work “soup to nuts” in offering marketers a “creative spa,” which is “a service where a team of women executives can look at the creative value of a marketer’s ads and see how they appeal to women,” and the automotive sector is one of the areas targeted by this new, enterprising organization in “harnessing the power of female ad and marketing executives.” The strategy of Womenkind is to mobilize a group of women, (from business owners to stay-at-home moms), to act as consultants in online focus groups, is also, I think, intuitive and forward reaching.   By enabling women to network with each other and collaborate their ideas, and then focus them on women consumers, sites like Womenkind should help to bridge the existing gap that clearly exists in industries like automotive retailing.   

And of course, as the CarsDiva,  I’d be eager to share my thoughts on current car business advertising and marketing (I can still remember the “negligee bowl” that Dodge was set to sponsor before they received some… what would you call it, “well placed” feedback.)

Does anyone else have views on this issue?  Let me know…