In fact, if you are proactive, you can thrive, while your competition falls to the wayside.

According to a McGraw-Hill study of 600 firms’ expenditures during the 1981-1982 recession revealed that companies that did not cut their budgets or chose to increase spending experienced significantly higher sales during and after the recession.

In fact, those companies that had maintained or increased their expenditures during the recession enjoyed an average sales growth of 275 percent over the following five years, while those that had decreased their spending had to settle for an average sales increase of only 19 percent.

Clearly, cutting spending on marketing and advertising during an economic downturn can mean both short- and long-term negative effects on sales and profits.

The question is who, how and what to spend those precious marketing and advertising dollars on to attract more buyers?

My suggestion:

Focus at least 50% of your advertising and marketing resources on women car buyers who are the majority car buyer, influence 85% of all car buying and 73% of all maintenance decisions.

Develop as meaningful green initiative. Women are choosing more and more to shop at businesses that have adopted green initiatives. Women comprise 51.4% of the U.S. populations, and buy or influence the purchase of 85% of ALL products and services. That’s a lot of power packed in a purse to get the cleaner, safer world they want.

Develop an online social networking strategy by participating in the blogosphere, social networks and online communities like Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace and Twitter. According to eMarketer, female usage of the internet in the U.S. has risen 12.4 per cent since 2000, compared with 3.2 per cent for males. In 2011,109.7 million U.S. females are projected to be online, amounting to 51.9 per cent of the online population.

Gaining market share now by launching effective, smart advertising and marketing programs aimed at women during a recession will significantly increase sales now and put you in the leadership position after the recession.

Jody DeVere - President & CEO

Ask Patty, Inc.
www.askpatty.com
www.certifiedfemalefriendly.com

Technorati Tags: askpatty, autos, blogging, BlogHer, CAR BUYERS, cars, Facebook, Jody DeVere, marketing to women, micro-blogging, MySpace, recession, SOCIAL MEDIA, SOCIAL NETWORKING, Twitter, women car buyers

America may not be ready for a woman president, but a woman car salesperson or even a General Manager? Sure, why not! Car dealerships are finally catching up with the rest of the world in recognizing the equal footing afforded to women in today’s society and, most importantly to my dealer clients; the family car buying decision. I am not suggesting that there isn’t still a “macho” ceiling that needs to be torn down; just that it has already shown some cracks.

Sites like Ask Patty have targeted a clearly defined opportunity to understand and sell to women but the true horizon is set on career opportunities for women in the car business. Dealers have realized that they can train male salespeople to be more sensitive to women’s issues and they have solicited “Patty’s” advice and support to help them. More forward thinking dealers have accepted that women salespeople and managers already have a jump on their male counterparts since they are already on the women’s team!

I have been counseling my dealer client’s for years to recognize the unique role of women in the car buying process. Our creative message has become much more relationship based with information rather than sales hype but the success of our campaigns have been in the changes that we first implement into the dealership’s selling process. When given a client dictate to improve their message to women I have a standard reply; how many women salespeople or managers do you have on your team? If they reply with one - or none - I know that my job has just started.

My next question is; would you run a Spanish ad and not have any Spanish speaking staff? Of course not; so why not hire women to translate for your women customers? To help the more committed dealers I have extended our services to include national searches through sites such as Career Builders and Monster.Com with special consideration paid to female applicants. The real solution, however, lies in the interview process and the dealers’ understanding of the unique needs of women in the workplace. Any good Human Resource department has an Employee Handbook with policies and procedures to deal with sexual harassment issues brought about by ignorant male management teams but that only deals with risk management, not improved sales or soliciting and retaining qualified women staff.

The remnants of our old male driven society still places a disproportionate amount of family responsibilities on women, even working women, and there are associated issues which must be addressed. Pregnancy leaves, day care for working mothers, family needs and other domestic responsibilities all fall squarely on female shoulders and they must be dealt with. I confess that my wife is the best example I can use to evidence the point since even with my heightened sensitivities to women’s issues I still claim to not know how to do the laundry. My hectic schedule pales when compared to her 40 hour work week combined with her share of the housework. We split all of the household chores 80/20 and you can guess who claims the 80 %!

Career opportunities for women in the retail automotive industry are improving and they represent the solution to two problems for today’s dealers. First, having women on a dealer’s staff evidences the dealer’s commitment to represent his female customer’s interests. Secondly, women represent a yet untapped resource of qualified “people persons” ideally suited to sell cars, Hiring and maintaining a qualified sales staff is a common goal of every car dealership I have ever managed or represented. The ability for women to earn incomes greater than most comparable positions in the marketplace and equal to, or greater than, their male counterparts in the work force is a competitive advantage which dealers must present in their hiring and interview process.

The ball is in the women’s court to recognize the opportunities that their newly recognized powers present to them. Not only as a consumer looking for the best deal on their next new or pre-owned vehicle, but as an integral part of the solution to improving women’s role in society and in the car business with the benefits and income to match their contributions to the workforce and our economy.

Jody DeVere
President & CEO
www.askpatty.com

Technorati Tags: car dealerships, careers, marketing to women, Selling to Women, women

I love being a woman in the automotive industry. Fellow ladies in the industry would agree that nothing brings us greater self satisfaction than “talking the talk” with dealerships. We make a real difference with dealerships’ internal processes and increase their return on investment. Gaining credibility in this male-dominated industry has brought me a great deal of joy and fulfillment. Learning from other women in the industry has been edifying.

I want every woman to see how great it is to be part of this community. This begs the question, Are you actively pursuing women to join your sales, service, and finance teams? What are you doing to hire more women? Are you really an “equal opportunity employer”?

According to Road and Travel Magazine, 39% of women would rather deal with women in the car showroom. Since women make up less than 7% of dealership workforce and 1.6% of service technicians or mechanics, what is your dealership doing to increase this percentage?

Some women may have misconceptions about working within a dealership. Because of this, it would be good to examine the behavior and habits of your dealership prior to inviting women to apply within. For instance, are there salespeople surrounding the dealership like vultures about to devour prey? Do your sales people regularly use profanity while working deals or working in the service department? It may sound old fashioned, but this kind of behavior may alienate women (and men!) from wanting to join your “team.”

Once you’ve created a female friendly work environment, its time to invite them to "apply within." A female focused email campaign that announces you are hiring would be a cost effective way to get word out quickly. Highlight reasons for working at your dealership that would attract a woman. Talk about your flexible hours, aggressive pay, and friendly and respectful environment. Let them know that training will be provided and that your dealership promotes teamwork.

What are you doing to attract more women to work at your dealership?

Sarah Draley

sarahd@askpatty.com

Technorati Tags: AskPatty.com, Car Sales, Certified Female Friendly, Hiring Women, Sales Training

Politics, Palin & the Power of the Purse: Women’s Marketing Expert Dishes on Economic Crises, Twitter and How to Communicate with Consumers Who Control $5 Trillion

Reprinted from the Bulldog Reporter.

Brian Pittman’s profile this week: Yvonne DiVita, President, Windsor Media Enterprises; Author, "Dickless Marketing: Smart Marketing to Women Online;" Blogger, "Lip-Sticking"

Women influence well over two-thirds of all consumer purchases in the U.S.—and perhaps even more when the economy tanks and households tighten their budgets. Simply put, women wield incredible purchasing power, according to Yvonne DiVita, president of Windsor Media Enterprises and author of several books on the topic of marketing to women.

That Clinton and Palin reshaped the presidential races and public discussion this year is yet another indicator of women’s rising power and influence. The upshot: This is one macro demographic that marketers and communicators alike can’t afford to alienate. So how can you best reach out to women during these times, what hot buttons do they respond to when it comes to PR campaigns and even communication styles—and what miscues must you avoid at all costs?

We checked with DiVita for a few answers. Considering the title of her book outlining smart marketing tactics for reaching women online, we were pretty sure she’d shoot straight and not hold back. We weren’t disappointed. Her insights start here:

What is the purchasing power of women—how can you quantify it?

Let’s look at some information from Ask Patty!—a website and blog that talks to women about cars: (this information is elsewhere, also, but I think Ask Patty! is a fabulous women’s site to share). Here are some facts on the purchasing power of women: (mind you, I wrote about this in my book, where I call women CEO of home, hearth, garage and backyard—and let’s not forget Dr. Mom!):

Women account for 85% of all consumer purchases, including everything from autos to health care. Specifically, they account for the following percentage of purchases:

• 91% of New Homes
• 66% PCs
• 92% Vacations
• 80% Healthcare
• 65% New Cars
• 89% Bank Accounts
• 93% Food
• 93 % OTC Pharmaceuticals

American women spend about $5 trillion annually—over half the U.S. GDP. Among these women are the vast group we call Mom! In a recent conversation, I mentioned seeing an ad for Fisher-Price toys. "Did you know," my friend said, "that when Fisher-Price began, Herman Fisher was asked how he came up with all those great toys for kids, and he answered, ‘I don’t make toys for kids. I make toys for Moms.’" Even today, when it comes to toddlers and babies, Fisher-Price knows it has to appeal to Moms, first. We want toys that are safe, educational, and fun.

How does will current economic climate impact marketing to women?

It’s interesting how the current economic climate is affecting women—women are worried about finances, about the coming holidays and about being able to take good care of their families. The companies that offer solutions to help women deal with smaller budgets—that offer tips on how to manage this sudden shock, will be the ones women share (we call that viral marketing). Women are eager to connect to big brands on blogs—where they can actually talk to the PEOPLE behind the products. Brands that are willing to open up will cement loyalty in their women customers. Plus, everyone knows that when a woman finds a good buy, she can’t resist sharing. It’s not "show me the money" with women. It’s "show me the people." A blog is a perfect customer service option, and many companies are recognizing that power.

What makes women (a generality, I know) buy?

From my research, and my experiences talking with women all over the U.S.—women buy for other people more than they buy for themselves. So, learn about the holidays women celebrate. Find out where she "hangs out" and listen to her talk. Note that offline women will walk all over the mall, in and out of stores, before taking out their wallets, while online…they will go to favorite sites, trusted sites (usually introduced by their trusted circle of friends, via social networking ) and buy quickly, so they can get back to their daily tasks, like Twittering what they just bought.

Once again, the brands that are engaging women in conversation, and allowing women to create the color or design of the company’s products via online social media tools, are winning favor with women. It also pays to take that experience offline, on a regular basis…I routinely recommend inviting women to a special offline event—something she can bring her friends to—and then, following up with a reach-out online for feedback about how to make the next event even better. Social media is good for this, but so is email.

How are women using social media—which tools are most popular?

Women are all over social media. More women blog than men. More women keep their blogs current than men, and last year, Blogher did a survey among thousands of women, the majority of whom said they would give up newspapers and magazines (and alcohol) before they would give up their blogs. Twitter is now helping women reach new heights. NOW we can talk to each other in 140 character soundbites, all day long. NOW, we can share news, information, shopping tips, Mommy tips, places to go locally and nationally, and ask questions, again…in 140 character sound bites. REAL TIME conversations happen on Twitter, and women are eager to connect with each other in this way—moment to moment, to receive advice, to give advice, to share stories and just to connect. In fact, there’s a new site call TwitterMoms.com that is getting a lot of attention. I use Twitter to keep up to date on conferences I can’t attend. All the women there Twitter the conference, step by step, for me.

How can PR people use those social media channels to reach women?

PR folks need just start Twittering. Be polite. Keep your content focused (inform, educate, entertain, inquire) and women will respond. Learn a little bit more about us by joining the conversations on Twitter or blogs—the REAL conversation. You know, by being relevant to the topic that moment. Don’t pitch! If you have product you think we might like, ASK…don’t TELL. Every time a PR professional emails a woman blogger with a canned pitch, they lose thousands of opportunities because each woman blogger is connected to hundreds of other women bloggers and many of them are Twittering. You’ll become the butt of jokes if you aren’t thoughtful about reaching out to these women. BTW, allow the women to decide how to talk about your product. Give specifics, but don’t dictate. If the conversation is going the wrong way, join in and gently nudge it the right way.

Can you think of an example of a campaign that married online and offline to reach women?

Last year, Method products (environmentally friendly cleaning products) told this story at the Blogher Business Conference: They did not have a budget for TV or magazines. They decided to do a blogger outreach. (BTW, women are the leaders in the green space. Check out Diane MacEachern and The Big Green Purse: http://greenwoman.typepad.com/.)

Method created several Green Houses in cities around the U.S. and invited local bloggers to bring their "bad" cleaning supplies to a Green Party, where they could trade for "good" cleaning supplies. The campaign was a big success. Mind you, there were only a dozen or so women at each "green house," but they blogged about this event and Method got a lot of attention. Women loved it.

Recently, Ford did this, also. The Detroit company invited a select group of bloggers, including a number of women, to visit the Ford plant and learn about new Ford models, to the extent of allowing us to drive the 2009 models. I was one. And yes, I blogged it. No one told me what to say—this is key. I wrote what I felt. That’s good publicity for Ford. I learned a lot while I was in Detroit, and I now have a new, positive image of Ford.

Your tips for pitching blogs—what do people do right or wrong when pitching you?

It takes more than calling us by name (you can get our name off of our blog in a millisecond). It takes building a relationship. When I get a pitch that starts, "Hey there…" I know it’s a broadcast email, and unlikely that the writer even knows who I am. When I get a PR pitch that starts, "Hi, Yvonne," then proceeds to pitch me off-topic (video games and movies are not bad, lots of women play video games and watch movies, but I do not write much about those topics, unless they are women focused), then I know I’m on a list and the writer doesn’t know who I am.

The best pitches are ones that ASK if I might be interested in the topic, or if I would consider a new book or new product? A polite email asking me if it’s okay to pitch me, before pitching me, goes a long way. Die hard bloggers will Twitter or blog a bad pitch. I have not done so—but I’ve thought about it. So, do contact and make friends with the right bloggers for your products and services. Do not contact bloggers blindly—you will do more damage than good. Bloggers can be an unforgiving group. A good rule is to check the blog you are thinking of pitching, and see if they have guidelines. Many do today.

What do you love most about your work?

Meeting new people, both genders. I learn from my connections, and in response, I often go out of my way to help a newbie. It’s a great world where you can help influence someone’s progress in their business, just by sharing some stories or passing along research (often sent to you by someone else who, after getting to know you, said, "I thought this might interest you."). I tell the world that doing business online isn’t about the technology, or the tools—it’s about the people.

Can you tell me something about you personally (hobby or something) that informs the way you approach your work?

Well, I’ve been a writer since I could hold a pencil. So all of this blogging and Twittering is second nature to me. In my business, I help people who don’t like to write (they have flashbacks of term papers) learn how to reach their customers online effectively, using social media (I teach them how to create an editorial calendar for themselves, along with other tips and tricks). It’s easier than they think, and, at the same time, it’s harder than they think, because writing is only part of it. The truth is most people in business need guidance on how to write in a conversational tone. My background in English literature and creative writing serves me well in that area. And, as many women do, I have an innate desire to see other people succeed. In the world of marketing to women, women shine at helping other women do well. For example, check out this new women entrepreneur’s blog sponsored by the Simon Graduate School of Business: www.webatsimon.com.

I’ve also seen how women respond to presentations that include women—as opposed to men by themselves, who tend to "lecture." The current trust factor that says people "trust others just like me" applies here. That means we aren’t turning off the male viewpoint and we’re not ignoring men, but if a man wants to reach the women’s market today, he should bring a woman on board. At that point, we’ll be sitting up tall, paying more attention because now he’s touched us where it counts: not in our pocketbook, in our heart. I like to quote Harriet Beecher Stowe who said, "Women are the real architects of society." Help us do that and…you win our attention and our trust.

Jody DeVere
CEO/President
www.askpatty.com
www.carblabber.com

Technorati Tags: ask, askpatty, car advice, cars, Jody DeVere, lipsticking, marketing to woemn, Selling to Women, Twitter

An estimated 14,000 women gathered at the nonprofit, nonpartisan conference WeEmpower Women’s Conference held in the Long Beach Arena in Southern California yesterday along with myself. The event, which began 22 years ago as a government initiative for female small business owners and working professionals, has grown into the largest woman’s forum of its kind in the United States.

California First Lady Maria Shriver shaped this year’s conference theme, "Be who you are. Feel it. Live it. Pass it on," with the goal of encouraging women to discover their purpose, passion and power. This year’s highlights included seminars on starting a small business and financial well-being, and panel discussions on topics such as "Alzheimer’s, cancer and aging parents" and "how to be a confident leader."

This year’s line-up of speakers and participants was be led by Governor Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver and included former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Christiane Amanpour, Bono, Warren Buffet, Sister Joan Chittister, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Jennifer Lopez, Chris Matthews, Indra Nooyi and Gloria Steinem.

I was the guest of GM and Chevrolet at the event and visited their display of fuel-efficient Chevy vehicles in the vendor area wading through hundreds of women-friendly products and services offered to attendees. Many green products were featured and women flooded the aisles shopping, tasting, and testing new products.

This was one of the most inspiring events I have attended all year. Kudos and thank you to General Motors and Chevrolet for supporting women at events like this as a sponsor.

Each woman I met for the first time during the conference, as soon as she found out what I do for a living, launched into sharing her car buying horror story with me or alternately her anxiety about visiting a car dealership. One young twenty-five year old women said she took her boyfriend with her for protection the last time she bought a car to "shield her" from all the "sleazy men" working at the dealerships, ( Her words). Sometimes I hate to say what I do as I have heard the same stories from women so many times over and over with the same theme and honestly it gets me all rilled up that things are not changing fast enough for women car buyers at car dealerships.

Not so surprisingly, a number of car dealers still believe negotiating and buying a vehicle is a man’s job even when the facts are clear and published often: Women have the power of the purse and make 85% of car buying decisions and in fact buy 65% of all cars sold in the US today.

In these very difficult market conditions can car dealerships afford to continue to propagate these same terrible attitudes women have about the car buying experience? I think not! Yet investing in training for a "niche" marketing plan aimed at women is just NOT IN THE BUDGET or worse believe they are doing JUST FINE with women car buyers and need no help.  I don’t believe it for a minute. I speak to far too many women in my role as CEO and President of AskPatty.com and guess what …women do not tell me great stories about car dealerships, like almost never.

Women by the way are not a "niche" market, Women are the majority of customers for dealerships both in sales and service. Why do I feel like a broken record saying over and over again.." WOMEN ARE THE MAJORITY CAR BUYER, WOMEN ARE THE MAJORITY CAR BUYER, WOMEN ARE THE MAJORITY CAR BUYER" to only hear my own voice echoing back at me from the auto industry …seriously, car dealerships are losing sales and/or good women customers and I am really just trying to help them make more money and gain a better reputation with women car buyers.

Sometimes I feel like a minority political party in the auto industry that cannot be heard above the old boy rederic that keeps our industry stuck in "rut-i-tus" in regards to women, doing the same things over and over year after year expecting different results. This entirely backward thinking by car dealerships astounds me and makes no good business sense to me at all. When will the majority of car dealerships wake up and smell the green dollars women are willing to spend IF they give an all around great experience with their dealership?

Car dealerships do not do better with women because they are not trained better! Affordable training to communicate more effectively with women, marketing and advertising help is readily available at AskPatty.com, and yet although they think it is a very good idea, they hesitate to invest and make a commitment to change.

I challenge the savvy, smart and hungry dealerships to take advantage of the largest untapped ,under-represented and under-served market share of available customers: Women Car Buyers. Car dealerships can gain market share during this down-turn while your old boy thinking competitors are asleep at the wheel stressing out over market conditions rather than going after the virtually untapped market of women car buyers.

"If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it."
— Margaret Fuller

Jody DeVere
CEO/President - Ask Patty, Inc.
www.askpatty.com
eMail: jdevere@askpatty.com

Technorati Tags: askaptty, Governor Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver, marketing to women, warren buffett, women buy cars, women car buyers

Social media is growing into a significant part of the marketing, branding and loyalty building strategies for many businesses. Email marketing and web sites are still important - but blogs and other social media tools are becoming critical, especially for car dealers when trying to reach in market women car buyers.

According to a recent study by BlogHer and Compass Partners, more than one-third (35%) of all women in the U.S. aged 18 to 75 participate in the blogosphere at least once a week. And that number increases if less-frequent visits are factored in. Of those women who are online any amount of time, 53% read blogs, 37% post comments to blogs and 28% write or update blogs, according to the study."

Dell has joined with Facebook to launch a community and guide series called ‘Social Media for Small Business’ intended to provide SMB customers with insight on how they can leverage social media to expand their business. The community has been created as a Facebook Page and includes:

• Guides on how to use blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, “crowdsourcing” and other social media channels to cost-effectively reach and serve the “Connected Era;”
• "Screencast” introductions to social-media tools like Technorati, Netvibes and WordPress;
• A discussion board to spark conversation and idea sharing;
• A best-practice forum that features a different SMB weekly;
• SMB deals and news from Dell Small and Medium Business.

A great resource here for beginners to learn how to leverage social media as a low cost organic way to reach women in market car buyers.

Jody DeVere
CEO/President
AskPatty.com, Inc.
www.askpatty.com

Technorati Tags: askpatty, Dell, Facebook, socail media, Twitter, women car buyers, YouTube

There is a saying in sales that a potential customer should be pursued until they "Buy or Die." It embraces the importance of a salesperson’s follow up and persistence to sell a potential buyer. These qualities are the foundation of a good and proficient sales team. However, dealerships that abide by this mentality are losing out on crucial residual revenue.

Sarah Draley

National Sales Director, AskPatty.com

sarahd@askpatty.com

Leads are like a drug.  You work one until it either produces a high (a sale) or until it doesn’t "do it for you" anymore (they buy elsewhere).  The more leads that come in the greater the chance for a high.  It is a toxic addiction that never is completely fulfilled.  Can you ever really have too many leads? 

Do you reall need more leads?

A recent study by J.D. Power and Associates revealed some interesting information that led me to ask the above question.  The study determined that 80% of vehicles are rejected after a new vehicle shopper visited a dealership.  What was more compelling was that two of the top reasons why the purchase was made elsewhere were directly related to the experience the shopper had with the dealership:  either another dealer has better service or there was a lack of professionalism among personnel at the dealership.

Do dealerships really need more leads?  Or are they just not making the most of the customer opportunities that they already have?  Since lead generation is expensive and currently not delivering the quantity and quality as in times past, where should a dealership be putting their ever diminishing dollars?  Effective sales training can be a savvy solution in a down turned market.  Having a well trained sales staff can help you close a higher percentage of ups/leads, thereby reducing your need for more leads. 

When I speak with dealerships I can hear the anxiety in their voice over the current economic situation.  They are deeply concerned about making it through these tough times and prospering in the future.  Some dealerships sound down-right frantic.  Some sound scared.  How does this manic disposition translate with potential customers?  Do customers sense the desparation dealerships are projecting to sell more cars?

Salespersons must guard against sounding pathetic and desparate.  Deals are being lost right now because buyers sense that dealers need to sell cars more than the buyers needs to own cars. 

I’ll end this post with a profound statement from the J.D. Power study.  It is certainly something every wise dealership should consider:

"Sales personnel can play a key role in improving close rates by viewing customer visits as an opportunity to demonstrate a vehicle’s value and by successfully matching shoppers with the new vehicle that best suits their needs."

Sarah Draley

National Sales Director, AskPatty.com

Click here to become a Certified Female Friendly Dealership

Technorati Tags: Dealership Leads, J. D. Power Study, Lead Generation, Sales Training

I took a quick survey of my women close women business associates, who are Mom’s and a few Mommy Bloggers I know and got mixes reactions and reviews about the new Brook Shields 2009 VW Routan YouTube Ad aimed at Mom’s who may be in the market for a new Mini Van:

View Video by Clicking here.

Mother of Two from Northern California:

"1) I would call it almost abrasive advertising - egad! If it wasn’t so poorly written and acted it might have been funny in an edgy way but it is just dumb. It seems to make an awful lot of fun of the American public’s intelligence and sense of privacy if you ask me - case in point number two:

2) Reverse vasectomies, fertility treatments - in a car ad! Yuck.

3) It is 4 minutes too long!"

Mother of two from Florida:

"I’ve seen the TV commercial on the Routan, it was very comical. The extended version on the web site is also comical, but too long. I think VW is attempting to come up with a different route for their commercials…I think it’s catchy…Being a mother of two doesn’t mean that I’ll go out and buy a minivan…regardless of who makes it..But this commercial sticks, I went beyond watching the web version to VW’s site and took a tour of the inside of the minivan; the commercial on the web site neglected to show the inside of the Routan.."

Mother of Two from Southern California:

"Okay. Well, at 4 minutes too long, it’s a happy thing the ad won’t be shown on television. Of course it’s a parody, but it’s a dumb one at that. If only they could have made it even slightly funny in its failed attempt at humor. So many of the other Volkswagen commercials have been clever and funny lately, but I think they just missed their mark on this one. Brooke is gorgeous, but she’s not believable here. She’s got great hair, but she doesn’t do a very good job of selling the van or unselling the van so that people are birthing babies just to get into the van."

A Soon to be Mom in Texas:

German engineering/Chrysler engineering aside it seemed like an ill-executed concept that could have been very funny.  I honestly didn’t get it at first and then when I got it I kept wanting to laugh, but it just wasn’t funny. Additionally, its almost like she repeats "German Engineering" so many times it seems like she is trying to talk herself into believing it, too.  I love witty marketing, but this just fell flat for me.

I am a Mother of three and have six grandchildren ages 1 – 9:

Personally I found this ad offensive and in poor taste. Sigh… yet another new car ad with sexual undertones and this time aimed at Moms of all people, ‘Yuck’, is right.

AskPatty.com Certified Female Friendly ad rating: 3 out of 10.

Jody DeVere
CEO/President
AskPatty.com, Inc.
www.askpatty.com

Technorati Tags: auto, Automotive advertising, Brooke Shields, Geramn Cars, marketing to women, Mini van, Rotan, Volkswagen, VW, YouTube

Put your money where your mouth is.  Actions speak louder than words.  Well done is better than well said. 

All of the above quotes have one common thread:  what matters most is what you do, not what you say.  Let’s apply this principal to marketing to women. 

Car dealerships can develop an effective marketing strategy to attract women.  Clever promotions offering complimentary services, deep discount coupons, and giveaways are great ways to get women to visit your store.  But what happens when she gets there?  Are your actions speaking louder than your advertising?

Women can be attracted to a company’s products and services with an effective advertising campaign or marketing program, only to have the effectiveness undermined when they receive poor treatment or are misunderstood by salespeople.  If a woman’s experience is not positive and she feels that she is not going to be respected, heard, understood, and appreciated, then you will miss out on the opportunity to sell her now and retain her as a customer in the future.

Additionally, if you’ve created a marketing strategy that is inconsistent with your internal processes which result in an unhappy female customer, please be warned.  She will begin her own marketing campaign telling her entire network not to buy from you either.

How do you ensure your internal processes support your marketing?  Training.  A well trained staff that is in tune with how to properly treat women will increase the chances that every women who is attracted to your dealership will buy a car from your dealership.  What is more, she will return to you for maintenence of her vehicle, to purchase her next vehicle and will tell her network of friends and family to shop with you, as well. 

Here are some helpful tips to ensure your actions are speaking louder than your advertising:

• Greet women respectfully and with a confident handshake (think "not ouch!" and "not limp")
• Don’t assume you know her buying power or marital status.
• Don’t ask her out! 
• Avoid insincere flattery… in fact, if you’re selling something, women may be suspicious of any flattery, so it might be best to keep it to yourself.

With 74% of women feeling misunderstood by automotive marketing, if your dealership has figured out an innovative way to attract them to your store…. bravo!  But remember, all the money spent advertising and marketing to attract women will be wasted if they do not have an overall great experience with your dealership.

Sarah Draley

National Sales Director, AskPatty.com

Click here to become a Certified Female Friendly Dealership

Technorati Tags: AskPatty.com, Car Sales, Certified Female Friendly, Marketing Strategy, marketing to women, Sales Strategy, Sales Training