Pocketbook Power: How to Reach the Hearts and Minds of Today's Most Coveted Consumers - Women

It wasn't that long ago that legendary adman David Ogilvy chided his peers for talking down to women. "The consumer is not a moron; she's your wife." He berated those who ignored women or discounted them, misreading men's higher paychecks as spending power. And was David Ogilvy right. A half century later, women are responsible for not just buying, but also deciding what (or who politically) to buy, when and "where" to buy it (online, boutiques, department stores, mall) and how much to pay. Statistics compiled by the sales promotion agency Frankel & Co. and others show women now control more than 80 per cent of all purchases. They buy: 53 per cent of all stocks; 51 per cent of all sports equipment; 63 per cent of all personal computers; 47 per cent of all hardware and home improvement materials; 85 per cent of all toilet tissue; 90 per cent of all greeting cards. And experts predict that by 2020, women will control most of the money in America. Demographically, women represent 52.1 per cent of the population, making them the biggest consumer segment in the country. But their purchasing influence is far greater than their numerical superiority suggests. Women buy or influence two out of every three of the USD3 trillion spent in the U.S. each year -- on everything from car tires to cognac. Consequently, women are now wooed and pursued by the very marketers who once ignored them, a transformation the fairer sex has accomplished without activism The advertising powers that be have come to recognize the power that is through the most obvious and compelling evidence: the power of the pocketbook. Now, noted marketing expert Bernice Kanner takes an eye-opening and entertaining look at the way female spending power has forever changed the advertising/marketing landscape. Kanner, who penned the award-winning weekly column for New York Magazine, "On Madison Avenue," for 13 years and who is widely heralded as being on the pulse of the American consumer, reveals how the ad world is responding to the female-dominated marketplace and offers, via dozens of examples of campaigns that have worked and bombed, a road map to how to sell to women - today and tomorrow. Marrying compelling demographic and statistical information with tales of canny approaches to product development, positioning, marketing prowess, Pocketbook Power is organized around different market segments, including health, apparel, finance and technology. Within each industry, Kanner highlights a myriad of approaches for successfully reaching the lucrative female buyer - and the tactics to avoid. Overall, Pocketbook Power promises to be a compelling must-read for advertising and marketing professionals who are determined to reach the hearts, minds - and ultimately, the wallets - of today's most coveted consumer.

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