Marketing to Women

Earlier this month, I attended an all-women event at a local outdoor gear store. Held on a Sunday evening, the event was called SWEET — short for Sporty Women’s Empowering Evening of Tips and advice — and included inspirational speakers, a fashion show, food and giveaways.

Marketing for the event was rather low key. I first learned about it from a simple sign on the door as I left the store a week or so before the event. Later, I saw an ad in the city’s larger newspaper that reminded me to RSVP. Based on what little I heard about it, I didn’t expect attendance to be very high. I was amazed when I approached the store and had a hard time finding a place to park. Later, I was blown away when organizers announced that attendance estimated at around 450 people.

As a “Sporty Woman”, the event appealed to me. I found it refreshing to have marketing efforts targeting me directly on this particular topic since the outdoor industry is filled with images of men hanging from cliffs and other improbable locations. Despite the fact that women buy or influence the purchases of 81% of athletic apparel, category marketing directed specifically towards women is rather limited.

I applaud the store’s focus on the women’s market and I applaud their execution of the event. The evening used real women to inspire other women from a variety of aspects, including:

• A fashion show which featured store staff of all shapes and sizes
• Advice from experts who were female small business owners
• Words of wisdom from three inspirational speakers: an Olympian (who ran the first women’s marathon in 1984), a breast cancer survivor (who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro) and a road cyclist turned mountain biker and B&B owner.

More companies should be paying attention to meeting the needs of the women’s market. In the sports industry, it represents a significant, and growing, opportunity. According to She’s Got Game: Women’s Interest in Sports Grows Significantly (SVP, 2004.), from 1997 to 2000, “sales of women’s athletic sports apparel rose 20% to $15.9 billion, while men’s spending inched up just one percent, to $15.1 billion”.

Interestingly, shortly after the SWEET event, a friend forwarded another example of marketing directed at women by a company that doesn’t traditionally target them. It was for a HOG (Harley Owners’ Group) event, called a Garage Party:

Do you know a woman who has always dreamed of riding a motorcycle?
Tell her now’s the time to shift into first gear! We are hosting a garage party event to introduce women to the fun of riding and give them inside info on how to enter the sport. We will be holding interactive sessions on topics of interest for women who dream of riding and would like to turn their dream into reality. We will answer any questions to get her started on her own Harley-Davidson or Buell adventure.

Maybe times are changing!