Captivating Connections.

is tailgating the new marketing hotspot?

I'm from Balimore, and it still always impresses me when I go home to "Ravenstown" and see the rapid fans (including my friends and family) more or less live their lives (or at least weekends) by how the Ravens do.

Media Life recognizes the power of the tailgate, and has written an article positioning it as the new 'it' marketing spot:

"Now, two weeks into the NFL season, is a great time for marketers to reach out to fans who turn up at stadiums to cheer their teams on, and that doesn't necessarily mean spending huge dollars on signage in the stadium itself.

Another way to reach them, and at far less cost, is before the game starts when they’re tailgating in the stadium parking lot.

And besides cost, there are other advantages to targeting tailgaters. They're largely male, they're in a receptive mood, if not downright joyous in anticipation of seeing their team play, and they're not watching a game, as they would much of the time inside the stadium. They're talking with their buddies.

And the advertiser doesn't have to commit for the whole season. They can do one weekend or several, or all of the home games, and that makes it even more cost efficient.

In a typical tailgate campaign, street teams will be sent in to mingle with fans, talk up the product, and hand out fliers and samples. The advertiser might also hire a plane to tow a message around in the sky.

To find out how to get your client’s message in front of NFL tailgaters, read on."

the battle of the boomers (sexes).

Of course there are differences between generations. And clearly there are differences between the sexes. But what about differences between sexes in the same generation?

 

New research looks at the differences between Boomer women and men; quite timely considering that “never before in the history of this nation have so many men entered the 50+ life stage. Nearly 6,000 Baby Boomer men turn 50 every day, and a Boomer male turns 60 about every 15 seconds. This generational march to 60+ will continue for the next 17 years.”

So what does this mean in terms of men vs. women?

“Demography by itself does not predict the future course for this generation. The idiosyncratic Boomer value set, inspired by the social and cultural revolutions of the 1960s and 1970s, adds dimension to future scenarios. How so for Boomer men?

 

First, this generation of men has experienced the consumer power that came with being at the top of the nation's traditional social hierarchy. When they were young adults, Boomer men were favored with jobs, wage and salary advantages, and access. Social status influenced them to resonate with heroic marketing archetypes such as the Marlboro Man and the Shelby Ford Mustang.

Second, they remember standing side-by-side with female peers during long months of struggle to achieve greater economic and social equality for women. Many protested for greater racial inclusiveness. A man coming of age in the Sixties and Seventies learned to empathize with the underdog and challenge authority. An iconic magazine ad campaign for the Volkswagen Beetle – ‘Think Small’ -- embodied the underdog achieving celebrity status.

Third, Boomer men have a feisty history, and they've transformed every life stage they've occupied. For example, they ushered in the yuppie and gravitated to products such as the BMW sports car and Mont Blanc pen, reflecting their well-honed sense of technology, design and luxury. Today, iPhone and Mini Cooper fill the iconoclast's wish list.”

Ok, enough with the men. What about the gentlemen versus the ladies?

“Boomer men and women share many core values. For example, based on NMI's Healthy Aging/Boomer Database, 81% of Boomer women and 78% of Boomer men strongly or somewhat agree with taking responsibility for health matters: 'I'm very concerned about my personal health and am actively managing it.'

Both sexes strongly or somewhat agree that exercise is a primary way to promote healthy aging (94% of women and 92% of men). Both genders strongly or somewhat believe vitamins and nutritional supplements promote healthy aging (75% for both genders). Both believe that maintaining independence as they age is of highest priority (98% of women and 96% of men).

However, upon closer study of NMI data, noteworthy gender differences emerge. When asked if they would like to live to 100-plus years old, 61% of Boomer men strongly or somewhat agree, while 53% of Boomer women hope for such advanced old age. Concerning a belief that the best years of life are still ahead of me, 77% of women strongly or somewhat agree while 68% of men share this degree of confidence in the future.”

the tighty whitey theory?

Forget the Lipstick Index or Theory; apparently the latest theory revolves around mens underthings...

"For one answer to the nation's most pressing economic question -- when will the recession end? -- just take a peek inside the American man's underwear drawer.

There may be some new pairs there, judging by recent reports from retailers and analysts, and that could mean better days ahead for everyone.

Here's the theory, briefly: Sales of men's underwear typically are stable because they rank as a necessity. But during times of severe financial strain, men will try to stretch the time between buying new pairs, causing underwear sales to dip.

'It's a prolonged purchase,' said Marshal Cohen, senior analyst with the consumer research firm NPD Group. "It's like trying to drive your car an extra 10,000 miles."

The growth in sales of men's underwear began to slow last year as the recession took hold, according to Mintel, another research firm. This year, Mintel expects sales to fall 2.3 percent, the first drop since the company started collecting data in 2003.

But the men's underwear index -- or, conveniently, MUI -- may also have a silver lining. Mintel predicts that next year, men's underwear sales will fall by 0.5 percent, and as with many economic indicators, a slowing of a decline can be welcomed as a step in the right direction. Retailers are reporting encouraging signs in the men's underwear department. Sears spokeswoman Amy Dimond said stores are beginning to see more sales. At Target, spokeswoman Jana O'Leary said sales of men's underwear have been stronger over the past two months and multi-pair packs are moving."

the battles of the sexes: pessimism edition.

When it comes to the economy, who do you think is more pessimist? Women, or men?

If you said women, you're right:

(Honestly, I think many people would have guessed men...no offense, guy!)

"For a majority of women, the glass is still half empty -- and for marketers that could be tough to swallow.

Even though they have arguably fared better in the recession, women are more pessimistic about the economy than men, according to a 300-person survey by Performics, part of Publicis Groupe's VivaKi Nerve Center. While men appear to have improved their outlook on the economy, women have not.

The unit's '2009 Online Buyer Economic Trend Study' reported that 53% of women said their situation is worse than a year ago. By contrast, only 38% of men said they are worse off than a year ago. In April, when Performics posed those same questions, 53% of both genders said they were worse off.

The trend is interesting, considering unemployment among women is more than two percentage points lower than it is for men, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Men, by many accounts, have born the brunt of the job cuts."

But, here is the major issue with this:

"But the divergence is more eye-opening when you consider the rule of thumb that women are responsible for more than 80% of household spending. And that 'chief purchaser' role may actually be contributing to the pessimism."

What do you think?

don't forget the dads...

"In the middle of the marketing frenzy around mommy bloggers, Sony Electronics has turned its attention to the other gender, launching DigiDads, a program all about putting its products into a small group of blogging dads in hopes that they'll play with them and write about them.

The dads are not getting paid for using the consumer-electronics giant's products and will have to return them when they're done. Oh, and it's not quite as simple as giving them a product to review, and asking them to write about it, according to Marcy Cohen, senior manager of communications at Sony Electronics, and Chris Brogan, president of New Marketing Labs. Unlike with journalists, who often receive products on loan from Sony to review, Sony will put together projects for the blogging dads that they can use the gadgets on.

'Anybody can do blogger outreach,' said Mr. Brogan.'We're aiming for telling a story vs. 'Here's some stuff, write about it.'' The projects will include 'Summer of 100 Faces,' where the dads and their kids will use Sony cameras to take 100 portraits. Other plans include using a GPS-equipped video camera to map out historical video tours of a neighborhood or record a tour on a vacation."

why are you online?

The question is no longer who is online, it's what they are doing online. Apparently, it's a whole lot of time wasting...

"According to Ruder Finn, 100% of US Internet users surveyed in Q2 2009 went online to pass the time. Other popular reasons were education, connecting with others, researching and sharing.

The least common intentions when logging on were to make purchases, manage finances, comparison shop and join causes."

Ruder Finn divided online activities into six categories (listed most common to least):

• Learn
• Have fun
• Socialize
• Express oneself
• Advocate
• Do business
• Shop

They even found some battle of the sexes material:

"Men were more likely than women to go online for business, entertainment and to keep informed on news and current events.

Women, in turn, were more likely to use the Internet to advocate for a cause or issue, express themselves and socialize."

boomer men - the new 'it' target?

According to Steve French, executive vice president and managing partner at the Natural Marketing Institute, Boomer Men are the new 'it' consumer target. As he explains, "even though men may amount to a minimum of purchases for a product or service, they should not be forgotten. If you're never targeting them, you're never going to get the purchase."

Based on new research from the NMI, "40% of men over the age of 50 said they are not feeling increased stress because of the economy, compared with 30% of women in the same age group. In addition, Baby Boomer men are taking on more family shopping roles and are more likely to buy brand-name products. The survey found that about one-third of Baby Boomer males are the main household grocery shopper, up from 20% ten years ago. While in the store, about half (46%) of these men are willing to purchase brand names over store brands, compared with about 26% of women.

'They are more connected to a national brand, than with the wider selections that women may be aware of,' French tells Marketing Daily. 'Men may also associate a house brand back to the days when it was an inferior product.'"

Interesting.

how loyal are you?

The battle of the sexes is being waged over a new topic: loyalty. I'm not talking about loyalty to your partner;I'm talking about brand and product loyalty...

"A paper recently published in the Journal of Marketing reassesses the conventional wisdom that women are more loyal customers than men. In fact, the study finds, women are more loyal than men to individual service providers, like hairdressers. But men exhibit more loyalty to groups and companies, like barbershops.

In one study, for example, men were twice as loyal as women to their hospitals — meaning they rated themselves more likely to recommend the hospital than the doctor to a friend, and said they would stick with the hospital if the doctor left.

The study has obvious implications for barbers who are weighing whether to jump ship. But the authors write that it also sheds light on larger questions of behavior, and they endorse the theory that 'female self-identity centers on close individual relationships, and male self-identity centers on less intimate group relationships.'

Therefore, they suggest, 'for companies targeting men, an advertising strategy that stresses group themes may engender more loyalty, whereas for companies targeting women, advertising themes focusing on personal relationships may be more suitable.'

men needs groceries, too.

Did you know that there are more men shoppers than ever?

"Since 1985 there has been a dramatic shift in the composition of male principal shoppers in the U.S. Several factors are contributing to this trend. First, the traditional family unit has multiple variations today. From two working parents to single-parent homes, a younger generation is being exposed to new norms. Second, Americans are waiting longer to get married. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2008, the median age at first marriage was 27.4 for men and 25.6 for women vs. 25.9 for men and 23.6 for women in 1988. Lastly, Americans are living longer and as baby boomers retire, the men of that generation are shopping more than their fathers or grandfathers ever did.

Today, almost one-third of men are now the principal shoppers in the household."

You know what that means, then, right? You need to understand them and their needs just as much as you need to continue to understand what women want...

Still not convinced? Check out these stats:

"While females outspend male shoppers per trip across all retail channels, the average basket size spend differential is not as large as might be expected. The fact that women conduct more "planned" shopping trips than men is one explanation for the higher dollar amount.

Overall, men are substantially increasing their average dollar basket size across all channels -- especially in grocery where they have increased spending by 56 percent over a five-year span. Additionally, while their share of spending is growing across all retail outlets, women's share of spending has declined. In the grocery channel, men's share of dollars increased from 30-38 percent  -- a 27 percent increase versus women's decline of 11 percent."

let's hear it for the boy(s).

According to new research from Resolution Rese, "Due to an ironic combination of bravado and willingness to move back in with Mom and Dad, 18- to-34-year-old males have remained more optimistic than most demographics in the face of the ongoing recession.

Still, a full 40% of this characteristically brash lot claim to be making 'a real effort to cut back' on spending...What's more, half are now comparison-shopping online, while 38% attest to searching for coupons, discounts and sales before executing purchases."

So what does this mean for us? According to the report, "Advertisers would be wise to keep their brands front and center while the economy is down, even if the product being marketed is not specifically in the entertainment genre. An online presence is crucial in an environment where men overall are spending more time on the Internet, both as a form of entertainment as well as a source of information for ensuring they spend money wisely."