What We Can Learn From MasterCard

 

Setting the Mood

 “I’m really tired of bad news. Every time I turn on the news, that’s all I hear.”

 “The whole world needs a valium right now.”

 “I’m tired of old white guys telling me what they are going to do for me.”

 The question? When you think about your future over the next few years, how do you feel about life in general?

 Just some answers from a MStique Pulse survey for a client. These answers match some other national surveys we’ve seen that show that women are really tired of bad news and want to make some changes to help create change. Without getting political, how do you take advantage of that mood? By being the oasis in a sea of bad news.

 MasterCard gets it. Their latest promotion involves a cruise for you and 9 of your girlfriends. Priceless.

 The Spa industry gets it. Look at the resort spas in your area and see how many are offering girlfriend getaways, self-help getaways and relaxation training.

 Wyndham Hotels gets it. They’ve created a travel planning service called Women on Their Way, to help women plan great girlfriend getaways.

 State Farm gets it. They are running an ad campaign in women’s magazines focusing on how they can make insurance easier so you can get back to “me” time.

All of those examples are great marketing strategies for making today’s woman want to be part of your brand. They are either building connections or they are trying to make women’s lives easier. Both are very successful ways to create a “that’s me” moment. And it’s the “that’s me” moment that will help your station create a relationship with your listener.

 Let’s look at building connections. Women connect with other women. I just recently saw a poll that showed that women trust their friends more than anyone else, including their husbands. (And remember, 50% of women are not married.) There are no more important relationships in a woman’s world than her friends. And that is an easy connection to use to help you become part of their world. My friend Suzanne Belanger, the marketing director for WVMV in Detroit used to do an unbelievable promotion in the 90’s at Q95. The Cruise For Women Only was a huge event. They would fill a boat for the night with just women and their friends, cruise the river with music, food and some beverages. It was a hot ticket and an event that created unbelievable word of mouth. Believe me, what happened on that boat did not stay on that boat!

 Creating those kinds of connections is not difficult. Women only events whether they are fun, like The Cruise For Women Only, or business or health oriented all have great attendance. I recently saw a hotel do a women only slumber party with special rates for a group of four, dinner, spa treatments, wine tasting and a networking cocktail party. Women’s business networking groups are growing all over the country. Women and wine, Chick Flick movie nights, travel opportunities or lunchtime networking, they all can give you the opportunity to facilitate another women connecting with women event. And you will reap the benefits of being part of that good mood.

 The other technique for creating mood is by doing things that help women relax. With the holidays approaching (yes I said the Christmas word) you have unlimited opportunities to create ways to make the most stressful time in any woman’s life easier. Once again I’ll use one of the best marketers to women as an example, MasterCard. (Since 80% of all purchasing is done by women, they know their customer.) At Christmas, they always create a Priceless campaign with a grand prize that includes some way to make the holidays easier. For a couple of years they did a personal shopper including the cost of the gifts. I can still see the woman watching someone else trim her tree, wrap her gifts for her while saying “great eggnog” as she gleefully watched. MasterCard is very strong at creating campaigns with an emotional connection. Priceless is a great campaign. 

 So as you go into the last half of the year, think about the mood you are projecting. Are you attracting women to your station by making them feel good? Word of mouth is created by appealing to a woman’s senses, by creating a “that’s me” moment. Mood is not just a contest, it is a strategy, a language and a color pallet for your station. Mood is what creates connection. 

If you'd like more information on how MStique Marketing for Women can create a winning mood for your radio station, visit us online at www.mstiquemarketing.com.