6 Ways to Make Your Brand More Appealing to Women

Did you know? It is more difficult to make your brand appealing to women than to men. Six key brand characteristics could make your business more appealing to women.

Only 29% of female consumers feel brand affinity; how can you make your business more appealing to women?

A white paper titled “Women, Power and Money” by Ipsos MediaCT (free registration required for download) suggests that it may be more difficult for a brand to develop loyalty among female customers than with their male counterparts. While 37 percent of men described themselves as loyal to certain brands, only 29 percent of women – less than a third – did so across the twelve categories in the study.

Here are a few of the major discrepancies when it comes to how female shoppers choose brands compared to men:  

• 29% of females describe themselves as brand-loyal vs. 37% of men
• 81% of female shoppers say customer service excellence is critical vs. only 70% of men
• 69% of females surveyed said that fair treatment of employees was important to them in choosing a brand, vs. only 56% of men

Since (generally speaking) women wield significantly more power in making buying decisions for US households, this is important information for just about every type of business, as is knowing how to convey your brand’s values and principles to them.

When it comes to choosing brands, the females surveyed said these were their top three sources of influential information:

• 76% said customer reviews were important or extremely important
• 68% said they consider information from people they know
• 60% said that expert opinions and reviews influence their brand choices

So what does it take for a brand to win the minds and hearts of – and sales to – female consumers?

These six brand characteristics make brands more appealing to women (per women).

1. 87% of female consumers want brands to be reliable.
2. 82% of female shoppers want brands to be trustworthy.
3. 81% of women shoppers want brands to provide excellent customer service.
4. 69% of female shoppers care whether brands treat their employees fairly.
5. 63% of women shoppers will choose brands with products that are made in America or bear the Made in USA label
6. 61% (tied for 6^th place) brands that are American, and brands that have a reward or customer loyalty program.

How to Make Your Brand More Appealing to Women

The top three factors that lead women to choose one brand over another are not identical, but definitely related.  Reliability leads to trust, as does excellent customer service, especially when something goes wrong.  A brand that develops a reputation for providing consistent quality and standing behind the quality of their products or services with customer care has a much better chance of developing loyalty among women shoppers (as well as men).

Also interesting is the importance female consumers attribute for US-made products and US-based brands.  Brands that are based in the US or which carry products that are Made in the USA stand to benefit by educating consumers about the way doing business with them benefits the local community in providing jobs, paying taxes, supporting infrastructure, performing community service, etc.

Another area of opportunity for brands to gain ground with female consumers lies in educating them about the ways in which they enrich their employee culture through training and education, career development, fair wages and benefits and “extras” they choose to build in to their organization.

For female shoppers, the demonstration (or lack of) employee morale of front line workers will be especially critical, since they have the most ability to impact the customer experience.  This makes the case for surveying and soliciting feedback from employees on a regular basis, and acting on suggestions and complaints quickly.

For employers whose training program ends after orientation, it also reinforces the importance of providing on-going job enrichment, cross training, career development and similar programs.