More women who are “well educated and trained for career tracks” have opted to stay home, according to a recent CNN article. More than 10 percent of SAHWs who were interviewed in one recent study were also childless. And with the rising cost of gas, food, and other living expenses, stay-at-home wives may be the latest “status symbol,” says Daniel Buccino, a Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine clinical social worker and psychotherapist.

But SAHWs are not home eating bon bons all day; many regard homemaking as an important responsibility that frees the husband from ‘honey do’ lists and allows the couple to have more quality time together. They also devote time to volunteer work, and pursue hobbies.

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A recent TechCrunch post reflected on the reasons Facebook and MySpace have failed to emotionally connect with Japanese users, commenting:

Mixi, the country’s biggest social network, positioned itself as a tool for communicating at a distance through diaries and communities to meet like-minded members. It doesn’t primarily exist to make new friends (poking is restricted) or as a platform for public self-presentation.

A perfect example of a cultural misconception: Mark Zuckerberg recently said in Tokyo one of Facebook’s unique selling points is the usage of real names and photos in profiles. This may be true but it’s exactly what Japanese web users usually try to avoid.

Whether or not TechCrunch’s observations are correct, it is a fact that all too often a company cobbles together a brand positioning statement based on superficial or incorrect perceptions of their target audience, whether the users are global or local. The company’s tribal knowledge, assumptions and incomplete or poorly executed research masquerade as insight. This makes it unlikely they will be able to establish a framework on which to emotionally connect with their target audience.

I can’t help you with the first two requirements. But I can suggest some questions that will help you understand your target user’s cultural, emotional and attitudinal perspectives regarding the category and category brands. Keep in mind that you may need to utilize indirect, as well as direct, questioning techniques since the target audience may be unable or unwilling to express their perspectives.

• Identify the lifestyle motivators behind your users’ decisions to help you understand the role your brand can play in their lives, i.e., why do they choose to live where they live? Why did they choose the type of car they drive? Why do they dress the way they do? Try to ascertain what drives their decisions…status, self-expression, security, etc.?
• How do your users wish to be perceived by others? Which brands assist them in attaining the image they seek?
• What are the emotional drivers that influence the target’s use of brands in your category? If your brand is a line of baking mixes, for example, determine what emotions motivate target users to bake. Is it love for their family, self-expression, etc.? What emotional benefits are most important to them? Do any of the category brands deliver the emotional benefits they’re seeking? If so, how?
• What are the specific features and functional benefits that ensure emotional satisfaction with the brand? How well do brands in the category, including yours, deliver these features and functional benefits?
• Also ask users what they dislike about brands in the category and what emotional needs are unmet so that you can understand how well your brand resolves their issues.
• What proof do users need to trust your brand will deliver what it says it will deliver?

One critical result of a well-defined target audience is understanding the emotional benefits that are important to target users and how your brand delivers on these emotional benefits. This does not preclude the importance of identifying demographic, geographic and technographic attributes. But keep in mind that you don’t want to amass a laundry list of information.

Ask questions that reveal opportunities to emotionally connect with your users and you’ll be well on your way to developing a richly compelling and successful brand.

See also:
brand – what is it?
positioning statement
point of difference
pain point
target audience
frame of reference
reason to believe
brand essence
portfolio architecture
commoditization

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Matures were known as the “Greatest Generation”; will Boomers (those adults turning 44-62 this year) become known as the Gloomiest?

According to a report by the Pew Social & Demographic Trends Project, America’s Baby Boomers give lower ratings to their quality of life than other generations; to worry that income won’t keep up with inflation, and to believe that it is harder to get ahead now than it was 10 years ago. For example, when asked, “In the next year, how likely is it?”, 55% of Boomers said it is likely that their income won’t keep up with the cost of living, versus 44% of 18-42 year olds, and 43% of adults 63+.

Source:
“Baby Boomers: The Gloomiest Generation” - Pew Social & Demographic Trends Project, 6/25/08

Also see:
"Baby Boomers: From the Age of Aquarius to the Age of Responsibility," Pew Research Center, 12/8/05
"Social Inequalities in Happiness in the United States, 1972 to 2004: An Age-Period-Cohort Analysis," American Sociological Review, Vol. 73, No. 2, 4/2008
"Inside the Middle Class: Bad Times Hit the Good Life," Pew Research Center, 4/9/2008

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Looking to Reach Mall Shoppers?
Look no further than this recent Nielsen study that shows that Adspace Mall Network reaches 47% of mall shoppers viewed content provided on the Adspace Mall Network. The network plays a six minute programming loop that mixes consumer content and advertising messages displaying the 10 best deals in the mall and the 10 best sales on Smart Screens. The study showed that 34% of viewers had an average recall of specific ads they saw on the network.

Sources:
Shoppers Check Out Mall Deals on Video Screens, MediaPost, July 21, 2008
Adspace Networks

Put Away Your Stereotypes About Gamers
40% of gamers are women, the average age of videogame players is 35 and 26% of gamers are over the age of 50. Those cursed boomers…From Marketing Charts according to  Entertainment Software Association (via DMW).

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LifeStage Media has launched “BrideClick,” which they claim is the “world’s largest bridal advertising network.” BrideClick includes flagship site OurWeddingDay.com, and more than 50 additional partner wedding businesses. The company forecasts an advertising inventory double that of TheKnot.com

Source: LifeStageMedia Inc./PRNewswire.com

Just 6% of consumers nationally are considered “Digital Savvy,” but Scarborough Research says this influential group predicts digital behaviors that will become the norm.

B-to-B marketers, particularly of computer hardware, software and information technology need to be aware that the Digital Savvy are disproportionately represented among corporate decision-makers.

Source: Understanding the Digital Savvy Consumer, Scarborough Research, May, 2008

“Only 25% of all African-American and Hispanic consumers find marketing and advertising personally and culturally relevant,” says Yankelovich. What that means is that many brands are not connecting with a significant and growing portion of U.S. consumers.

What should marketers do? Display cultural relevance that is more than superficial, says Yankelovich. For example, don’t run a special ad for, say, Black History Month, and then ignore African-American customers in your general market advertising.

Source: Yankelovich MONITOR

Active Internet Universe describes people who are 2+ and used an Internet-enabled computer within the time period.

Source: Nielsen/Net Ratings, Hitwise

A persona is a fictitious individual created to represent the brand’s bull’s eye target, the brand’s key target segment. It is a representation of all of the quantitative and qualitative information we have about the segment, supplemented with the experience and creativity of the participants.

pain point
target audience

See Generational Marketing.