• Ho Ho Here it Comes

• 1-800-BUTTERBALL: Still brilliant after 24 years

• About TrendSight

In recent newsletter issues, I've noted some important percentages for you to consider... women purchase or directly influence the purchase of 85% of all products and services in the United States today, being one of the most significant percentage for you to know. Well, it's the holiday season, lots of shopping occuring as you are reading this newsletter, lots more about to occur. I thought today I'd discuss shopping habits at this time of year to see if I might be able to help you focus marketing efforts on the world of shopping as it really is today.

Over 60% of women say they have already started their holiday shopping at the time I am writing this column, ten days before Thanksgiving, compared with only 46% of men. The group most likely to say their shopping is underway is Moms (66%). These numbers are from recent survey conducted by Opinion Dynamics, and reported by Fox News Service. It probably comes as no surprise that men are procrastinators here, and that women are early to start preparing for their family's holiday season.

Women top men in holiday online shopping, too – 58% of those who bought gifts online during the 2001 shopping season were women, with the average spent online at $392 per person; and, 71% during the 2002 season were women, with an average expenditure of over $400 per person. (Pew Internet and American Life Project). Online holiday sales will rise by 20% over last year, to $13.2 billion, according to the Forrester Research Group, headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

What do these statistics all mean for you today? Some of that answer is pretty clear: lots of money is being spent and will be spent over the next five weeks, and most of it is going to be spent by women. Please remember, they are shopping for two - - their families, and themselves. This is the obvious part. What else? Women start their holiday shopping earlier, generally, than do men; and, more of the online holiday shopping is going to be done by women than by men, again, this year.

Your product and its marketing must connect with these gender culture differences. To motivate and persuade those making these holiday shopping decisions, you have to talk with them about things they care about, in terms that matter to them, and those marketing conversations have to take place early in the season, before they begin shopping. Some basics to keep in mind:

• Female gender culture is grounded in the idea of empathy, not envy. Don't pitch your product as one that will help someone get ahead of the Joneses. Women would rather be hanging out with them than be scrambling to get ahead of them.
  
  
• Women's people-first orientation results in their seeing life problems and buying solutions in terms of how they impact people, and the facts and features are only secondary. Tell them how your product is going to help make the life of the ones they love better.
  
  
• You can give women all the schematics and drawings and blueprints you want, but don't expect they'll be looked at or read. You'd be better off putting your money into making sure your products are simple, easy to work with, and helpful.

Above all, remember your marketing eye shouldn't be on the end user of your product. It has to be focused sharply on who's buying your product. Convince her the product is good for the end user, and the product gets sold.

Our eyes are on the women's market.
Are yours?

Thanksgiving means turkey for a lot of folks. That can mean family coming, and the meal preparation can be a little daunting. Who's available to help if you get stuck? Butterball, that's who. They provide a hotline service for your turkey preparation questions, and on Thanksgiving, alone, expect about 8,000 calls.

I got to wondering what the figures were at 1-800 BUTTERBALL as between women and men, so I gave them a call. I had a delightful chat with Supervisor Marge Klindera, a turkey counselor with Butterball, who informed me that 80% of their callers were women.

Not surprising, really. Women don't share men's barriers to offers of assistance, and instead see advice as valuable, both for its immediate content and for the learning it provides for future reference. Butterball gets this, and acts accordingly. It's website is informational and interactive - - you can email/chat with the turkey talk line - - bilingual service is offered - - and even an online video will show how to properly prepare and carve your turkey. Turkey first-timers are introduced to a “stuffing” calculator and a video will show how a bird should be dressed. A good service is provided, relationships of trust and value are developed, and Butterball is likely to acquire long-term, loyal customers. That's how brand loyalty is established, something I wrote of in my book.

How, exactly, does this relate to the principles espoused by TrendSight? What can you learn from Butterball, and its parent company, Con Agra? The Meet the Experts section of the Butterball website plugs into the “people power/storyteller/spokesfriend” notion I've addressed in many of my corporate presentations. Eight of its talk line experts are introduced, by name, to share some interesting turkey talk, humorous anecdotes from past turkey hotline experiences, and many recipes. This is compelling and relevant, and helps women feel connected with these new-found friends.

Multi-tasking is facilitated by providing holiday decoration ideas and techniques, and other holiday hints, on the website. It is a single place to visit for table decoration suggestions as well as delicious foods to put on the plates.

Con Agra, Butterball's parent company, knows how to leverage a corporate halo, too. In this season of giving, it's Feeding Children Better initiative, in conjunction with America's Second Harvest and the Center on Hunger and Poverty, works ensure no child grows up hungry in this country.

The “word of mouth” multiplier concept is set in motion in the form of the “Refer a Friend” feature on its Turkey Lover's Newsletter, too.

These are all principles contained in everything TrendSight group says and writes about, and all are part of a standard corporate presentation. Butterball, and Con Agra, really get it, and its easy to see why... because it works!