I recently attended a roundtable discussion about Marketing To Women... Online during which I got to hear several marketers discuss how best to connect with women consumers.  Two of the participants I had heard before:  MaryLou Quinlan from Just Ask A Woman and Grant Schneider, CMO Time Inc. and author of She Means Business: 7 New Rules for Marketing to Today's Woman.  In fact, I had heard them [and read their books] several years ago.  We're talking 2005. 

At the same event, I got to talk to Holly Buchanan who writes about marketing to women online and authored The Soccer Mom Myth.  In comparing notes, we expressed amazement that so many still don't get that women are the primary purchase decision makers.  Yes, women are the chief purchasing officers at home as well as at work.  And, if they aren't purchasing, they are influencing purchases.  And that goes for carpet and flooring, too!

We remarked that at most events and presentations where marketing to women gets discussed, the audience consists of more women than men. The women understand what's going on.  You see them nodding their heads as strategies and tactics are discussed.

The men attending get it, too.

But what about those who don't attend events about marketing to our coveted woman consumer?  Where are they?  Why aren't they participating and listening and absorbing the information being presented?  Is is that they don't care about their business?  Is it that they know it all?  Is it that they don't appreciate how important to this industry's well-being women consumers are?  Is it that customers don't matter?

It's time to refocus on customers, particularly women customers.

In the past few years, something major has changed.  And that's why we all need to pay attention.  Because of that new consumer world order I discussed in my last post here, marketing to women consumers has taken on a whole new level of urgency.  Via the web, consumers can choose to bypass us.  They can talk about us.  They can drive other customers to us.  Or not. 

By the way, women are the majority of Internet users. 

So, it matters that we be connecting with women customers and doing so on their terms, that we be listening and engaging them in discussion, that we be responding and building strong relationships, and generally making our brands, products and services [and retail experience, too] meaningful and relevant.

The benefit?  Not only will you increase satisfaction with women consumers, but your men consumers will appreciate you, too.  That's a benefit that American Express discovered.

So what are you waiting for? 

In an online article on eMarketing.com titled "Gas Prices Boost E-Commerce"they state there has been a boost in online sales because of the higher gas prices. That would not surprise me. What does bother is in the chart it Shows the decline in purchase of luxury goods and fewer major purchases. That strikes the heart of the flooring industry, not just new home construction but also the remodeling projects are probably being put off by many homeowners too. Click here to read this full article.

Do you follow Sonna Calandrino?  Her column titled "She says by Sonna..." at Floor Covering Weekly inevitably gets me thinking about consumers...

From "It's not business as usual" in the 4/21-28/08 issue comes wonderful advice around listening to your customers' demands and expectations.  Why bother?  Because it's not business as usual. 

Sonna urges us to learn everything there is to learn about our customers.  I refer to that as 'walking in her shoes'... as in Walk In Her Shoes.  And, then, spend time figuring out why customers don't shop with you.  Engage everyone around you, even your installers, to better understand your consumers.

Once customers are in your store, don't just automatically focus on opening price point items.  Instead, spend time understanding what your consumer is trying to create, what solution she is looking to build.  If you listen to her, you'll be better able to suggest items that help her with creating that solution.  But, make sure that everyone in your store can explain the value that one product represents over another.  And, demonstrate respect.  Lots of it.  For her, her information sources, and what she is trying to achieve.

Finally, consider sending out regular communications to your best customers about what you're doing that is relevant to their lives.

In"Adjusting to the new consumer reality" in the 6/16-30/08 issue, Sonna further urges us to pay attention to customers.  Why?  Because customers drive business!  So, how well do we understand her?

Understanding her, how she responds to our store experience, displays, and messages are all a part of listening.  Understanding her means learning which are the other businesses [not necessarily flooring related] that she admires, which causes she believes in, and how she searches for relevant information.  Then, once we have absorbed the information, the insights, the perspectives, then we can respond with better ways of organizing our products and price points, our procedures, recommendations, and overall experience instore and online.

"She says by Sonna" exudes passion.  Passion is what you need to adjust to the new consumer reality.  Do you have passion?

The Marketing Manager for Invista's Interior Design Community, Deborah Adams, has some insights in what is coming on in a big way.   Ms. Adams says "There are some exciting residential carpet color lines but for the most part the colors that are selling as in the past, are neutrals.  To be a bit more explicit we see neutrals that are, what I like to refer to as, "Colorless." Just as in a versatile paint color, using a carpet that does not have a tint of it's own will take on the colors around it making for a more usable and passive background.  Now, the texture is a different matter.  Textures are a must and that is where we see the creative side of the industry.  The "carpetman's" carpet" or Frieze has finally made it to the forefront after many many years and it is a good choice for the home and today's busy families." And I agree.  Texture, texture, and texture!  And beyond our old favorite, saxonies.  High, lows, intermediates, cut, loop and yarn variances in combinations for texture.  Or just using design motifs to create texture - and all in big scale.  For the most part we are getting away from the "swirl" motifs.  Circles are still current.  Horizontals, verticals, and wavy versions of these are excellent candidates for today.

The residential transitional look is enormous.  A bit of this and that.  Often traditional in design but colored in a much more contemporary way. These floorcovering looks may be used in conjunction with the usual traditional furniture, the Wassily chair, mirrored chests, or chabby chic.  It's certainly not my aunt Eunice's colonial knock-offs.  (She made her own lamp shades and had lots of antimasacars!)

After a sneak preview of the Atlanta Rug Market some things were confirmed and some things seem to take off in a big way. Neutral and very subtle colored Persian designs were introduced.  (beige, taupe, grey, grey-teal, pale gold for example) Fiber combinations like silk and wool were bigger than ever.  A new introduction by Jaipur is a synthetic bright silk look but out of acrylic. No wear or cleaning problems there.  Also, there were some beautiful handmade textures by Jaipur. More and more introductions had the bright look of silk or sometimes rayon used with wool, both in the same color but just a luster difference to carry the design.  See Caravan Carpets.

Don't see Paula Deen's rug designs for Kaleen.  And don't see my receipes for Vidalia Onion Ice Cream!  I bet my Aunt Eunice had one however. Large scale contemporary rugs were everywhere.  But the best ones had a softer look.  Either by motif, the colors, or textures.  See Nourisan's "Dimensions" collection - beautiful designs in wool and accents of  mercerized cotton. And their take on animal skins was a very simple, large geometric of a sort with a suggestion of Giraffe, Zebra, etc. Very sophisticated, not for my Aunt Eunice.  We're not talking even the lodge look here unless your lodge is in the Trump Tower

Someone recently took out a mortgage on their house so they could purchase a full tank of gas.  Would you expect that family to drive to a speciatly store for their floor covering needs?  Time and gas have become precious commodities that will be conserved without compelling reasons to act otherwise.  That is our challenge.

Todd Hale, Sr. V.P. of Consumer and Shopper Insights at The Nielson Company, stresses that "competition for shopper attention is fierce.  Success will come to retailers who define themselves by who they sell to and how they sell them, not by what they sell... manufacturers by who they sell to and the issues they solve for their consumers and retail partners."  The traditional retail channel paradyme is shifting and the cost of gasoline has fueled the fire.  Retail floor covering dealers need to understand what it takes to bring customers into their stores rather than where they may prefer to shop.

How are specialty retailers doing?  A big chunk of our business has already been lost to Home Depot et al.  The floor care business has been lost to the local supermarket. We are losing the battle and the trend that Mr. Hale identifies means it could get worse.  Our industry is being challenged and we must evolve into the store of choice for what the consumer wants, or should want, to buy.  We have a great industry and perform an important function of helping the consumer invest in floors that are right for them.  Education and differentiation are key to satisfied customers. We have to sell them how they want, where they want and what they need.  This is the time for creativity, thinking outside the box, re-inventing ourselves to address what the consumer wants.