Do Use Female-Friendly Language
It is common practice for a financial services firm to use male-dominated language in advertising campaigns, websites, and client newsletters. When marketing to female clients, be sure to review your marketing materials for words such as annihilate, crush, destroy, win, and shatter. Incorporate words such as balance, harmony, stability, and trustworthy into your marketing materials because these concepts resonate with women’s desires to be connected and work together.
Do Tell Stories
Women, like all clients, remember stories far longer than details and facts. Whenever possible, use storytelling to market your practice. By sharing tales about female clients who are in similar situations or have faced comparable financial challenges, you are showing prospects that you understand their unique needs and have experience advising women like them.
Do Use Social Media
The financial industry has been slow to embrace social media as a valid business development practice, citing compliance concerns as the reason. However, the Internet and social media sites are here to stay and are tools for interfacing with your clients. According to a Nielsen study released in 2010, women are the majority of users of social networking sites and spend 30 percent more time on these sites than men do.
Invest the time now to learn how to capitalize on this medium, and incorporate social media in to your overall marketing strategy this year.
Don’t Be Sexist
This one seems like a no-brainer. But you want to tread lightly when it comes to making sexist comments or telling racy jokes. Many women enjoy edgy humor, don’t mind being called “girl,” and find raunchy jokes entertaining. The problem is you never know who these women are; so err on the side of caution. Watch your language, and don’t do anything that can be perceived as sexist.
Don’t Tell Her What She Already Knows
Don’t tell your female customers what they already know. For example, women know how busy they are— they are not interested in seeing the crazy pace of the typical female day in print advertisements and marketing campaigns. Your female clients want to know you have services and financial tools to make taking care of their family finances more efficient. Make sure your marketing message clearly communicates the benefit of working with you, not reiterates something women already know.
Don’t Sell, Connect
Women are bombarded with salespeople who want then to buy products and services. An aggressive sales pitch that comes on too strong is bound to turn them off. Instead of selling to them, focus your efforts on connecting and building a relationship. Invest the time and attend networking events, host female-friendly luncheons, and find ways to meet with your women clients one-on-one. This type of connection is not only good for your marketing and public relations campaigns; it builds the foundation for enrolling more female clients who are loyal and top-notch referrers.
Marketing to women is very similar to marketing to any group of potential clients. Don’t make the mistake of putting female clients into a group labeled “the female market.” Instead, take the time to really get to know the kind of women clients you are interested in working with and use these tips to take the first step to reaching out to them.
