During my first Project Y-ine ‘trip’  I discovered that people in their twenties are largely influenced by their friends and that world of mouth is the number one reason for them to purchase anything, not just beer and wine.  You can read more on my study on Palate Press, an online wine magazine under “Why Y-ine? The Post-Journey Report.“  Women in general talk to each other more about deals they get, etc. so it is easy to see that word of mouth travels even further in our lives.   In Carol’s post she discussed a new study on Millennial Women conducted by Radar Research for PopSugar Media which showcases just how important us young women should be to brands.

Gen Y women are also influential brand advocates. When they discover a brand they love, 61% said they “share it with as many friends as possible” and are likely to share it across a spectrum of platforms, including email, social networks, online reviews, blog comments, SMS/MMS, phone and face-to-face.

Women in general already have much of the buying power & influence in every industry (Every marketer has head the line “80% of all consumer purchasing decisions are made by women”). Take that and combine it with a generation that makes just as much, if not more than our male counterparts and we are truly powerhouse consumers.

I told him that it this isn’t just a recent thing, that TV shows have been stereotyping both men and women since the 50’s (e.g., Archie Bunker or Homer Simpson) and that if TV commercial have gotten worse, it is only because brands know that women influence 80% of all consumer purchases, and so marketers are trying to cater to women by bashing men to show women that the brand is on “their side.”

(We came across the same issue when thinking about Clos du Bois because we know that “men bashing” is NOT the correct way of trying to appeal to anyone, especially if you are a brand that doesn’t want to alienate men…. But as we found during some meetings, it is so much fun).

Women also seem to be turning up on online with sites that are dedicated to them (i.e., Glam or Yahoo Shine) and not just the cheesy TV channels like Lifetime or Oxygen or men bashing sites like Don’tDateHimGirl.com

Here are a few articles on women embracing web 2.0:

Women are a powerful and important consumer market worthy not only of companies’ attention, but also of their marketing dollars.

But a question remains, do companies need to single women out in their marketing efforts? Or is it enough to assume that they’re already reaching women with their general marketing campaigns?

“Overtly characterizing a marketing program “for women only” will backfire with both genders. I like to say, “Don’t paint your brand pink.” It will alienate men and make women suspicious that they are getting an inferior product.”

Ladies First article with an interview with women’s marketing expert, Marti Barletta

“More women are on social networks and on average have slightly more “friends” than do men. A prior study found that women spend more time on social networks than men do.”

Women on Social Networks article

“Niche social network CafeMom has raised $12 million in financing in March 2008.”

CaféMom Article

“Cookie and snack maker Pepperidge Farm has launched a new website that uses social networking to build a community around its products. Pepperidge Farm’s ArtoftheCookie.com is targeted at women and emphasizes the connections they have in their lives.”

Pepperidge Farm article