There are a myriad of statistics around the purchasing power of women versus men today, but the underlying truth for marketers is consistent: women matter more. This is especially true of the mobile space, where women have embraced the convenience and immediacy of using a mobile device in a retail environment.

According to a 2012 Mediapost sudy, women account for 85 per cent of all consumer goods purchased in this country. They spend more time than men on mobile devices, with 50 per cent of their time spent online using a smartphone versus 35 per cent for men, and women text 30 per cent more than men, according to eMarketer and Neilsen respectively. 

A considerable amount of this time is spent doing pre-purchase research. The inclination to thoroughly research products causes women to lag men in mobile coupon and ad redemption. In spite of this lag, their purchasing power compared to men is 5:1 from mobile ads and 4:1 from mobile coupon redemption, emphasizing just how many more dollars women have to spend (Source: Mobile Advertising Survey, 2012).

Price comparison

When creating a mobile strategy for women, marketers need to consider a few important facts about an exceedingly important and valuable female customer: mom. Moms are increasingly present in the mobile space, leveraging smartphones for price comparisons, recommendations, coupons, deals, and sharing their finds with others. They are busy, they make repeat purchases, and they are motivated by value and time savings.

Marketers should be thinking about the opportunity to market to women, and moms in particular, in two ways: how can we increase the likelihood of women making purchases from mobile ads and coupons and how can we structure a campaign that will meet the needs of this market. There are a few tactics that are proving successful in achieving these objectives. 

Retailers can add value and increase redemptions by encouraging customers to opt-in to a mobile messaging campaign that will provide them with future value. This can be done using an in-store display, billboard, web form or mobile ad to promote the campaign, as well as to direct the customer to simply text for information to receive real-time promotions. Once brands have established this list of opted-in customers, they can send offers, discounts, coupons, and other information via text to mobile users.

Some messaging service providers are capable of detecting the user’s device on the front end, and can send a customized message based on the device type. Now this strategy becomes a great way to understand what types of devices are in your customer’s pockets, allowing marketers to drive traffic to other mobile initiatives.

We can go one step further with this strategy by using proximity-based messaging to deliver highly targeted, timely content. With proximity-based messaging, retailers can know when opted-in customers are in or near their store and send a message in real-time. Maybe it’s 5pm on a Friday and mom is in the parking lot of a grocer when she receives a text offering a BOGOF deal on take-and-bake pizzas.

We have not only solved the problem of what to make for dinner, we have enhanced the customer experience by being thoughtful about her needs and saving her time, effort and money. By leveraging the knowledge of a customer’s location, combined with past purchasing behavior, a retailer could send a message about a new version of her favorite product and include a summary of ratings and reviews or a link to the mobile site or app for a full representation of this information. This may provide her with the assurance she needs to make an informed purchase decision in the store aisle. 

The effectiveness of any tactic can be enhanced by integrating the mobile message with social sites. Women spend 39 per cent more time than men on social media via mobile and 92 per cent of women pass along information about deals or finds to others (Nielsen 2013, Asking Smarter Questions). They can help increase the number of impressions in a campaign with the click of an icon and in doing so, become a reputable ambassador for the brand. 

Marketers need to improve their ability to add real-time value to customers. They can add value by being present in the store each time the mom is there shopping, knowing what is on her list and offering discounts on her favorite products. They can be there to promote new offerings paired with the very information she seeks to make her choice. Ultimately, marketers and brands can achieve success by understanding their customers and by meeting this audience where – and when – she wants to be met.

Cezar Kolodziej is the president, CEO and co-founder of Iris Mobile