Should Marketers Reach Out to Women or Minorities Using Social Media?

The simple answer is yes. If you are reading this, you probably already know that social media is the new way to market or advertise a product or brand. It’s also a great way to reach a target consumer, like women or minorities. Since planning Blogalicious, I’ve come across many statistics that continuously prove this point- that women and the minority consumer are powerful forces when it comes to consumer purchasing. We recently came across two interesting articles that examined this very issue.

NBC Universal launched Women@NBCU last year. Women@NBCU was developed to reach women using multiple social media platforms. Women@NBCU “ will create a unique approach for advertisers to connect with this desirable demographic through NBC Universal brands, including Bravo, Oxygen, Green, and iVillage. [It] reaches all women across all demographics, including the most affluent and desirable on television.” The article further adds that women are the “demographic category much sought-after by advertisers,[controlling] 80% of all consumer purchasing across every brand category. In addition, studies indicate that the majority of women (75%) influence the purchasing decisions of others by recommending products to their friends and family.”

When it comes to minorities, another article pointed out that English speaking Hispanics use social networking sites more than their white, non-Hispanic counterparts. Felipe Korzenny, director of the Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication at Florida State University and Lee Vann, founder and CEO of Captura Group, recently wrote the article, Social Media Marketing Is A Multicultural World. They write that, “Usage of blogs, social networks, and video sharing sites is increasing rapidly, and millions of people now look to social media sites as their primary source of news, opinion, and entertainment.” They further write that, “it's important to examine its cultural dimensions - that is, who is driving this shift, what are the cultural factors behind it, and what are the implications for marketers seeking to reach specific ethnic/cultural groups via social media?” As a result, Korzenny and Vann analyzed the social media behaviors of a group of 2,500 people from various ethnic/cultural groups in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. According to their study, “emerging minorities visit social networking sites more frequently than non-Hispanic whites.”
In speaking with various marketing firms ourselves, we’ve been told that marketers don’t know where to find us or how to reach us.

Huh?

We are here. Some of us have been wondering where you are and have been working hard to get your attention. Some of us even believe that unless the marketers are specifically looking or doing research on the minorityy consumer, we are not sought after. Meaning, not invited to the weekend getaways for brand and product promotions unless there is a specific focus on the minority consumer.

The minority women is a powerful force in the market and that market is changing.

Join us at Blogalicious to discuss this very topic more thoroughly. Let’s open that dialogue.

Share your thoughts and views below.