The ConsumHERist - How the Media is Marketing the Republican Ticket

Posted on | September 18, 2008 |

Women care. Women are the ones not only making donations but asking how they can help. They lead fundraisers and sit on community boards. And yes, many of these women work, have kids and still manage to make cupcakes for the school fundraiser.

Women also get more emotional. They tear at Hallmark commercials and when picking out that card for dear old Dad. They cringe when they see animals in stunts thinking how that must have hurt. They are the ones leading the pack for animal rights and are more inclined to donate to domestic violence.  It’s not that men don’t care - they just demonstrate less caring.

So what has this to do with the press and Republicans?

The press, from the tabloids I discussed last week to the mainstream media to The Daily Show, are generally leaning to the left and supportive of the Obama-Biden ticket.  You don’t have to be terribly perceptive to recognize it.  (Yes, I know The Daily Show is on Comedy Central, but a lot of people get their political news there.)

Consequently there has been quite a bit of Palin bashing going on in the press.  Regardless of what you think of her positions, you can see she is under attack on every front, from her politics to her family life.

This pisses a lot of women off, whether we are a Palin fan or not doesn’t matter that much. We are all on the same team and don’t mess with one of us or else.  That’s why a lot of undecided women voters have recently swung toward the Republican ticket.

When it comes to marketing to women, take note. Let’s take a real example. You may remember the Lipitor commercial where a lovely silver-haired actress is seen walking the red carpet; words on screen describe her as age: 50, weight: 135, Cholesterol 295 and suddenly she trips and falls. What did the brand hope to accomplish with this ad? They were hoping the message of “if this can take her down it can take you down too!”  Wrong! They forgot that women care about women. They felt the embarrassment for this woman and instead of remembering the message it left them with a “I can’t believe they would embarrass her like this” response.

Let me connect the dots. The media that are working overtime on Palin may be hitting an emotional chord with women enough to persuade them to support her.  In this week’s Newsweek cover story, What Women Want, the magazine puzzles over how strong her support is despite her weaknesses.  Indeed even the McCain camp is said to be surprised by the extent of her support.

I’m not.  I think if the media laid off her a bit they’d find that the voters would focus more on the issues that matter. 

Delia Passi, Founder of WomenCertified® and author of Winning the Toughest Customer: The Essential Guide to Selling to Women is a regular columnist on eBrandMarketing.

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