The Soccer Mom Myth Revealed

Holly Buchanan and Michelle Miller take on the one-market-fits-all-women myth in their first joint effort book - The Soccer Mom Myth.

For those who haven't explored the inner workings of the women's market, they give you plenty of ideas to kick around, but they save the very best for the last part of the book - word of mouth marketing.

"A woman values relationships more than almost anything else in her life. This is absolutely key for word-of-mouth marketers to understand. She will not do anything to jeopardize these relationships. She will not pass along information unless she truly trust you and feels your product has the true benefit."

I totally agree and that is going to become a bigger issue as women question if a product not only has a true benefit, but is truly green as well.

They give the following conditions needed to foster word of mouth:

• Be authentic and ethical. (critical in the green market as well)
• Be relevant (it better be Sustainable for the eco-market)
• Create a remarkable product.
• Be 100 percent accountable. (also critical in the green market)
• Listen.
• Keep your promises. (no greenwash, no misleading)
• Make it easy for her to pass along the message.
• Give her exclusive access. (first to know)
• Provide value not only to the referrer, but also to the referee.

Holly and Michelle also warn on negative word of mouth and how companies should make absolutely sure customers have a way to contact them immediately with a problem. "Women are tired of being ignored or made to feel like they are unimportant." They then give more tips on reaching the women's market through social media and websites.

The Soccer Mom Myth is loaded with examples that will have you saying, "Of course, that makes so much sense"! It picks apart stereotypical marketing and replaces it with resonating strategies. 

I love that they stress authenticity, trust and accountability. Those terms are also the tenets of the emerging Sustainable market. The good news? What works for women, works for green women (and men) as well.