Customer Reviews

Why She Buys: The New Strategy for Reaching the World's Most Powerful Consumers

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love this book. It is loaded with practical examples about the differences between men and women and ideas to leverage those differences to target female consumers. Brennan is at once a seasoned business pro and a master storyteller so her writing is not only fresh, relevant, and insightful, but also totally engaging and memorable. I retained so many helpful tips because she supports her well-researched assertions with vivid examples from the everyday life. Why She Buys is a serious and scholarly business book that is as entertaining as summer beach reading. If your business depends on female consumers this book is a must read for your entire staff. I plan to give copies of this book away at the office holiday party this year- it may be one of the few gift books that people actually read!

Why She Buys is for men and women, sales people and advertising junkies, brand managers and retailers. While you think you might know who your target consumer is, you have no idea until you read Why She Buys by Bridget Brennan. So often we rely on consumer insights and decision trees to help us figure out how to push products and services, but Brennan has reminded us to take a step back from the data and understand our target's values, lifestyle and culture. With women making more than 80% of all purchasing decisions it is important for us to take a closer look at what is most important TO THEM when it comes to meeting the needs of women consumers.

This book is so much more than just gender culture, this book is the inside scoop on everything your consumer wants to share with you, but hasn't had the opportunity. The reality is, if you're not reading this book your competitor is. As someone who is in the advertising industry who works with female-dominated categories and brands, this book is a 'must read' if you plan on differentiating yourself at shelf.

No one on the planet that has anything to do with sales, marketing or advertising should be allowed back to the office until reading this book over and over. What makes the information so helpful is that it approaches marketing from a totally new perspective. The basic theme of the book is that the gender of your audience will be the key factor in whether your marketing works or falls flat. The book lays out a eye-opening premise for all of this. Men are still running most businesses. Corporations do have women at the executive level, but ultimately men make the final decisions about the direction of the marketing. According to the book, however, women influence about 90% of all household buying decisions. So, the majority of marketing firepower (directed by men) is aimed at the consumer market which is mainly female. Well, you can see the problem. The book contains many case studies that show how sagging sales are turned around by changing the marketing message with gender in mind.
This is the best marketing book since David Ogilvy wrote, "Ogilvy On Advertising."

Why She Buys gave me more "eureka" moments than any business book in recent memory. If your business depends on women customers, this book will become your bible. It's full of great anecdotes and case studies. I've taken my highlighter it in a million places, and already know it's the kind of book I'll reference over and over again. Bravo to author Bridget Brennan for tackling an important subject in such a fun and fearless manner.

Thank you, Bridget Brennan. This book is like a gift with many gifts inside and much more than a marketing book. It's a quick, easy read considering all of the information in each chapter. Since reading it I am laughing out loud at tv commercials and other ads that 'don't get it' and appreciating those that do thanks to her insights. Both men and women will find Bridget's observations useful. Delivered with humor but backed up with solid evidence and examples from the business world, they pack a powerful punch. Thank you for connecting the dots in such an entertaining way. I learned more from reading this book than most books I've read in the past year - and every day have found a way to apply what I learned. So, thank you and I can't wait to see your next book!

That, in a nutshell, is why I liked this book. It was such a fun read. I found myself laughing out loud- and even reading parts of it aloud to my husband. (When is the last time you did THAT with a marketing book?) Beyond that, it seemed well-researched. Brennan gave so many examples of ad and marketing campaigns that either did remarkably well in connecting to female consumers, or remarkably poorly. (Hint to marketers: delete the words "kill", "beat", and "compete" out of your product taglines ASAP). So was this a paradigm-changing book that will change how ad execs, most of whom are male, conduct their campaigns? If they work for P&G- the answer is no (because according to Brennan they have already seen the light and that's how they remain top dog in retail sales). But if you are just about anyone else trying to move some consumer goods in a bleak economic market- it's worth a shot.

If you still don't get it, then you better get it -- Bridget Brennan's "Why She Buys: The New Strategy for Reaching the World's Most Powerful Consumers." Mad Men as Has Been, and there's no turning back.

Steve Duthie
Senior Adviser, Corporate Communications
Amway Corp.

I was struck by this quote from Bridget in Why She Buys - "Gender is the most powerful determinant of how a person views the world and everything in it. It's more powerful than age, income, race, or geography."

Why She Buys deconstructs actual advertising campaigns so you can see them through the eyes of a woman. You'll find out specifically what persuaades women and what turns them off. The Lexus and Swiffer case studies are worth the price of the whole book.

Bridget does a great job of combining research, case-studies and tapping into global trends to give you a road map for creating advertising to women that works. You'll never look at your own marketing efforts the same way again.

This is a must read text. I had the privilege of attending one of Bridget's speaking engagements at my company and Bridget just blew the audience away. Funny but also very informative and in a way that everyone could relate to the "truths" about gender differences. So I just had to read the book when I saw it featured on ABC television. I picked it up 2 days ago and I just couldn't put it down. Fast read, very accessibly written. Bridget puts the science and art behind effectively understanding and marketing to the real economic force in the USA - the female consumer.

I have to admit that even as a Chief Marketing Officer at a Fortune 50 company, there is a lot that as a marketer I just had never fully understood about the physical, mental and emotional differences in gender that lead to very real, as revealed by Bridget, behaviorial realities. So much that can be immediately implemented to up the game of the marketer, as illustrated by examples that will make you laugh, but also really hit home important lessons.

I highly recommend the book. And if you ever have the opportunity to secure BRidget as a guest speaker, or get to one of her speaking engagements, you won't regret it.

I loved this book--a fast, funny read that packs in important insights and information. Ms. Brennan breaks new ground here: a manual for businessmen to understand women, rather than the other way around. And it's vitally important for those of us who work in the independent sector to understand our female customers (donors) at a time of burgeoning women's philanthropy.

Why She Buys: The New Strategy for Reaching the World's Most Powerful Consumers