I wanted to post a series on the amazing speakers we had at the Startup Princess Retreat a couple weeks ago. I’d like to share my notes with you.  They are a little disjointed, but hey, they are just quick points that she made that struck a cord with me. If you want more info….read her book!

The keynote speaker was Holly Buchanan who is the co-author of The Soccer Mom Myth. If you’re in the marketing/design world at all, this is a must read. (Also, gotta watch the hilarious video located on the bottom right of the Soccer Mom Myth website).

Holly opened our eyes to different personality types and how they respond to information. Is your website designed for these different personality types? Women also process information different than men. We categorize our customer base as “The Soccer Mom”. But a women with 2 kids, lives in the suburbs, has an average income of over x amount can be very different from her neighbor who has the exact same demographics. They both have very different personalities and respond differently to the information on your website. Are you taking this into consideration?
Find out your personality type: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

What type are you: Spontaneous, Methodical or Humanistic? A huge amount of us at the retreat were ENFJ’s. A bunch of humanistics spending a weekend together teaching and mentoring each other. Kinda funny.

Looking over my notes, I could write pages but instead I’m going to list some key points she made:

*Never Say: “We understand Women”.  SHOW HER YOU UNDERSTAND HER!

*“The Internet has given women a voice and they are screaming their heads off” –Wenda Harris Millard

*$6 out of every $10 spent on the Internet is spent by women.

*Women have more questions than men. They have more criteria/information that they want to reap from a website. Does your site have it?

*You have 4 sec. to tell someone who you are and what you do.

*She spoke about the importance of a Viral-Video on your “About You” page. Holly sold more books/speaking engagements from her video than anything else. The internet is about getting personal. Make your “About You” personal.

On your website:

*Product descriptions are very important. Answer questions. What questions would your customers have? Use your customers language-use online surveys to help you find that out.

*Product reviews: Testimonials a must. Have a 5 star rating and a written review.  Even if a review is negative it statistically will sell more. Fans will come to your defense. This gives an opportunity for people to talk and for you to solve the problem.

And it goes on and on, fantastic info. I’m reading her book right now and it amazes me how much purchasing power women have on the internet and in the world. Why has it taken so long for ad agencies to see this. (Or why some still haven’t).

Next post will be about our PR Pro: Janet Meiners Thaeler from newspapergirl.com. Stay tuned….

Tags: book, Holly Buchanan, Startup Princess, The soccer mom myth