Multi-screen Mrs and misses: An untapped opportunity
Bec Brideson, owner and director of female-focused marketing company Hello I’m Venus argues brands need to work harder to deliver to multi-tasking women who use multiple screens as an extension of themselves.
Every day, screen-based technologies are becoming further intertwined with human behaviour, and it’s becoming increasingly apparent that one screen just isn’t enough these days.
In the lead up to last year’s Olympic Games, it was confirmed 40 per cent of viewers would follow results on more than two screens (according to techbargains.com), a figure that’s surely set to grow for the next games.
This comes as no surprise when Mi9 has reported 69 per cent of Australians ‘multi-screen’ in front of TV. It seems compulsive connectors (women especially) love being a simple tap away from their friends and family — even while engaging in entertainment.
But why? Well statistics consistently show women spend more time on social media, connect with more friends, and commit to more brands through digital than males.
Welcome to the world of the ‘screen queen’.
She’s the ultimate multi-tasking, time-poor and over-committed woman — embracing technologies that promise to help her “have it all” (or opt out if she wants to).
We live in a world in which women use screens as an extension of themselves. Her friends, shopping, research, relaxation and work, all extend from the shiny surfaces that surround her. These digital divas are an economic force to be reckoned with.
Women have been described as ‘the fastest growing economy’ by people such as Arianna Huffington, creating the perfect storm for marketers prepared to listen.
We’re just seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to creative potential in embracing women through technology.
Females are increasingly using technology to purchase, and to make friends a part of their decisions. The change-room mirror selfie is shared with the expectation of instant feedback.
And with such high attachment to our devices (and the immediate connections they give us), this needs to be translated into TV.
From now on, it’s no longer ‘just’ about what’s on TV, it’s time to push it to the small screen.
In a recent survey by AOL, 89 per cent of people said tablets are the perfect complement to TV, and 63 per cent said they were the perfect replacement — that’s right replacement. Additionally, 94 per cent reported using their tablets during commercials.
It’s also worth being aware that for many mums, their main second screen is their smartphone, as the tablet has long been surrendered to the kids.
Brands need to work hard to deliver quality mobile experiences, because that’s where our audience is.
Australia is recorded as having higher smartphone penetration than the US (according to Google’s 2013 Our Mobile Planet report), and so marketers need to embrace this opportunity.
Ready for the figure that will really urge you to make your move? 41 per cent of these respondents report following through to make an online purchase on mobile, there and then.
It’s easy to see, advertising across just one screen is a missed opportunity.
There’s a lot to think about in TV strategy now that mobile has well and truly come into play. How do we drive prospects to our owned media? How do we offer a rewarding interaction that keeps consumers coming back when our commercial finishes? These are just a start.
TV still remains the most powerful medium we have, but it’s time to incorporate multi-screen behaviour into strategy. In particular, it’s time to connect with women. And then? Sit back with your own second screen and watch your marketing deliver more instant, measurable ROI than ever before.
Failing to understand how your female audience uses screens is a business-threatening issue. Conversely, the possibilities that open up when thinking across these four screens can be more exciting, and rewarding, than ever before.
Bec Brideson is founder and creative director of Hello I’m Venus
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Odd chaps women. Glad someone explained them to me.
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so you take a unisex behaviour, give it a fem label (screen queen) and magically it becomes a marketing-to-women thing?
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All the above…
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So many questions raised……so few answers…..
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You are referencing stats from techbargains.com?
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Another Opinion piece that just reels of the facts and provides no real opinion.
I think you need to rename this section to MediaWiki.
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Women like shopping? This is a game changer for me…:)
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I just can’t let this kind of misleading use of research pass by.
’89 per cent of people said tablets are the perfect complement to TV, and 63 per cent said they were the perfect replacement — that’s right replacement. Additionally, 94 per cent reported using their tablets during commercials.’
This should be clearly labelled or couched as people who have a tablet, which is, depending on which survey you believe somewhere around 35% of the 15+ population. Unfortunately those numbers don’t look nearly as exciting.
My guess is this is another online panel survey, purporting to be representative of the population whilst really just representing the group of odd souls who have self-selected themselves to be a semi-professional respondent. Please don’t use online panels to measure online behaviour, the data is rubbish.
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The fundamental error is this: Scientific research, yes science, has proven there is no such thing as ‘multi-tasking’, nor an ability for women to do it better than men. It is theoretically impossible for the brain to do.
The only difference in ability relates to prioritisation of tasks (mis-represented as multi-tasking) and this is marginal (and learnt through gender-based roles).
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Everything about a “Female-focused marketing company” seems very wrong. It comes off as lazy and inaccurate research with a pink wash.
This behaviour and poor strategy only encourages the gender bias.
Why not actually spend the time and money gaining quality data on what “People” need.
Apart from – Women have been described as ‘the fastest growing economy’ none of the other mentioned stats apply directly to women?
You cannot just create naff buzzwords like ‘screen queen’ and ‘digital divas’ and add it to the end of AOL and techbargains.com surveys.
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I don’t know any women who would consider a screen to be an ‘extension of themselves’.
A (female) friend here just commented that she finds this article somewhat demeaning to women. Which is ironic given the source.
In her words, “People are people. Sell to people, not gender, and it will come down to product quality and worth instead of how gender-focused your marketing is. If you have to cajole or convince users to use a product, maybe it just isn’t what is needed or wanted”.
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Hmmm, most of the men who commented on this post are very defensive. Bob the bunny even used science in a lame attempt to convince us that multitasking doesn’t really exist. The simple fact is women shop more than men. More than 70% of all purchases are made by women. The other 30% are shared decisions or made by lonely, single men and same sex relationships. So the idea of an ad agency that caters to the tastes of women is not as crazy as it sounds (Plus Bec Brideson is smokin’ hot!) Please don’t be offended, but you boys should read ‘the art of war’ and pay particular attention to the bit about using women to win a battle. After all, marketing is war.
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