My Advice on Career Day: Believe in Your Own Voice

By Jeanne Corrigan

Last year, I started volunteering for a non-profit called GENaustin. It’s a great organization that supports girls in making good choices as they navigate through adolescence. One of the activities that GENaustin sponsors is Career Week, an open forum between professional women and middle school girls.

I’ve signed up to speak and I’ve been thinking about what I might cover in my 15 minutes. I love the work we do at On Your Mark and I will talk about that but I also want to share my thoughts on communication because I think it’s so important in career success. Three points I’ll hit on are:

1. Listening is important but so is talking.
There’s a great blog post by Whitney Johnson about how business women sometimes hesitate to speak up to share their experience or own their expertise. When women listen more than we talk, we don’t contribute as much of our own value to the discussion. I love her summary – When we listen, we acknowledge others’ experience and expertise. When we talk, we acknowledge our own. Success depends on learning to do both.

I will encourage the girls to find something they’re interested in, learn all they can about it then challenge themselves to find ways to share what they know.

2. When you talk, do it well and with confidence.
As part of my work, I present findings and recommendations all the time, often to large groups. I’m comfortable with that so my focus is on the message, not my own performance. My advice to the girls will be to think about ways they can speak with more confidence and strength. Just putting themselves in the situation where they speak in front of people – like a speech class or theater group – is good practice. It’s an investment that’s sure to pay off, whether they want to become a scientist, teacher, financial genius or even a market researcher.

3. Ask yourself first, and then seek the input of others.
Many women seem to figure out what they think about a certain subject or problem by talking it through with other people. I identify with this because when I’m faced with a question or a decision, my first impulse is to pull people in to talk about it. I’ve learned that, for me, I have a stronger voice in the conversation when I pause, take a minute to really consider what I think and what’s most important to me and then seek others’ opinions.

I’m excited to meet these girls and talk about my career. But I’m equally excited to explore their strengths today and the paths they might take tomorrow.

Do Super Bowl Advertisers Get Female Humor?

By Crystal Markowski

In recent years there has been conversation around Super Bowl ads and their disregard for female audiences. Regardless of how sexist, crude, awesome, or ridiculous you think Super Bowl spots are, one thing is certain. Women are making up a larger portion of viewership for the NFL, and some advertisers are paying more attention to this growing audience.

While previewing the ads online (yes, you can do that now!), I was pleased to see one that was clearly targeted towards women. However, at the end of Dannon’s 30 second spot, my pleasure turned to disappointment. I had no laugh, not even an “I’m giggling in my head” reaction. The basic formula for the ad was to show a sexy man and sprinkle in some slapstick comedy. Though it was intended for women, this spot didn’t seem to actually consider women and how our sense of humor works.

To get their message across, advertisers shouldn’t just create an ad that shows a woman. They need to create one that speaks to her in her own language. Humor that appeals to a woman lets her laugh in an inclusive way. For her it’s about connecting through shared experiences and being able to say, “Oh! That happens to me too!” This weekend I’m hoping to see other female-targeted commercials that do a better job of connecting to women.

Tell us what you think. Does this spot get your sense of humor?

Trends for 2012: A Balancing Act

By Crystal Markowski

Each year for the past several years, advertising agency JWT has released a report on 100 trends to watch in the coming year. Many of these trends are fueled by new technologies (or new applications of current technologies) that alter the way we shop or do business. To get my 2012 started, I was curious to know what JWT had on their radar. What trends should I be watching for, what types of experiences will consumers want, and how will this all impact how we shop? After reading through the list, I started to realize that some trends on the list existed solely to balance out the effects of other trends. Seems odd, right? Allow me to explain.

One of JWT’s trends for 2012 is “Objectifying Objects,” meaning as our worlds become more digital, we will start to value and hang on to the old tangibles. (Think of those who just can’t trade paperbacks for an eReader. They say, “There’s just something so satisfying in turning a page.”) As technology pushes us further into the future of consumer goods, many of us start to feel as if some part of the experience has gone missing. Another example of a counter-trend is “Reengineering Randomness.” What is this trend you ask? According to JWT, we are narrowing ourselves into a smaller range of content, interactions, and experiences because technology has allowed us to customize our worlds. Companies like Ticketmaster and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines are exploring the possibilities of using social media to allow for “Social Seating.” In the not so distant future, KLM may allow plane passengers to select their seats based on other passengers’ social media profiles. Because we have control over so many of our interactions, we now need ways to randomize our lives again. As a reaction, a company called Airtime is “reengineering randomness” by offering users the thrill of connecting via real-time video chat with complete strangers. In 2012 we will seek ways to allow for randomness, new perspectives, and new discovery beyond what we’ve selected for ourselves.

Why are we allowing trends to propel us in one direction, then, developing ways to undo the affects? One thing we can take from this is the importance of understanding the emotional role certain experiences play in consumers’ lives. While everyone can benefit from the conveniences of technology, this doesn’t mean consumers want everything to be streamlined all the time. We shouldn’t forget that consumers seek connection by nature. Consider the times when your customers are best served by automation or customization, but don’t discount the times when they want to preserve a feeling from their past. Finding the right opportunities to provide conveniences without completely losing organic, human experiences might mean the best possible scenario for your consumers.