How to Market to People Not Like You

KELLY MCDONALD is the president of McDonald Marketing, which Advertising Age named one of the top ad agencies in the United States across all disciplinesin 2009. She worked in top positions for global ad agencies before starting her own marketing company in 2002. Her agency's clients include Toyota, Sherwin-Williams, Miller Coors, Harley-Davidson, and State Farm Insurance.

• Acknowledgments xiiiIntroduction: You Can’t Reach a Customer You Don’t Understand xvPart I: Seven Steps for Selling to New and Unfamiliar Customers 11 Get Out of Your Comfort Zone to Grow Sales 3‘‘Spray and Pray’’ versus Broad Thinking and Narrowcasting 3Toyota Tundras, Nike, and iPhones 6Tapping Into the Hearts and Minds of New Customers also Means Tapping Into Their Wallets 102 Get to Know the Customer You’re Not Getting but Should Be 12Who are These People? Babies, Girl Scouts, and Amtrak 12Go Online and Read Everything You Can about the Group You Want to Target 16Attend Events, Meetings, and Gatherings of Your Potential Customer; Observe and Talk to Attendees to Find Out What’s on Their Minds 17How to Research a New and Unfamiliar Customer Segment to Find Their Values, Tastes, Needs, and Concerns 18Listen to Complaints 19Hire from the Target Group, if Possible 20Understand that the Way We Receive Information Shapes Us All 20How to Hire a Marketing or Advertising Consultant Who Understands the Target Group You Want 223 What Do They Need? Tweak Your Product or Service Offerings 24Real Men Eat Salad 26Shop at Sam’s, Get a Loan 28Target in East Harlem 28No Bifocals for Me, Thanks! 28Moving Mom and Making it Easier 294 Make Your Sales and Customer Service Friendly: Little Things Make a Big Difference 33Operational Readiness—The ‘‘Secret Sauce’’ in Marketing to People Not Like You 34Operational Friendliness 38New Hours, New Uniform 39Do the Easy Things First 405 Communicate in Their ‘‘Language’’: Develop Marketing Messages Based on Their Values 42Transcreation, Not Translation 46Tweak Your Marketing, Advertising, Signage, and Web Site in Other Languages 50‘‘But This is America—Speak English!’’ 516 Use Technology to Reach Your Prospects: Micro Targeting 53Using Free or Inexpensive Online Tools 547 Deal with Naysayers: What If Your Employees or Your Core Audience Don’t Like Seeing Their Product Marketed to Other Groups? 67Subaru and Dentists 67Part II: Key Customers Who Could Drive Your Business Growth 738 Different Ages Want Different Things 75Matures: Born before 1946 76Baby Boomers: Born 1946–1964 80Gen X: Born 1965–1981 84Gen Y: Born 1982–1994 86Gen Z: Born 1995–2004 889 Women: Singles, Heads of Household, Working Moms and Stay-at-Home Moms, Home-Schooling, and More 9110 Immigrants: It’s About Acculturation, Not Assimilation 102Acculturation, Not Assimiliation: Targeting Immigrant Groups by Acculturation 10411 Hispanics/Latinos: North America’s Fastest-Growing Ethnic Minority 112Cinco de Mayo Is Not Mexican Independence Day 113Why the U.S. Latino Market Is Super Caliente 114The ‘‘Size of the Prize’’ 115Step 1: ‘‘Latino-Ready’’ and ‘‘Latino-Friendly’’—Operational Readiness Is Everything 116Step 2: When to Use Spanish in Marketing Messages 126Step 3: Transcreation, Not Translation 129Step 4: New Products, New Hours, New Uniforms 131Step 5: Customer Service Is Your Secret Weapon 13412 African-Americans: A Large and Lucrative Customer Base 136Insight 1: Show People of Color When Targeting People of Color 138Insight 2: Diversity in Skin Tone Is Very Important 139Insight 3: Don’t Even Use People in Ads at All—Leave It Open to Interpretation 140Insight 4: Keep It Real 140Insight 5: You Don’t Have to Make It ‘‘Brown’’ to Appeal to African-Americans 143Insight 6: People of Color Aspire to More than Just Sports, Music, and Fashion 144Insight 7: Get Involved and Support the Community 147Insight 8: Food, Music, and Socializing Are Central to African-American Culture 149Insight 9: Don’t Take Advantage of African-American Customers 15013 Asians and Asian-Americans: The Highest Household Income of Any Racial or Ethnic Group 152The U.S. Asian Population 153Step 1: Evaluate the ‘‘Size of the Prize’’ 155Step 2: Learn about Which Subsegment Represents Your Greatest Market Opportunity 156Step 3: Explore Asian Media Options 156Step 4: Make Sure You Use Qualified Translation Services, if Necessary 156Step 5: Explore Online/Digital Marketing 158Step 6: Educate Yourself about Key Cultural Aspects of Your Target Market 158Step 7: Get Involved in the Community 159Part III: Other Important Market Segments 16114 Political Views 16315 Sexuality: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered 16816 Hobbies and Special Interests 180Direct Marketing 184Special Interest Magazines or Web Sites 184Editorial Contributions 185Venue Marketing 186Niche Marketing (Relationship Marketing) 186Association Marketing 188Connectors 18917 Rural versus Metro 191Metro (Urban) Living 191Rural Living 19218 Military versus Civilian 19619 Vegetarians versus Meat Eaters 202Reaching Vegetarians 205Reaching Meat Eaters 207Conclusion 211Index 213