Marketing Female Personal Care Products

Although the men's market has been characterized as a source of relatively untapped sales potential, for the foreseeable future, it will continue to be a niche sideshow compared with the sheer scale and diversity of the female marketplace. This is borne out by the continued strength of sales growth to the female audience. The market for female personal care products is characterized by well-established behaviors, although despite its maturity, it continues to show sustained growth. Achieving product differentiation in a congested market is challenging however; leveraging position will rely on marketers cultivating a more detailed understanding of women's attitudes and behaviors when selecting grooming products. Looking good remains highly important to women and brands must continue to tap into this trend. Since appearance heavily correlates with self-esteem, women are more likely to be emotionally involved with personal care brands due to intrinsic (how she feels about herself) and extrinsic (how he or she is perceived by others) self-definition. Although habit is a major motivation in product choice, female consumers retain openness to experimentation, particularly if they perceive a product to address an unmet need or to have advantages over their current choices (particularly on price, convenience and sensory experience terms). Marketers should: • Gain an understanding of women's attitudes towards grooming and how these are continuing to change • Use the latest evidence based insights to launch and reposition products, so that they can capitalize on prevalent female attitudes • Access a compelling blend of quantitative and qualitative data illustrating consumer attitudes and market developments