The Yin and Yang of Marketing

The Yin and Yang of Marketing

by Barbara Casey

Marketing has traditionally been a "yang" activity - with a go-get-'em approach designed by (primarily) males who are competing with other males for the same piece of business pie. Didn't matter if the product was created for women, the marketing approach still tended to be male-oriented, assuming, perhaps, that the "breadwinner" was in charge of household purchasing.

Sure, Betty Furness sold refrigerators half a century ago (in taffeta dresses and high heels), and women get to sell cleaning and feminine care products today, but, as a woman buyer, I have yet to feel embraced by automobile manufacturers, lite beer distributors or insurance companies as someone particularly worthy of their marketing attention.

Television commercials especially seem to operate on the strictly male/yang model - even for items that women need and use in modern society. A quick half-hour survey one Sunday afternoon found only 5 of 29 TV commercials aimed at women as the primary buyer... and two of those five were of the fast-talking, hard-sell variety.

The four children's products featured male children in a similarly fast-paced selling mode. Twenty of the 29 commercials were selling a variety of products to a male audience - from pizza to pest control to home equity loans to computers. Perhaps Sunday is a "male TV day," and all the women are off doing something else, but even so, I wonder how many men appreciate being hammered so hard to buy stuff.

If you want to see an interesting example of a "yin" approach to selling, tune in to the Home Shopping Network sometime. Someone there understands that women tend to feel more comfortable buying if they have built a relationship with the seller first. Watch the saleswomen speak directly to their female audience members, informing them and becoming "friends" with them, while at the same time selling thousands of items. These saleswomen are not going for a one-time quick sale - "Buy this now or else" - they offer information and invite women in to a shopping experience and community.

What has been termed "spiritual marketing" by Joe Vitale is another primarily yin marketing example. He talks about manifesting sales through knowing what you want to do, clearing your limiting beliefs about it, feeling yourself in the picture of being successful, letting go of a predetermined outcome, and acting on your inner promptings.

Obviously, your prospective clients need to know you exist, so some form of advertising and marketing activity is essential - but the key to making it work is the yin (attracting process. If you're clear and enthusiastic, it shows in your marketing materials, drawing in the right people through the Law of Attraction.

You don't have to scream for your customers' attention, but you do need to be visible enough for them to find you. And you do have to give them good enough reasons to call you or to drop by your store.

"Targeting" your market might be considered "yang-ish" because there is a bit of a hunting element involved. Sending out a mailing or placing an advertisement could also be considered yang activities, because you are actively going out into the marketplace.

The voice you use, however, could be either yin or yang, depending on your approach. The 20 hard-sell commercials I watched on Sunday were most definitely yang and tended to push me away, rather than attract me in. Presumably the majority of the males in the TV audience responded positively - otherwise why would advertising agencies keep using this method?

But I do think they miss out on a larger portion of the marketplace than they realize. Of the 29 items being pushed in my short commercial survey, all 29 were items used and purchased by women as well as men.

Counting out the 5 "strictly female" products, only 2 of the remaining 24 acknowledged a woman as a potential buyer of the product. These two ads spoke in a voice somewhat more yin than yang - instructive and inviting-in rather than commanding and pushing-toward.

The body-mind-spirit market understands better than most, perhaps, that balance is the key... although I have seen many business owners lean a little too far to the yin, hoping people would find them without the yang activity of advertising their wares.

A combination of yin and yang - the outgoing and the receptive - are essential in marketing, just as in the rest of life. But as we proceed further into this new century, I wonder if the line between the two is beginning to blur some, that the actual balance is * within * the gray area and not * between * the black and white.

If that's the case, the "laid-back" marketers might fire up a bit and the "shouters" could start singing love songs. Stay tuned.