As you know, Oprah taped her last TV show on May 25, 2011. Ranked No. 1 for its entire 25-year run, The Oprah Winfrey Show “made it clear that women want to listen to women like themselves,” says Marti Barletta, author of Marketing to Women and PrimeTime Women™.
To celebrate Oprah’s success, I asked a few of my marketing colleagues what they learned from Oprah about marketing to women. Whether or not they were fans of the show, my colleagues’ insights illustrate the huge effect Oprah has had on our culture, our society and how women see themselves.
Marti Barletta: Oprah understands that women are complex.
“When I give presentations, I tell audiences that men are simple and that women are not. When I first used this idea in a presentation, I had to ask my husband if he thought this was male bashing. ‘Of course this isn’t male bashing,’ he replied. ‘We men pride ourselves on being simple. Women complicate things — look how many discussions you have with friends to buy a handbag!’
“I say men are simple because they’re focused — this translates into how they make decisions. Oprah’s genius is that she understands that women are complex and multi-dimensional.
“On the surface, women appear superficial: We like fashion and celebrity gossip. We care about what we look like.
“But women also care about making their lives worthwhile and living their best life, a sentiment embodied in Oprah’s tag line, which is ‘Live Your Best Life.’ Women care very deeply about an aspirational, integrated life that’s also spiritual.
“At the time Oprah went on the air, all talk show hosts were men: Phil Donahue, Jerry Springer, Johnny Carson, and David Letterman. Oprah proved that a huge hunger existed among women to learn from women like themselves. This is because women are far more interested in people than men are.
“This is the message that marketers who market to women need to take from Oprah: that messages need to be based on people benefits, not features. For example, if you’re a car company, tell me a story about why a person (not necessarily a woman) enjoys driving your car versus giving me facts and figures. As Oprah proved, women relate to messages if they come from real people versus idealized celebrities.”
Debranne Santucci, Financial Services Marketer: Oprah aligned herself with experts.
“What can marketers learn from Oprah? They can study how she extended her brand by aligning herself with subject matter experts such as Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Nate Berkus, and Rachel Ray.
“What Oprah did is sheer genius. She offered her target audience the information they craved by seeking out experts like Dr. Oz. Her audience learned about losing weight, received medical and relationship advice, acquired designer tricks to make a house a home, and learned how to make quick nutritious meals.
“Marketers need to ask themselves, ‘What am I selling and what other needs does my market have? How can I tap subject matter experts to enhance our brand and fulfill this need?’”
Lori Graham, Home Depot: Women dream big.
“Women are behind many of the purchasing decisions in the home improvement category and are actively involved in do-it-yourself projects. Many women attend our in-store workshops and learn how to do everything from lay tile to build a deck. We help them build the home of their dreams.
“What can marketers who market to women learn from Oprah? Have your brand empower women to dream big, make a difference and achieve a goal.”
Kathie Williams, Heinrich Marketing. Oprah shared her story with the world.
“Oprah made women feel comfortable, safe, and secure about being themselves by showing them a great deal of respect. Most important, Oprah was honest and sincere. She shared her own story with the world. Hence, her audience trusted her.
“Oprah’s mantra in life is summed up in a quote I read from Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl: ‘Life expects something of you, and it’s up to every individual to discover what it should be.’ This message has been at the core of everything Oprah has done. It’s a responsible mission — and that’s why she’s so successful.
“What can marketers learn from Oprah? If you’re trying to sell something or market to a particular audience, you’re more likely to get your message across if people see themselves in your brand and if they know you care about them. You want to make them feel warm and fuzzy about themselves.”
Sue Beranek: Oprah created jobs!
“Although I have not been a big fan of The Oprah Winfrey Show, what I find wonderful about Oprah is that she has created so many jobs. In addition to her TV show, she has the magazine, products, movies, a radio show and now her network.
“Her job creation is in line with the fact that data is showing that female-owned companies in the U.S. are growing at twice the rate of all businesses. What marketers need to learn from this is that women continue to make a huge difference in our society and in the workplace and that messages should be aimed at women’s decision making power.”
What I Learned From Oprah
For many years, I didn’t connect much with Oprah’s TV show, mostly because it aired on daytime TV, and I’m almost never home during the weekdays.
However, I did read her magazine (being a magazine junkie!). Although it’s challenging to find the time to read it cover to cover, I admire the publication for its topics, the richness of the stories and the way it speaks to me about meaningful things in my life.
A year or so ago, while driving to a client meeting, I stumbled upon Oprah Radio on XM. Now here was a place I could connect! I spend a lot of time in my car; the radio show filled that time with everything I was interested in: relationships, health and wellness, spirituality, and finance. The final season of the TV show was rebroadcast on the radio — now, I could finally catch it!
The lesson: Make yourself accessible to your audience wherever they are.
Shortly after I started listening to Oprah Radio, it occurred to me what a brilliant marketer Oprah was — and still is. She found a way to provide access to ALL women wherever they are in their lives. Some women watch Oprah sporadically — perhaps they’ll catch a show while home with a sick child. Other women have watched her show day in and day out for a decade.
Oprah’s genius is that she knew how to relate in a meaningful way with women. It didn’t matter if a woman was looking for information relevant to a specific situation (such as breast cancer) and tuned in only when Dr. Oz or another expert talked about the topic, or if she watched the show every day. Oprah filled these needs and more because as Marti Barletta pointed out, she understood that women are complex creatures who want to live integrated, whole lives.
What I admire about Oprah is that she knew when it was time to close a chapter in her life. Although she ended the TV show, she’s still working, but on something more meaningful and relevant. I’m sure that wherever OWN takes her, she’ll find a way to connect with women at even deeper levels. I wish her the best.
What do you think marketers who market to women can learn from Oprah? Leave your comments below.
How Heinrich Approached the Project: