Watch out for those Gamma Women!

I'm thrilled! There's another new segment for us direct marketing practitioners to target: The Gamma Women.

"Gamma women share and exchange information, ideas, opinions, contacts and recommendations with their wide-reaching network using multiple media and channels of communication. This is in sharp contrast to the ‘Alpha’ style of communication – a top down model of selectively passing along information. While a Gamma’s sense of self is guided by her internal beliefs, passions, and priorities, an Alpha is driven by external social hierarchies or other indicators of status or popularity."

This quote from an EarthTimes article about a study recently released by Meredith Corporation, the media and marketing company that targets American women.

I think they're on to something. Women typically are 'sharers'. If we (and I know I'm part of this bold group!) find something (a product, a service) we like, we talk about it. We tell our friends, our family--we become the biggest advocates. Of course, the opposite is also true. If we have a bad experience, we'll spread that news, too.

The traits of this newly defined 'gamma woman' lend themselves almost perfectly to social marketing. The study shows that we like to communicate, and we don't like to be sold to. We look for relevant content and we're all about building networks to share our info with. Yep, we Gammas are a social marketer's dream.

Not only are these Gamma Women perfect for the world of social media, they're a large group (55 million women!). What an opportunity!

"The report forecasts that, as the social and technological environment in which they exist becomes more and more suited to their communication and interaction styles, Gammas’ influence in the marketplace will continue to increase."

Moral of this story--don't forget to include specific programs and tactics that will appeal to these Gamma Women as you develop your direct marketing strategies.