GetGlued In Gap’s Latest Fashion Trends

by Chelsea Castner
Published September 15, 2011 in Fashion, New Ideas, Tech

The social media site GetGlued allows users to check into, rate and share the entertainment sources they use and like best. Show your friends what shows you’re tuning into, what music you’re dancing to, what great book you just read and so much more. What’s more is the site just recently partnered with Gap, their first retail partnership, which will rewards site users who check into the 12 listed fall TV shows with discounts up to 40% off to use in the store. Well if watching TV is going to turn my brain to mush, at least I will look cute in the process?

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Meatless Mondays Spark Curiosity And Concern

by Libby Kane
Published September 14, 2011 in Media

Trust Tracy to tell the Whole Truth to Drovers Cattle Network:

Tracy Chapman, founder and principal at Just Ask a Woman, says most shoppers do not obsess over negative media coverage of safety, animal-welfare or environmental issues related to beef. They generally trust assurances such as USDA inspection labels, and believe the beef industry has done a good job of addressing some of the physical defects in beef that were a problem earlier. They have questions, rather than concerns.

However, she says people hear about efforts such as “Meatless Mondays” and begin to question whether beef might be bad for their health or for the environment. Animal welfare also is high on the list, Chapman says. Moms want to know that food animals are treated humanely. They’re interested in health and food safety but they also wonder whether or not products labeled as natural, organic or grass-finished are actually better and worth the higher price.

Mostly, she says, moms want quality and value in the food they buy. They don’t want “cheap beef”; they want to feel they receive a good value, for their budget, without compromising on quality.

To read the entire article at Drovers Cattle Network, CLICK HERE.

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Just Ask a Woman Hits the Red Carpet

by Jen Drexler
Published September 7, 2011 in Fashion, Media

Mary Lou graces the red carpet in her favorite shoes! Photo: AP

We are very excited to attend tonight’s screening of God Save My Shoes. A while back Mary Lou was interviewed as an expert on why women are drawn to shoes and how marketing contributes to the love affair. The clips we’ve seen are great and feature the shoe greats like Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik and Walter Steiger along with celebs like Fergie, Kelly Rowland and Dita Von Teese. We will post reviews when they are available. And yes, of course, we are all wearing fabulous shoes to the premiere.

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Strange Talk And P&G Make Cheer More Cheerful

by Libby Kane
Published August 31, 2011 in Moms & Family, New Ideas

It must be the month of awesome laundry product campaigns. Hot on the heels of Tide’s confessions, Cheer has broken out the big guns by sponsoring the video for band Strange Talk’s single Climbing Walls.  But it’s not a deluge of product placement (we’re looking at you, Britney)—it’s a series of interactive pop-ups, where colorful items are highlighted and, once clicked on, bring the viewer to the brand’s Facebook page to enter giveaways for the clicked-upon items. Fun!

It’s also worth mentioning that this just may be the most Gen Y-targeted campaign for a Gen X product we’ve seen of late. Cheer detergent makes you think of immaculately-coiffed housewives laundering their children’s soccer-stained uniforms, not vibrant Passion-Pit-meets-Foster-the-People indie up-and-comers brimming with energy and amps. Not to mention surrounded by fantastic choreography, because there’s that, too.

Cheers to Cheer (forgive us, it was too easy) for walking the walk and imbuing their brand with the color and energy they offer to consumers. And, move fast – a new round of giveaways starts August 31^st, 3pm EST.

Tags: Procter & Gamble, Video

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Don’t Count Us Out. Not Yet. Not Ever.

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published August 24, 2011 in Moms & Family

– An executive in the publishing industry.

“I have so much ambition, so much energy, so much more I want to do, but the guys up top look right past me.”

– 57 year old lawyer, 30 years of practice, 3 kids, one elderly in law at home

“I don’t want a pity party.”

– Superstar women’s basketball coach, 59, announcing she plans to continue coaching despite early onset dementia.

These women all tell different stories with one theme: persistence.

Ironically, persistence has been running in boomer and first wave X-er blood since the early days of our careers. I can remember working at an ad agency when I was about 38 and being told by a senior male colleague, “Well, even though things won’t work out for you, I guess you feel good that the next generation will reap the rewards of the ground you broke.” I jumped out of my skin and down his throat, “I’m happy for whatever the next generation achieves, but I’m just getting started!” That was a time when the word “pipeline” (“There aren’t enough women yet in the pipeline”) was code for “we aren’t going to promote any of the women we already have even if we are promoting less competent men, just because…” Sadly, I still hear that as an excuse for lagging leadership diversity decades later.

Ageism toward women isn’t new, but I had hoped it wasn’t getting worse. To think that 42 is considered old. But in some industries, it is. (I realize it’s not limited to women, but in practice it’s worse for them with the added burden of young and pretty as an unspoken job requirement.) That a woman who is at the prime of her talent is shuffled into the heap waiting for retirement—crazy! Crazy for men, too, but the lawyer quoted above stayed home for about 10 of her kids’ growing up years, so she feels like she’s got a lot more in her to give at an age where her male peers may be dialing down.

And finally, I was struck by today’s heartbreaking but stirring revelation from Pat Summitt, coach of the University of Tennessee’s women’s team, with a record of 1,071 victories, 8 national titles and an Olympic Gold Medal. Only Pat, her school, her team and her doctors can figure out what she ought to do. But I love that she is not giving up. That she is showing what she’s made of, just as she asks her young players to do on the court.

Do not count us out. As consumers. As professionals. As women. Not now. Not ever.

Tags: Advertising, marketing with women in mind

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Too Lazy For Real Pants: Tide And The Whole Truth

by Libby Kane
Published August 19, 2011 in New Ideas

Tide and Febreze have teamed up to create Tide Sport, an odor-zapping detergent. But it’s not the product that caught our eye—it’s the ad campaign. Instead of the usual pale purple waft lines of freshness surrounding a laundering housewife, the newest Tide campaign features women telling the Whole Truth.

Our favorite ad (above) revolves around a woman gushing about how Tide Sport removes odors from the yoga pants she wears for all manner of workouts… but actually, they’re so worn-in because she’s “too lazy for real pants.” Looking back on our lazy yoga-pant wearing college years (You didn’t have those? Us neither), her confession made us laugh, but also think.

Props to Tide for hitting just the right note of humor and Whole Truth. Now if you’ll excuse us, it’s time for yoga pants.

Tags: Household Products, Whole Truths

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Jen Talks Cake Pops with People StyleWatch

by Chelsea Castner
Published August 18, 2011 in Food, Media

Plastic straws in cocktails are out! Who knew? Pick up the September issue of People StyleWatch to see Jen’s input on what’s trending this fall.

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BlogHer11: Sat this One Out

by Jen Drexler
Published August 10, 2011 in Media, Tech

I didn’t make it to BlogHer11 this year, but watched it very closely (some would say compulsively) from afar. I tried to read between the lines of Tweets and Facebook updates to see what was working and what wasn’t. After reading the recaps from bloggers I admire like @Redneckmommy and @Mom101 I’m glad to say that this year seemed to have gotten back to its roots.

Way less talk of swag frenzy and the VIP competition that plagued last year in New York and more conversation about learning, support and inspiration. Some of it may have had to do with the awesome and laid back San Diego location – attendees just seemed less frenetic to see everything and do everything.

I made my beef with last year’s conference public in an op-ed for Adweek. My criticism was not with the hard working, well intentioned organizers of the conference but with the marketers who delegated away the task of interacting with bloggers, who stole attendees for off premise VIP events that fed into a divisive hierarchy that can emerge among bloggers and of swamping the joint with swag that had little meaning or measurable ROI.

Adweek reported on the conference this week and while I’m disappointed that “this time, there were at least a couple of brand managers and executives on the floor” I am glad to see that the conference felt rewarding to both bloggers and sponsors.

See you at BlogHer12.

Tags: Adweek, Bloggers, BlogHer11, Mom101, Redneckmommy

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Do Women Expect The Truth From Beauty Ads? Mary Lou Quinlan In CNN Living

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published August 1, 2011 in Fashion, Media

Right on the heels of L’Oreal pulling their latest round of ads depicting  Julia Roberts and Christy Turlington from the UK after accusations of over-airbrushing, CNN set out to determine what level of  truth women expect from beauty advertisements… or whether they expect truth at all. To help them get to the bottom of it, they consulted none other than Just Ask a Woman’s Founder and CEO, Mary Lou Quinlan, who assured them every step in advertising is a deliberate one.

I didn’t mean to shill for the entire beauty industry but someone had to tell the whole truth about beauty ads. While the over the top promises and pictures in the category are cannon fodder for women on a rant, the truth is that the standards governing beauty claims are pretty darn severe. There’s a long list of watchdogs who try to keep brands honest: corporate internal R&D and legal, governmental agencies, the TV network’s standards folks, their competitors who leap on a dime….and the women who decide to buy or not.

I’d like to believe that most of these groups are motivated to do right rather than wrong. And brand managers and their ad agencies have to play the roles of both creative and cop to avoid making the kind of mistake that these ads just made.

The ads with Julia and Christy were what might be called lies of omission. They left out the lines and wrinkles for sure. But worse, they left out the truth of why those two icons are so aspirational for so many women. They are both women with real years of growth, as mothers, as daughters, as businesswomen, as philanthropists, as women whose authenticity is what gives them appeal (though I still wish Julia hadn’t snagged her husband from someone else.) They weren’t as beautiful with experience so totally erased. Whole truth indeed.

To read more about women’s expectations and advertisers’ master plans, check out the full article on CNN Living.

To read more about the newest tricks of the cosmetics industry, check out our take on Sephora’s newest service.

Tags: Advertising, Cosmetics

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God Save My Shoes Trailer: Louboutin, Blahnik, and Quinlan

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published July 27, 2011 in Media

Image: godsavemyshoes.com

How many pairs of shoes do you have? My husband has about 25 and I have about 60, but according to today’s New York Post, Beth Shak has 1,200 pairs. And not just any shoes. We’re talking Jimmy Choo, Walter Steiger, Manolo Blahnik and 700 pairs of Christian Louboutins valued at $500,000. She’s a poker pro who spends every dime of her winnings on her feet.

Her story will appear in an upcoming documentary called “God Save Her Shoes”—which also features Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas, Destiny’s Child Kelly Rowland, and every famous shoe designer on earth and… me! The film, which takes a cheeky and fascinating look at women’s shoe obsessions, will debut in September in Paris during Fashion Week.

Director Julie Benasra asked me to weigh in on the psychology of why women feel the way they do about their shoes. At one point during the filming in my office, I noted that you can tell a lot about a woman by the shoes she keeps under her desk. “What do you mean?” I ducked underneath and surprised even myself when I pulled up six pairs, each serving a purpose, from fast city walking to just strutting my stuff.

Armchair psychology? Not when it comes to shoes. Like every other woman, I walk the talk. Catch the trailer below and watch for the US premiere!

Tags: Video

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