archives
Mars vs. Venus
The other day I had to go to the doctor. I dread the doctor. Not because of the check up part, but because of the two hours one can waste waiting on the 15 minute appointment.
To kill time I read Glamour, a women’s fashion magazine, in the main waiting room. It was full of tips on surviving the holidays, especially with regards to your waistline.
- Go for a walk after a big meal
- Don’t beat yourself up if you splurge
- Have a healthy snack before going to holiday parties
Basically the same advice we are given every year that I fully intend to follow until I am 3 parties deep and 5 pounds heavier.
Finally my name was called and I went to the smaller room without all my magazine selections. For another 30 minutes. The only publication in the exam room was a Men’s Health. As a female, I’ve never picked one up so I thought it would be fun to see how the other half stays healthy.
Low and behold there was an almost identical article on how to stay fit during the season. But it was told in a totally different voice:
- Get up off your @#$
- It’s not the end of the world if you eat too much
- Make time to drag your @%$ to the gym
Same exact advise. Totally different tone. I flipped through the magazine and found more similar articles to the ones in Glamour, they were just told in a much harsher, more in-your-face, masculine kind of way. For example, an article titled ‘Don’t be That Guy’ was shown with a photo of a giant beer belly being squeezed into a pair of jeans.
It reminded me how important it is to use a voice your audience relates to when conveying a message. I’m not sure the rough language and images would have inspired the Glamour readers the same way it does the Men’s Health audience. But it was interesting to see the difference in the way men’s and women’s magazines are presented.
Lesson learned – It is crucial as advertisers that we try to speak to people in their own language – not just the one we are used to hearing.
~ libby s
