Gender specific marketing is not new or a slippery slope. It has been happening ever since women started buying different things than men. I can see the point that there are reasons not to think “the little lady” shouldn’t care about the specs, but the reality is that alot of people (women and men) don’t care. Think about how a car lot will sell to a woman rather than a man. If they are smart, they won’t belittle her, but they won’t try to cram figures of torque and drive shaft specs either.

I think this site is looking to follow the Wii concept. People who are buying the Wii now are not usually gamers. they aren’t interested in how much power their system has. In fact the new spate of commercials center around some girls sitting on their couch basically having “girl talk”. This gender specific marketing has opened up an entirely new market.

One thing I DO know: when my girlfriend bought her new laptop, all she didn’t care a lick about RAM or how fast the processor was, but she was damn happy it was a “cute” blue.

JAMMa theme coming soon…

Ergh.

Being of the female persuasion, I’d have to say that site would not appeal to me at all. I’d head for where I can find the specs and build my own. And when buying a car, I’d rather know about the drive train than the color.

It reminds me of a scene in Erin Brockovitch when her boss asks her why she is not out for lunch with “the girls” because she’s a girl. Her response, “I’m not the right kind of girl.” That’s usually how I feel about the kind of marketing geared to women.

I don’t feel compelled to walk down the beach discussing feminine hygiene products with my friends and family, nor do I chat in bars with my friends about birth control options or if I should take a calcium supplement.

But, that’s just me…

Really – I know plenty of men and women who are so not technically oriented. They still think the computer is inside the monitor, like the TV. They don’t know RAM from ROM, or care even a little. They want to push a button, turn it on and connect to the internet, get their email, and maybe edit a photo or 2.

So, marketing to a target group with features that make them want to buy a product? OK by me. No “serious” geek would get caught that way, but the device they are marketing will work fine for the target audience and what they would use it for.

They are marketing to the same target group that will upgrade Tylenol if is says “new and improved” on the label. (I’m married to one of those people – I’m lucky my eyes are not permanently stuck behind my eyelids due to the extreme eye-rolling that comes from the gasp when a package of bologna says it has an “new advanced formula!”) But, there are lots of people who want style over substance. I live in the heart of Orange County CA – trust me, there are PLENTY of women who will buy a new netbook because they can get a pink one. So, let them have them.

Me, I’ll be over checking out the video drivers…

@Bignaa, @Deni, I did a bit of a survey today, amongst the young interns at work, and it came up pretty even as far as looks and specs importance was involved. I’m gonna show my age here and say, I don’t find these sorts of specific gender marketing ploys politically correct, and somehow marvel at their acceptance. They seem to promote old stereotypes, and that’s why I do a double take at them in 2009!

@Thomas JAMMa party all for you! =-)

another look at this

http://www.liliputing.com/2009/05/aint-i-a-woman-della-markets-inspirons-to-women.html

I think the fact that people on this site and those like them (Kristin’s) aren’t the target audience for marketing efforts like this.

I frankly think the world would be a better place if everyone took the time to really delve into the specifications of a device. Or car. Or Tylenol. Or new fat free candy bars. It would make companies actually work for their upgrade dollars rather than simply stick on a new label.

@ Deni: My eyes were pretty far in the back of my head when we bought the “cute” blue laptop…

@ Peter Murphy: I actually agree that this kind of marketing may not be politically correct: but if it opens the doors of tech to neophytes, I am happy.

thanks for the thoughtful comments, folks.

Another thought, though: gender targeting aside, I feel like they didn’t really put much thought into the name. It could very well be that they’re trying to come off as cute and not take the whole thing too seriously, but really? Dell plus the letter ‘a’ = computers for women?

As a girl, things like this often annoy me. Before I talk about the computer aspect, I would like to say that women don’t want everything in pink….especially things that are not suppose to be pink to begin with. I’m a huge football and Steelers fan, when I go to look at gear, at least half of material is pink. Ummm…did they change their colors to pink. Its just so stupid. No real female fan would wear pink over their team colors. Ok, I had to say that.

If you want to market to women using the fashion aspect, I am ok with that, but give us the specs too. If I’m choosing between 2 equal items, and 1 was more flare, I’ll go with the more stylish choice. However, I would never just get the pretty one if I had no idea if it was just a pretty paper weight. In our new tech age, I would say there are just as many clueless guys and girls. If you don’t give people enough info, then they can’t make an informed choice. Plus, I find most people have at least 1 or 2 tech savy friends, so they can always ask questions. We don’t want netbooks for dummies….