A Lucrative Direction for Automakers
Automobiles have traditionally been regarded as a "men's" product. More men than women are interested in vehicles for their own sake, buying auto magazines and attending car shows. Automotive ads aimed at men have long had a tone indicating that, in Maslow's hierarchy of needs (Gwynne, 1997), the focus of the sales message is esteem. Cars are presented as power fantasies, sometimes with women draped lasciviously over them (Craig, 1992, p. 7). The names of American SUVs, such as Durango and Tahoe, evoke the Wild West.
However, women in fact account for a large proportion of the automotive market. Moreover, women are undoubtedly a factor in automotive purchasing decisions by married men; the husband may sign the sales document, but not without taking his wife's concerns into account. While some women may be drawn by the same power fantasies that appeal to men (consider how many girls are fascinated by horses), it is reasonable to suppose that a different set of considerations goes into womens' purchasing decisions. Therefore, a different approach should be taken for automotive marketing aimed at women.
The industry has long taken for granted that women are more practical in their car-buying decisions รป that is, buying a car more or less as they'd buy another large appliance, rather than as a symbolic extension of the self. Women have been targeted by ads for smaller cars, as more practical and convenient (and perhaps as "cute"). In fact, however, practical considerations often push women toward larger vehicles. Women with families must often transport children, groceries, pets, and so forth, and thus find SUVs, minivans, and even trucks to be more convenient than small sedans.
Safety, one of the lower levels of Maslow's pyramid, is a significant factor for woman purchasers. Indeed, it might be argued that security, in some broad sense, ranks higher in the M
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