Marketing white paper: Most women are motivated to buy 'healthy'
SAN FRANCISCO — Three-in-four women today are motivated to be healthy, and most (82%) believe they will suffer negative consequences if they don't pursue that healthier lifestyle, according to a white paper released by Anthem Worldwide on Tuesday titled, “What Women Really Want From Health And Wellness.”
“Regardless of age, health and wellness is an important topic for all women,” said Kathy Oneto, VP brand strategy. “The attitude of today’s woman about health and wellness is that they would rather live according to their internal motivations and not to external expectations. The brands that speak to this desire authentically have an opportunity to build lasting connections with generations of women." she said. "Moreover, when it comes to purchase behavior, health and wellness is a factor at the point of decision, and how brands speak to women up to that point influences the choices they make. A full two-thirds of women believe a brand that motivates them to be healthy is important when considering which brands of products to buy.”
The motivating factors behind this healthier movement includes the desire to feel good (87%), be happy or have attained a higher quality of life (86%) or live their best life (83%). The study also examined women’s attitudes toward their expectations around health and wellness and found that most (84%) feel like they are expected to take responsibility for their family, make others happy (72%), eat for health rather than enjoyment (67%), be responsible to the planet (66%) and be thin (61%).
“Health and wellness is clearly of importance to women of all generations and more important to younger generations than we anticipated,” Oneto said. "While our research demonstrated that there were similarities across these generations with regard to health and wellness definitions, motivations, and expectations, we also identified differences across them — for overall health and wellness and at a category level, generally driven by life stage.”
Oneto suggested that marketers have one of two choices when speaking with these women — speak to each age group and its distinct motivations, or identify a common motivation or need state that crosses generational lines and can appeal to all women.