Women make or influence 85% of the purchasing decisions in today's marketplace. Consumer goods companies are finally waking up to that fact. Unfortunately, just taking the man off the box and replacing it with a woman is not the answer. Nor is it to use pink or other traditionally feminine colors for the packaging.

So what product packaging appeals to women? What will entice her to pick your product off the shelf? What siren screams, "Buy me" as she walks down the aisle? The answers are different than you might think.

First, you need to connect with her on an intrinsic level. Do you understand why she is making the purchase? Alternatively, you need to know where she will be shopping. One thing is for sure, she will be in a hurry. Today's women are over worked, time crunched, and busy multi-tasking. How are you going to help her make an informed purchasing decision?

When she comes to buy, she will dedicate about 2.6 seconds to the decision. (70% of purchases are in store, instantaneous decisions). So what will make her pick your product off the shelf?

We all know color is a big influencer when it comes to making a product purchasing decision. However, what color will appeal to her? Besides its success in the well-established "Think Pink" campaign for breast cancer, pink is one of the least preferred colors in product packaging. Blue ranks as women's the number one choice followed closely by red.

Does your packaging clearly illustrate the benefits driven product statement? Remember, she is in a hurry. Your package should scream the product's benefits. Convince her quickly that your product will simplify her life while being easy to use. Ease of use ranks high among female-friendly attributes along with simplicity of instructions. Keep away from engineering benefits driven statements. She doesn't really care how the product works as long as it works effectively and every time.

What about the size of the package? Products in general are evolving to smaller sizes. Our lifestyle mandates that products are easily consumed in a short period or that they are easily handled and storable. She will pay a premium for it too if you can convince her it's worth it.

As you design product packaging to target purchasing's number one decision maker, stay true to ways to make her life easier, simplified, and more efficient.

For more insights on how to package products she will buy, don't miss the Packaging Diva @ the IIR Annual Marketing to Women Conference.

For more details, email JoAnn Hines the Packaging Diva at packagingdiva@aol.com or visit http://www.iir-ny.com/women/index.cfm/Link=9/goSection=1

JoAnn Hines

JoAnn Hines is a packaging diva. She has nearly 30 years of experience in the industry including her work as the packaging expert to the U.S. Small Business Administration and traveling to China to lead a packaging delegation. Recognizing her expertise NBC TV featured her on their consumer segment, Can you open it? Her advice and articles appear in virtually every US packaging industry publication, numerous business and international publications, and website portals including "PackExpo.com", "PackagingUniversity", "Packaging Business", "Packaging Network", "Packaging Horizons Magazine," "Packaging World," "Packaging Digest," "Shipping and Distribution Magazine," "Warehouse Management," "Traffic World". As a featured keynote speaker at trade shows and conferences, she educates thousands of people around the world about intricacies of packaging.

Joining the packaging industry in 1976, Hines worked in sales for several years and began consulting during the 1980s. She is an accomplished author, speaker, publisher, marketer, and e-commerce expert. She has won numerous leadership awards and among other honors was named "One of the 50 most influential packaging leaders in the 20th century." She is the founder of Women in Packaging, Packaging Horizons Magazine, Packaging Career Hotline, Packaging Coach and Packaging University.