We are a bit late this morning, dear reader. We hope you will forgive us. The week was a whirlygig of amazing events (this is becoming a common practice at Lip-sticking and WMEBooks, our alter ego) and we took the time to-- dare we admit it---sleep in this morning!

That, if nothing else, should alert you to the fact that there is a real person sitting at this keyboard. A person who occasionally needs a bit extra zzzzzz time.

We are wide-awake now, and ready for several hours at the computer. Hours that we hope will inform and entertain, first at this blog, then, over at our A-ha! blog, which is still brand new, and something on the Business Blogging Boot Camp blog. After that, we have several other writing tasks to complete. But, work is play, as we like to say.

Let's talk female-friendly, today. Jane has been contemplating the focus of Lip-sticking-- that being to help you, dear reader, market to women who shop online. That should be simple enough.

We could tell you to use pink-- against Andrea Learned's advice (check out her book, Don't Think Pink). We could tell you to be transparent, the latest buzz word in marketing-- meaning: keep it honest and above board. Think Dove soap and their "What's Real Beauty?" campaign. We could even tell you to appeal to women emotionally-- use kids and babies-- because women are emotional creatures at heart.

But, today, we want to reveal the secrets women keep locked inside; secrets that influence what they buy, and where they buy it. Secrets that will help you write a compelling marketing message and have it snatched up by Google so that everytime a woman searches for your products or services, your site show up on page one, which-- if you will take a moment to think about it-- is female-friendliness at its greatest. Being found on page one of a Google search....oh yes!

Over the months of penning this blog, we have begun to wonder if we're really getting anywhere with our advice. Jane means...is what we're offering useful content, or just noisy blathering? We worry that it's on the side of blathering... and so, today's post is  more personal. You will see what we mean.

Women are no longer being ignored--as they once were. And, though it's true that more women today are purchasing motorcycles, electronics, and even trucks, what does that have to do with your overall goal to sell to the women who come to your site?

Jane says: EVERYTHING! Motorcycles, electronics, trucks are non-traditional items... things that were important to men, in those old Dick and Jane days of the previous century, and have now become important to women.

If this 'secret' does not compute...you need to go back and read some of our earlier posts. Or, take a relationship management class. Or, sign up for kick boxing-- another area women are into, big time.

What Jane is saying is that women will no longer allow you to exclude us from your marketing message. We will not tolerate mumbling when we ask a question, a sure sign the man being asked doesn't think the woman asking will understand the answer!

Women have-- shall we reveal it-- ARRIVED!!! We say that tongue-in-cheek, because..., the truth is, we have always been here. We were here from the start, sometimes invisible...standing behind 'our' man...whispering in his ear, sometimes just a shadow, someone the salesperson nodded politely to, smiled at, but -- never really saw.

Today, we're standing right out front-- in the salesperson's face. We demand to not only be noticed, but included! We buy your products and services! We deserve to be approached as if we matter!

Let Jane tell you a story. This week the VP of Operations, a woman, and the VP of Production, a man, were helping my alter-ego, Yvonne, figure out how to arrange the furniture in their new offices, where WMEBooks.com is moving next week. As any good worker would, they both wanted to please Yvonne-- she is the boss, after all. :-)

Now, Yvonne, much like Jane, is not into those motorcycles, trucks, and electronics mentioned earlier. Neither is she into arranging furniture. We admit it. Consequently, there was a lot of, "Oh, I don't cares," followed by looks of exasperation between the two VPs and then, outright laughter-- from Maryanne, the VP of Operations.

"This is how it is," Maryanne finally said to Yvonne. "Tom doesn't want to arrange the office, and ...when we move in next week, have you say you don't like it... then make him rearrange it."

Tom, who is also Yvonne's fiance (how many times do we have to tell you THAT secret: men and women are working together in this century!) shared a look of appreciation with Maryanne-- then sighed and looked over at Yvonne for instructions. He's a very smart man. 

"It's fine the way it is," Yvonne said. Knowing, in her heart, that it wasn't. She was just tired. She wanted to go home. She is so 20th century!

"No," Maryanne, the VP of Operations (also Yvonne's sister-- family businesses...connections...another secret we've been giving you), "it's not all right. I can tell by looking at you."

This is the problem with hiring relatives, especially younger ones, to work with you. They know by the look on your face, a look YOU cannot see without a mirror, when things aren't quite right.

"Well," Yvonne said, finally giving in. "If the desk could be moved here, and the credenza there..."

And, another twenty minutes of moving went on. Maryanne and Tom did the heavy work. Maryanne and Tom discussed what fit, what didn't, how it should work, and why I -- I mean, Yvonne-- couldn't have it the way she wanted (she would end up rolling her chair over her computer wires all day) and then, they proceeded to layout the offices; Yvonne's, Tom's, and Maryanne's each to his or her liking.

Yvonne supervised, but...it was Maryanne who worked with Tom to get everything right. It was Maryanne who understood the finer aspects to furniture placement and office arrangement and whatever! Yvonne just wanted to get back to the computer and finish an article that was due by 5:00!

And there you have it. Men and women working together, in a variety of ways. That's today's secret. Some women are into motorcycles, some aren't. Some women are fiercely independent, some women enjoy having a man around to take care of them (but, don't be fooled into thinking they can't take care of themselves). All of these women are going online to buy. From you.

Our story merely reveals so many of the truths Jane tells you, dear reader. That women are active in all areas of commerce today, and that we are online looking for new products and services, every day.

When we search for that specific item so necessary to our mood at the moment, and find you-- instead of ignoring our buying power by splashing pink all over everything you sell, or minimizing our intelligence by writing product descriptions in Greek, assure us that you're happy we stopped by. Show us products that enhance us as women and business owners (we do like color-- cell phones, briefcases, trenchcoats-- dispense with boring black, please; but have it there as an option), tell us who bought it yesterday (we are influenced by other women's opinions) and then, thank us for stopping by.

We'll thank you by coming back again, next week.

What's not to like about that?

******************************************

Don't forget to tune in tomorrow for an original work of fiction. Tomorrow's story is a glimpse into one woman's attempt to deal with tragedy, at a most personal level. We hope you will enjoy it.