WatersMolitor Launches WomanWise LLC

Minneapolis, MN (Sept. 28, 2006) – WatersMolitor, a Minneapolis-based hybrid agency and consulting firm, has launched WomanWise LLC http://www.womanwise.com, to ignite a higher-level relationship with women as consumers and a new level of competitive advantage for marketers.

“Six years after Tom Peters hailed marketing to women as the biggest opportunity on the planet, women still feel misunderstood,” says Dori Molitor, founder and CEO of WomanWise LLC and co-founder of WatersMolitor. “What is missing are insight tools that go beyond traditional research to reveal the deep, subconscious reasons women purchase and become loyal to brands.”

Molitor says that WatersMolitor, which she co-founded in 1988 with Todd Waters, will serve as the parent company for WomanWise, but will no longer directly provide marketing services.

Despite a rush among marketers in the last few years to capitalize on the marketing-to-women segment, Molitor explains that many agencies and marketers have been slow to evolve beyond a basic understanding of the scope of the market, how men and women are different and generalized insights about women as consumers.

“We made a commitment ten years ago to focus specifically on marketing to women to help our clients satisfy the unmet needs of female consumers to gain competitive advantage,” she adds. “Since then, we’ve been inventing and re-inventing new tools and psychological methodologies to unlock the single, subconscious Emotional Truth™ that connects women with specific brands and categories.”

WomanWise integrates women consumers into their work in their new Women’s Insight Center, built as an adjunct to their existing offices. The center replicates a home-like environment, with over-stuffed chairs, rich colors and soft lighting. It creates a casual, comfortable space where women participate in insight research, creative brainstorms, communication validation and more.
Girlfriend Groups™ insight discussions are one example of the agency’s wide array of proprietary tools and methodologies. Unlike traditional focus groups, Girlfriend Groups discussions are informal get-togethers of small groups of women who know each other, hosted at a participant’s home or at the Women’s Insight Center. The ‘at-home’ environment sets the stage for projective exercises and other activities designed to uncover women’s authentic feelings and emotional purchase drivers.

The agency’s other insight tools and methodologies include ethnographic studies, expert panels, Shop-Alongs™, BrandWise™ workshops, Money Talks™ games, Articulate Women™ panels, web-based, real-time monitoring tools and more.

WomanWise’s work on behalf of the Schwan’s Asian Sensations line showcases its innovative approach to creating Brand Enthusiasm™. The campaign recently captured a “Best in the World” Diamond Award from The Global Marketer and is featured in the September/October issue of HUB Magazine: http://hubmagazine.com/?p=124

Schwan’s sought to reposition its Pagoda brand of frozen Asian appetizers and entrees as “Asian Sensations,” with more mainstream appeal. While the prevailing assumption was that moms would be the target audience, WomanWise’s insight process revealed the oversized influence of teenage children on these purchases.

WomanWise identified a groundbreaking brand platform based on the common mindset of today’s Baby Boomers and Gen Y teens. Unlike previous generations, these two generations share an unprecedented bond built on shared values, beliefs and attitudes. Boomer parents have a driving need to be young – and stay young – through strong relationships with their teens. The Emotional Truth discovery for Asian Sensations was this shared “youthful self-expression.” The recommended brand platform set the foundation for future product extensions, new distribution channels and a re-launch marketing strategy.

About WomanWise™ LLC

WomanWise LLC, A WatersMolitor Company, is a hybrid consultancy-agency specializing in marketing brands to women. The agency was founded in 1988 with an ambitious vision to create Brand Enthusiasm™ and drive purchase. The agency has demonstrated that superior insight into women’s subconscious emotional motivators is the fuel that ignites Brand Enthusiasm.

WomanWise’s unconventional insight approach to discover the subconscious behavioral drivers that create emotional connections between brands and women has earned unprecedented client results and gained the agency international recognition. It has earned eight “Best in the World” awards, including seven Globes Awards, more than any other agency in the history of the competition. Client experience includes Schwan’s Food Company, Serta International, Lifetouch Portraits, Old Home Foods, Sargento, Dunkin’ Donuts and more.

To learn more, go to http://www.womanwise.com