Key takeaways:

  • Men and women often respond very differently to the same marketing campaign.
  • Gender testing can lift response rates and uncover hidden opportunities.
  • Sometimes the “wrong” data (like a women’s list tested to men) turns into a goldmine.
  • Creative format, spokesperson gender, and copy tone all influence male vs. female response.
  • Ignoring gender response can cost you sales and waste ad dollars.

 

Gender matters.

When you’re creating an ad campaign, the response between men and women can be shockingly different — even when everything else is identical.

We’ve seen it repeatedly. Males and females respond differently to copy tone, creative approach, format, images, benefits, and even the spokesperson delivering the message.

Let’s look at one test.

The Test:

One of our clients wanted to know: would different creative approaches affect male vs. female response?

So, we ran three separate direct mail campaigns for the same product. Each used different copy. We called them:
•   Creative 1
•   Creative 2
•   Creative 3

The Results
•   Creative 1 – Males: 1.16%, Females: 1.28%
•   Creative 2 – Males: 0.82%, Females: 0.84%
•   Creative 3 – Males: 1.23%, Females: 1.05%

Notice what happened? One version pulled stronger with women. Another leaned male.

That’s why testing gender response is so powerful. It helps you avoid wasted campaigns and discover unexpected winners.

Real-World Surprise:

In one direct mail case, we rented a women’s subscription list for a male oriented service. But 14% of the subscribers were men. By selecting only the male names, we turned a “women’s list” into a highly profitable male campaign.

Here is another example, and this time it’s for TV/video:

For an investment client (with an 80%+ male audience), we tested the same TV/video script with a male spokesperson and a female spokesperson. The male spokesperson produced a 68% higher response.

The lesson? Test everything. Gender matters more than you think.

FAQs:

Q: Should I always segment by gender?
Not always. But when testing reveals significant differences, segmenting can increase ROI dramatically.

Q: Does spokesperson gender really matter that much?
Yes. In our TV/video commercial test, simply changing the spokesperson’s gender changed results by 68%.

Q: What if my product appeals equally to men and women?
You may find the tone of the copy (rational vs. emotional, bold vs. nurturing) resonates differently — even if the product is universal.

Q: Isn’t testing gender response expensive?
Not compared to running an entire campaign that underperforms because the creative didn’t match the audience. Small-scale tests can save you massive losses.

Q: How can I apply this to my campaigns?
Start by testing:
•   Male vs. female spokespersons
•   Different copy tones
•   Gender-targeted lists
•   Visuals and benefits tailored by gender

About Craig Huey:

Craig Huey is a marketing strategist, author, and publisher of Direct Marketing Update. He has created hundreds of successful multichannel campaigns for clients nationwide. Craig is also the author of The Great Deception and The Christian Voter, and co-host of the Huey Alert Podcast. For over 30 years, Craig has helped businesses and organizations use direct response marketing to multiply results.

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