Paternal Instincts
Have a feeling that marketing to dads is a smart move? You're right on the money.
If you want to hit the next big thing, it's all about
catering to dads who are spending more time with their kids, and
who need products and services formerly geared only to mothers.
Recent U.S. Census data show there are 25.8 million fathers in
married-couple households raising children younger than 18. And
there are 2 million preschoolers whose fathers care for them for
more hours than any other child-care provider while their mothers
are at work. Also counting the 2 million single fathers in the
United States, there's a growing demand for father-centric
products.
A father himself, Chris Pegula founded his Santa Monica,
California, company to make cool diaper bags that resemble
messenger bags for dads. Diaper Dude was born about May 2003 after
Pegula, 32, couldn't find anything he liked on the market for
his outings with his children. Says Pegula, "[I thought]
'I'm just going to design a bag and sell it and see if it
works.'" The fashionable bag, an immediate hit with dads,
is now available at high-end stores like Fred Segal and Nordstrom,
boosting annual sales to a projected $350,000 for 2004.
The dad market is opening up because Gen X men are the new
fathers—and being a dad is a priority, says Ann A. Fishman,
marketing expert and president of marketing firm Generational Targeted
Marketing in New Orleans. Even more than the generations before
them, this generation of fathers is concerned with work/life
balance and creating an equal parenting partnership, notes
Fishman.
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Marketing to this niche just takes a bit of forward thinking.
Says Fishman, "Quit thinking pink. All [entrepreneurs] have to
do is realize that males will be handling the products as much as
females." You can create newsletters and Web sites for fathers
or create a dad-friendly section on your existing site. From
products for new fathers to services aimed at dads with
adolescents, this market can run the gamut from electronics and
safety products to insurance and financial products. Says Fishman,
"There's no limit to where you can go with this."