Melbourne Herald Sun, Friday September 28, 2012
Determined to be equal-opportunity parents, we made sure that my son and daughter had access to gender-free toys right from the start.
But well before they were a year old, my daughter had pushed away the toy car and blocks, clutching for the doll. While my son, on seeing his first truck, drew it to his breast and held on to it for days.
Yep, gender preferences are nature, not just nurture. And anyone who says different has not brought up baby boys and girls.
A recent survey quizzed more than 4,000 children aged six to 12 in Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Spain, Poland, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, China, the U.S., and here in Australia.
It's important that marketers reaching for children understand the differences - and the growing similarities - between boys and girls.
The study, conducted by global brand agency The Marketing Store Worldwide, found that many differences seem cemented into the genes, regardless of geography, language and culture. These tend to be the "traditional" toys.
Nor surprisingly 55 per cent of girls chose a doll as their favourite toy. But less than two percent of boys. On the other hand, sure enough there are the trucks - 40 per cent of the boys chose building and construction toys as their favourites. Girls never found the same soft spot for bricks and wheels with only 10 per cent selecting construction.
Girls tend to arts and crafts, puzzles and board games. Boys want sporting equipment, trading cards and hobby kits.
Where they do come together is in modern technology. Maybe it really is a plot to confound their parents. But their nimble fingers and brains very quickly learn mastery of their gadgets. Initially this tended to be boys playing the games, girls playing the music.
But this has changed too as marketers have grown more savvy in their product developments. Companies like Nintendo Wii have deliberately brought in girl-friendly titles like Just Dancing, Art Academy and Mario Tennis Open. Not a machine gun or jet bomber in sight.
The top three "gender-free" sports are swimming, football and cycling. Educators have widened these choices by deliberately involving boys in cooking and shopping, girls in camping and gardening, so these days they are popular with both.
Renee Weber, of Marketing Store Worldwide, feels the toy industry still has far to go: "The gaps between girls and boys are enormous."
"There's been very little evolution to modify toys to make them interesting to the opposite gender," said Ms. Weber. She said that "there's not a big look at natural play patterns," and that making a toy pink, for instance, isn't going to generate more interest from girls. Colour is not the reason why the genders play differently.
So how do you get girls to play with construction toys? You get them to build things that interest them. Lego has worked at this and earned both praise and smacks for their efforts.
Nearly a year ago they brought out a new range called "Lego Friends" aimed specifically at girls. Still stackable plastic blocks, but with curvy characters called "ladyfigs". The play sets are in purple and yes - pink - with a range of toy girls in charge of beauty shops, horse stables and cafes. Decor includes heart-shaped swimming pools and and flower pots.
These were not universally welcomed, with critics accusing them of reinforcing stereotypes and focussing on pretty looks.
But the girls do get vehicles - horse boxes - and vets' stethoscopes. There is no sign of male domination in that little Lego universe.
ray@ebeatty.com
Blog: themarketeer-raybeatty.blogspot.com
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