More than 40 million women in the US are over 50 and the majority of these are breaking through the stereotypes of what it means to be an older woman. However, many feel misunderstood by marketeers and invisible in the marketplace.

According to a recent study by www.vibrantnation.com, and an earlier study by the Boston Consulting Group, this wealthy and powerful group of women are frustrated and annoyed with companies who continue to dismiss them.

And because they have the gift of connectedness, they have an energy waiting to be tapped. They have no qualms about talking to strangers about their lives and the challenges they face and their negative feelings about companies.

The poster girl for this massive group is First Lady Michelle Obama, who when asked what she would do when she left the White House, said calmly that she expected to be working well into her seventies and would in fact have another career.

Obama’s plan is powerful and resonates with many women who feel their live have only just begun at 50.

What does this mean for your business? Firstly it means that a business without a plan to address this powerful and confident group will most likely miss out on the massive wealth that they wield and the influence they hold over just about everything.

Here are some suggestions to begin to open up your mind and your cash register to the abundance this group can bring you:

Study the converging trends of longevity and women’s power Begin to talk to the women within this demographic within your business Recruit more women over 50 into your business Create a social media platform that solely understands and talks to women over 50

This last tip is vital. Take this example from the study by www.vibrantnation.com. During the focus group, the authors noted that at some stage everywoman pulled out a pen to write down a recommendation or idea suggested by another women.

One of these women mused out loud about how great it would be to have a community online, a place where they could go 24/7 to continue the kind of dialogue that was taking place at the table.

Marketeers who want to business with this woman would do well to think about her less as a target and more as a friend – one who is always worth your loyalty, respect and attention.

When I speak to companies about the lifestyles of the women who control not only 85% of the household budget but the management of many corporate budgets, the one factor that screams above the rest is the level of time impoverishment that they carry.

This begins with the working mom who juggles around five jobs at once, reaching to our first ladies Julia Gillard and Quentin Bryce with their extraordinary level of public duties which always come before their private lives.

So here’s an exercise: when you see a woman walk into your store or you are sitting across from her at a management meeting, it may be worth your while to consider this degree of pressure she is under. It may help you engender some empathy for her and result in a better outcome for you.

What may also be useful to consider is the regrettable fact that when it comes to the division of domestic labour and paid work, women spend almost twice as much time on housework and childcare than men, even when they increase their time in paid employment.

In today’s smh.com article ‘Housework twice the burden for women‘ Rachel Browne reports that women with children under five spend about 41 hours a week on childcare, 32 hours a week on housework and 14 hours in paid work.

A fact that is even more staggering is that once their children are in school and they increase their paid work, women still devote 29 hours a week to chores while spending 25 hours a week in paid employment, according to Browne.

She quotes research, Families Working Together – Getting The Balance Right, which claims mothers of under-fives do a total of 88 hours’ work each week, including housework, paid work, childcare and voluntary work, compared with men who contribute 79 hours. But once children are aged 5-14, hours of work equalise as both fathers and mothers contribute 75 hours a week, with paid work making up the bulk of men’s time.

The research also reveals that both men and women are feeling stressed with their workloads with 47% of fathers saying that they always felt pressed for time compared with 62% of mothers.

Fathers with children under five spend 15 hours a week on housework, rising to 17 hours once children are aged 5-14 and their partners increase their paid workload.

While there is no quantitative research to show the impact of this overload on retail sales, you may like to conduct your own straw poll.

Just ask any woman you meet if driving to a shopping centre in her free time, parking the car (and remembering where it is), battling her way throught he hordes of teenagers at the Mall and then arriving to a store to buy an appliance to be greeted (or not) by a salesperson who doesn’t understand her is a source of joy for her.

Her answer just may give you some clarity into why sales remain weak.

I’d love to hear the response.

By now most businesses are aware that women are by far the dominant force across all shopping decisions. But sometimes the extent of that reach is vague. But when you read the statistics, vagary terns to astonishment!

At this week’s Marketing to Women Conference in Chicago the latest figures may make you think twice about where you are losing sales by not taking the female who walks into your store or your business seriously.

Women and Global Spending

~ Women control over $20 Trillion in world-wide spending.

Source: Muhtar Kent, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, The Coca-Cola Company, October 2010

Women and Tech

~ Notably, more women (33.4%) will/did use a smartphone and/or tablet device(s) to shop for and purchase back-to-school items.
~ Overall, one-half (49.0%) of female respondents – including 3-in-5 (58.6%) moms – visit social media sites at least a few times per day.
~ 44.4% of women say social media is a good way to keep up with the latest content. Other reasons include sharing content with family and friends (40.9%), sharing personal opinions or comments (26.7%) and seeing what other fans or followers are saying about the content (25.4%).
~ Staying current with the brand’s latest offerings is a top reason to follow brands on social media cites, one-half (50.1%) of moms who follow brands cite this reason.
Source: Burstmedia, 2012

Women and Auto

~ Women are more likely than men to drive less, have a lower fatality rate per distance driven, and to purchase smaller, safer, and more fuel-efficient cars.

Source: University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute, 2012

~ In 2011, women made up over 40% of purchasers of 14 auto brands. Source: TrueCar.com, 2012

~ Women buy more than half of the new cars in the U.S., AND influence up to 80% of all car purchases.
~ Women also request 65% of the service work done at dealerships.
~ Women spend over $200 billion on new cars & mechanical servicing of vehicles each year.
~ 45% of all light trucks and SUVs are purchased by women. Source: Women-Drivers.com, 2010

~ Women continue having poor experiences when trying to buy a car. ~ 3/4 of women surveyed say they feel misunderstood by car marketers.

Source: Forbes, 2010

Women Spread the Word

A study of 2,000 women in Canada and the U.S. showed that traditional web sites (70%) have now surpassed traditional forms of word-of-mouth (58%) as their preferred method for getting the word out about products and services.

The study also found that only 28% of women decide what products or services to buy with out looking for some kind of help.

~ 58% of women (18+) share both good and bad experiences online
~ 36% share to help others make smart purchases
~ 27% are asked to share
~ 15% share their expertise Source: Harbinger Women and Word of Mouth Study, October 2010
~ 56% of women in the US use social networking sites: • 58% of Facebook users are women • 64% of Twitter users are women • 82% of Pinterest users are women
Source: Mashable, 2012

~ Women in Western countries use the internet 17% more every month than their male counterparts. Intel, Genevieve Bell, 2012

Go Long on Women to Make More Money

~ Financial services companies admit that, historically, they haven’t done a great job of attracting women as customers, but with women rising fast on the income and managerial ranks, they’re now paying more attention. The number of women-owned firms increased by 54% between 1997 and 2012 – that’s a rate 1 1/2 times the national average.
~ In recent research by Vanguard Group’s Asset Management & Advice Services Division found that women differ substantially from men in how they relate to investing. They don’t want to hear about the growth or comparative performance of different funds; they want information about reaching their long-term goals, like putting a child through college.
~ Just 20% of female breadwinners said they were ‘very well prepared’ to make wise financial decisions, versus 45% of their male peers. Source: New York Times, January 2013
~In the five year period between 2006 and 2011, the number of women in the US earning a greater share of income than their husbands rose from 13% to 16%.

(Source: GfK Roper Reports, 2012)

~ In 2011 and beyond women’s earning power will recover from the recession far quicker than that of men.
~ Women have always made the majority of household spending decisions, but they will have even more purchasing power as they contribute more money to their households. Source: Bank of America Merrill Lynch, December 2010
~ The average American woman is expected to surpass the average American male in earnings by 2028.

Source: Nielson, 2009

Women and Sports

~ Super Bowl survey: 44% of women say they prefer ads to any other aspect of the game. Source: Lab42 Research study, 2013

Women and Shopping Habits

~ A majority of women, 84%, create shopping lists before they go to the store.
~ More than three in four women, or 78%, consult catalogues when creating their shopping lists.
~ 61% of women are more likely to include an item on the their list if they’re currently using the brand, 57% if they have a coupon, or 56% if they have seen the item in a store ad or circular. Source: Integer Group and M/A/R/C Research, 2012
~ 10% of women will stop shopping at a particular retailer because of inconvenient locations, 6% due to lack of deals, and 5% because of unavailability of desired sizes
Source: BIGinsight, 2012

Gen Y Women have a different Life Plan

~ 96% list “being independent” as their single most important life goal
~ 87% define success as being able to shape their own future
~ Only 68% say becoming a mom is on their priority list
~ 50% say getting married is a priority
~ Just 43% ascribe much importance to getting rich
Source: Levi’s survey of 1,000 Millennials, 2010

Women and Spirits

Middle-aged women account for 62% of vodka purchases made in stores. About 60% of the growth in US spirits consumption is in the vodka category; Source: Diageo, February 2010

According to a 2011 global study by Oxford University, men and women are unlikely to fully share household chores until 2050, nearly 40 years from now.

That’s a long time for retailers and manufacturers to be marketing products to the wrong person and it’s staggering to think that for the next half century, when a woman works in your store, not only is she working in her career, she is also carrying most of the workload at home.

No wonder women have flocked to online shopping because it can save them precious minutes from their never ending workload.

This situation still exists because household chores are still broken into “women and men’s work” Cultural attitudes, social policies, and social teaching still emphasize women’s role in the household.

But behind that story there is another picture most likely based on the lack of housekeeping skills possessed by men (of course unless they are gay). In a recent survey by She-economy.com

• 74% of women (and 80% of Generation X women) are actually motivated to make sure the household runs smoothly
• 40% of these women also said that they found it hard to give up their standards for housework
• 57% of women with children said they found it hard to accept how others care for their children when it differs from how they’d do it.

What does this mean for retailers?

Once a woman walks into your store, she is looking for help of some kind, I know I am. She is not necessarily looking to be ‘Wowed’ by the latest technology.

Top of her mind is the thought, how will this make my life easier and will it improve the running of my home?

So, instead of blasting her with discounts, and expecting her to serve herself, consider how to help women meet their standards and deliver on their motivations to help the household run smoothly.

At the same time, with women busier than ever, convenience is paramount. “efficacy delivered conveniently is the winning formula” according to Kathy Oneto, Vice President, Brand Strategy at Anthem Worldwide.

Oneto says that marketers could find that efficacious, convenient solutions work with men, as well, helping them easily do the work and deliver the results his partner desires.

Who knows, you may even be contributing to a happy marriage.

You have to love these descriptions of for the 80 million demographic born 1978-1994: Gen Why, Mypod Generation or Baby Boomlets.

But we all need to take this seriously because, in just over a decade, they will comprise nearly 75% of the world’s workforce and most of them will be women.

So you need to be ready to keep her as an important member of your team as well as value her when she walks into your store. According to the US Business and Professional Women’s Foundation, understanding and addressing the needs of Gen Y women is critical for maintaining a competitive edge. But what they highlight is that there is much, much more to the GenY woman than her desire to “work to live” (which is a very different mindset from the boomer or Gen X credo of “live to work”).

It’s the flexibility of thinking by the Gen Y woman who, for example, will help to drive sales of ‘smart’ appliances because they are designed to be integrated into her lifestyle. Today’s Gen Y woman is a mother, daughter, sister and above all a friend. Their various identities and spheres of life interact in dynamic ways and as they are highly educated, ambitious and financially and digitally savvy, they are the primary drivers of change on the shopfloor.

Last week I suggested that retailers tap into the vast reserves of female understandings within their team. If you were really smart, a great move would be to segment this think tank into demographics and give your Gen Y female staff a voice in how your business can improve. Afterall, they will be running it in 2025.

It almost seems like a Tale of Two Cities: Walk by Zara in Sydney’s Westfield and you will see women swarming throughout the store. Then, do the same exercise with any CE store in the precinct and you will wait a long time before you see a woman walking out with a smile on her face.

The lack of any understandings of the women’s market by CE retailers is stark and disappointing, particularly now as it is several years since Saatchi released the critical report revealing that 60% of women leave CE stores without a purchase.

It seems that many owners would prefer to see a store close than to make the radical change of adopting a strategy to directly attract the world’s biggest spenders: women (85% of all consumer spending is made by women).

Except perhaps David Jones, which last week signalled it was refocusing on the rich vein of income offered by its primary female customer. It has decreased the amount of discounting and promotions which have fatigued women and will aim at giving them what they want: great value and service.

David Jones CEO Paul Zahra understands that most women love clothes! They love fabrics, textures, embroidery, elegance, lines, shape, drape and colour. This applies particularly to the boomer woman who is at the peak of their wealth and income-right now.

Zahra knows that once  he secures them through the fashion aisles that these committed customers will then prefer to buy their portable appliances, large kitchen and laundry products along with digital gadgets and gifts at David Jones. And they will tell their friends, because that’s what women do.

I hear you say that you don’t sell clothes! Okay, but you do sell products that women touch and use every day and that are equally attractive because they are an extension of her person. These include personal care, gorgeous kitchen appliances that make her aspire to great creativity and which above all want her to make her home a better place. (And I haven’t even mentioned coffee).

Would it be so radical to create a café within your store where you use and demonstrate appliances and then invite as many women as possible to come in and enjoy the experience?

So, before you start stacking kettles and toasters into a big heap at the front of the store, and slap a discount ticket on top, I have a suggestion: take a big step back and ask some of the women in your business what they think…you just may learn something.

An interesting media release came across my desk this morning from the head office of Panasonic Corporation in Tokyo, Japan. It talked about its new ‘eco ideas’ factory in Vietnam and how this would “cement” Panasonic’s commitment to environmental sustainability.

Why I find this interesting is because it tells me that this company not only has some degree of care about the community it serves, but it is also taking action.

This matters to me, and it matters to most women who are today in a consumer electronics store considering buying some technology product.

Like most women I want to make the world a better place. This is wired into my gender DNA and thanks to global research, we know that this “relationship” drive is primary when women (who control the household budget and almost every other) shop.

So, by telling you that Panasonic’s  manufacturing site in Vietnam  produces eco-friendly products with sustainable industry practices which are utilised in outreach activities to raise the level of eco consciousness in the community, you will make a more informed decision about that TV, microwave or home entertainment system purchase.

Apparently, Panasonic  also has a vision of becoming the No. 1 Green Innovation Company in the electronics industry by 2018, using the ‘eco ideas’ Factory in Vietnam as a model factory.

To  me this is a great vision and already I feel that the world is becoming a better place.

Woolworths will be counting the cost of the foolish action by community relations manager Simon Berger who donated a jacket made out of a chaff bag as an auction item to the now infamous Liberal Club dinner last week.

Not only are women outraged by this behavior and the subsequent misogynist comments by broadcaster Alan Jones, but many men are also angry and, thankfully taking action.

Those  companies to move swiftly to cancel sponsorship include Mercedes Benz, Freedom Furniture, financial services provider Challenger and Lexus Parramatta.

Harvey Norman and Big W are being targeted by 40,000 consumers to also pull their advertising in an online campaign. Meanwhile, Woolworths has  taken some amends steps by suspending its periodic advertising during Jones’s program.

Mercedes Benz was one of the first to stand up to the broadcasting bully when it instructed its dealers to cease any form of advertising on Jones’s show.

“Our company does not condone such inappropriate comments,” the carmaker stated yesterday. These businesses have been joined by Tea company Dilmah, which said it was “reviewing its involvement with 2GB in its entirety.”

Jones’s twisted gender attitudes are historical having been reported over decades, and while he defends his mandate to preach to “Struggle St”, that myth is wearing thin as the women who inhabit that precinct are now better educated and assertive, thanks to the ubiquitous digital media.

The men who manage the companies which have cut ties with Jones are courageous and are defending the right of all women to be treated with respect whether they are powerful like Julia Gillard or  single mums bravely making the best of their lives.

It will be those companies that myself and other female business leaders will be supporting while encouraging the management to 2GB to act like real men and cut Jones lose.

The Sydney Morning Herald’s call for Gerry Harvey to “sack himself”in this morning’s edition reveals an unhealthy sentiment within the media, which seems more fixated on sensational headlines than deep and balanced coverage of a serious subject.

Given that Fairfax has resurrected the venerable National Times masthead, the company had the option to brief an experienced journalist to write a in- depth report on present retailing within the consumer electronics industry.

This would put Harvey’s business performance into a more realistic perspective than the comments from someone without the media skills and training to properly inform.

If you read to the end of the article, you will discover that Nathan Bell is Research Director at Intelligent Investor and that Fairfax is actually offering its BusinessDay readers a free trial offer of Bell’s services.

This seems a good incentive for both parties to run an inflammatory headline over two days to generate business for Bell. I first saw this piece on the evening of September 10.

As a media owner for 12 years and editor within the CE industry for almost twenty, I feel irritated at such a superficial attitude to an industry that has delivered great abundance to the Australian economy, but is now reeling from an unprecedented deflation within the country’s retailing sector.

As chairman, Gerry Harvey’s primary purpose is to secure the profitability of his company and therefore deliver a good return to shareholders. To my knowledge, given the present retail malaise, Harvey is still delivering just not at the stellar levels when retail was booming several years ago.

But at a deeper human level, Harvey has a responsibility to secure the jobs of his employees, the relationships with his customers, and the partnerships with his suppliers. In the two decades that I have known him, I believe that Gerry Harvey takes this extremely seriously. Along with CEO Katie Page, he has developed and nurtured the careers of hundreds of CE retail executives and their success has flowed back into our economy.

These men and women are considered amongst the most professional operators in retailing in Australia and to state that they are not capable of responding to the seismic changes within global retailing as Bell maintains, is ill-informed and naive.

Did Bell considered the impact that such comments would have on Harvey’s manufacturing customers reading this in China, Japan, Korea, the US and Europe? This is what responsible journalists need to consider everytime they touch the keyboard.

Talk to any senior CE manufacturing executive such as Sony managing director Carl Rose or Breville CEO Jack Lord, and you will discover the value that Harvey Norman, under the leadership of Gerry Harvey and his management team has bought to Australia.

Also look at the entrepreneurial vision, courage and commitment that Harvey displayed by expanding this strong Australian brand to Asia, the UK and Europe. Despite the ravages of the Irish economy, Harvey has not deserted his team nor his customers over there.

Gerry Harvey is not perfect ,and like others I often wince at some of his comments and wonder who is advising him. There are also aspects of his business that as a woman, I believe Harvey could improve. But what I know today is that ears of this company are open to hearing about change.

When I put these into the bigger picture of the role of Harvey Norman in the 2012 CE industry, I can understand the frustration to a builder personality such Gerry’s, as shoppers flock to our fledgling online retailing channel.

But this doesn’t mean that Harvey needs to fall on his sword for not having the immediate answers to unprecedented change. Very few senior executives in today’s business world dominated by the radical impact of digital technology and profound global economic changes do.

If the media is to continue to deride instead of try to understand the challenges facing leaders such as Harvey, then they are very much part of his problem, rather than any solution.