Every year, hundreds of senior executives from the US gather  to hear the secrets about how they can significantly increase their revenue and lift profits.

Companies such as Mastercard Worldwide, Phillips Consumer Lifestyles, Best Buy, Procter and Gamble and the Harley-Davidson Motor Company, come to the Marketing to Women (M2W) conference because they know that reaching the female consumer in all her guises is the most important objective they can have for their future marketing strategies. This year I will be joining them in Chicago.

Also heading the list some of the newer females centric companies such as BlogHer Mom Central Consulting and Women on Course who have created business specifically to capitalise on the astounding growth in the ‘power of the purse’.

If you’re thinking that this is going to be a female focused gabfest where men are sidelined…think again. The opening keynote speaker on Wednesday, April 12 is Wall Street Journal columnist Jeffrey Zaslow writes powerfully about the lessons of our lives. In his bestselling non-fiction book, The Girls from Ames, he looked at the 40-year friendship of a group of women from Ames, Iowa. Their story has led countless women to think deeply about their own friendships, their own life goals, and their needs as women.

Zaslow’s multi-media M2W® presentation is expected to delve into the recesses of our cultural psyche, and I hear that the results are surprising, funny and often extremely moving.

 He will also focus on the Ames girls, but will also touch on the lessons for women in his other bestsellers: The Last Lecture with Dr. Pausch, and Highest Duty, with Capt. Sullenberger.

One of the highlights for me will be meeting Marti Baletta founder of The Trendsight Group and author Marketing To Women and PrimeTime Women.

Barletta maintains that successful sales professionals know that women are the big spenders in just about every category, from cars and computers, to consumer electronics.

Yet because male and female communication styles and decision-making are surprisingly different, they may be missing major opportunities to close the deal with women customers. Her presentation will provide valuable information, new insights and practical applications including:

• Recognize and respond to the way that women communicate what they are looking for
• Describe your product’s advantages and influence women’s decision to buy
• Tap into women’s inclinations to buy more products and refer more business

If you are still fence sitting about the power of the women’s economy, stay focused.

This entry was posted on Friday, April 8th, 2011 at 11:54 am and is filed under My Updates. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.