October 30, 2006
What (Gadgets) Women Want
It’s time to dispel some myths about women, according to Nichole Monroe Bell of The Charlotte Observer.
For one, she writes, while many girls are very fond of diamonds, most would prefer to have a plasma TV instead, according to an Oxygen Media survey.
For another, women may have a thing about shoes but, given the choice between a pair of designer brand shoes and a top-of-the-line cell phone, most females are taking the phone.
Technology, Ms. Monroe Bell writes, is not just a “guy thing.” Many women want the latest tech toys and gadgets. They are knowledgeable about what they are looking to buy and they’re not willing to suffer retail employees (see men) who treat them in a condescending manner.
Discussion Questions: What are the most frequent and costly assumptions made by retail workers and/or businesses about female consumers? Do female shoppers
need to be treated any differently than male customers? Are current training programs in use today addressing the social attitudes/preconceptions workers bring to their jobs about
individuals based on sex, race, age, religion, etc.?
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I’m still pondering the placement of a “woman” related discussion in the “multicultural marketplace” category. Yes, there are certainly differences between men and women. There are also differences between women and women. Lifestyle has an impact, education has an impact, ethnicity has an impact. So what women are we talking about? And who doesn’t go into the multicultural bucket these days? It’s seeming more and more that the only consumer that is excluded is the non-Hispanic white straight male with no physical challenges or disabilities.
From the November 2006 issue of Integrated Retailing:
Be advised, retailers: men shop differently than women. Men look for large selection and trusted brands; shop for a purpose, not entertainment; want to find what they’re looking for easily; look for clothes that are easy-care, high-quality and comfortable; buy features, not benefits; appreciate helpful salespeople who carefully suggest, coax, coach and validate.
Women, on the other hand, look for fashions and trends; shop for entertainment and a purpose; don’t mind browsing; respond to creative store layouts; buy benefits, not features; want helpful, not smothering, sales staff. Small details matter more to women shoppers and that’s good news for retailers, according to Martha Barletta, author of Marketing to Women, because it means that even small improvements can produce big results. Among the details that matter most are cleanliness, good signage, a streamlined shopping experience, quick checkout, informed, friendly customer service and clean, accessible restrooms.
The same gender differences that impact store shopping also impact online shopping. Men and women use web sites differently. Retailers need to take those differences into consideration as they target their customers, communicate with and learn from their customers, and then meet and surpass the expectations of their customers.
Marketing to a woman’s standards shouldn’t feel “girly” – rather it should raise the bar and serve ALL consumers better. In a retail sense that may mean that if the specific unique women in your market (not the homogenous “all women everywhere” – as many of you have already pointed out) appreciate wider aisles, less clutter, a visibly clean store, salespeople who can apply technology to lifestyle/useability as well as quote specs – so, probably, would a lot of men appreciate those things.
Women, in general, take in a lot more along their buying path (they consider the same things men do, and more) – so they can often be the most demanding customers. Serve that higher bar, and everyone will more likely respond.
It is fantastic that publications like the New York Times have considered this a worthy topic. I hope yesterday’s article inspires a lot of discussion in companies across the country (and around the globe).
My guess is that business makes a broad assumption that all women think and act the same when it comes to shopping. This can be a very costly assumption depending on the product or service being sold. Not all women love to shop, keep a nice home, cook, buy tons of shoes and fashion accessories and get their hair done every other week. My wife, for instance, detests shopping malls and only ventures out to a mall when it’s time for Christmas shopping. She’s not a big fan of jewelry either (lucky for me) but loves to travel. I think the key for manufacturers is understanding their (female) target audience fully,(and often it can consist of various sub-segments). Then, making sure they’re addressing their needs, communicating to them in a way that respects and connects, ensuring that the entire retail/sales channel is in congruence to the intended purchaser and treats them appropriately. Women are the key decision makers or strong influence behind many household purchases, including big screen TVs, SUVs and the house itself. “Women are Doing It For Themselves,” as per Aretha Franklin/Annie Lenox and businesses should be ensuring that they have this gender front and center when formulating marketing strategy.
The worst mistake marketers make about “women” is that they are some sub-species of humanity easily categorized and pigeon-holed who–with the proper stimulus–will move sheep-like through the commercial maze–happily buying as they plod along. Come on! It’s the 21st Century. Why are we still having these kinds of conversations? It’s a big world–one in which women represent a majority of the population. Generalize at your own risk.
Two things are clear. (1) Men and women approach shopping differently. (2) This behavior is changing very quickly.
Just a few years ago, all retailers learned the stereotypes. Men were technical buyers with a keen sense of purpose. Women were more influenced by style and fashion. But now everything is up for grabs.
Yesterday in a long piece in the New York Times, we learned that women are quickly grabbing major pieces of consumer responsibility, especially in consumer electronic, home repair, automobiles, and real estate.
But what do retailers really know about this? Do you have empirical data that reinforces old stereotypes? What percentage of your actual customers are of each sex? How do the average purchase statistics differ? Frequency? Does it vary by category? What are the long term trends? Is the marketing message of your key products oriented to one sex or another? In short, do you have it right? And more importantly, can you keep it right?
The key, as always, is feedback. Flag your products with the targeted gender. Capture POS data to indicate the gender of your customers. Analyze. Discover trend. And make adjustments to your message, display and product mix based on what you learn.
You’ve hit on a hot issue that so many retailers seem to be completely ignoring. When it comes to facilitating tech sales with women, I find that the retailers that talk the most about it do the worst job (sorry, Best Buy), and experiences there should serve as a cautionary tale for others. Did anyone else notice that Best Buy’s initial Customer Centricity model held multiple male consumer profiles yet only one woman (“Jill”)? Message loud and clear: You’re all the same and will be treated the same. Jill is supposed to get “rock star” treatment and on rainy days, that means being escorted into the store by an associate holding a pink umbrella. She’s all about buying technology…for her kids, and don’t throw confusing “jargon” like megabytes and gigabytes her way. Ever been in a Jill store? Brighter colors, pictures of families and kids all around — talk about condescending.
I propose that Best Buy and others acknowledge the many faces of female technology buyers (and when I say “technology,” I’m not just talking about cell phones, televisions and other entertainment-delivery devices). How about the “Buzz-Jill” who is on the cutting edge of technology and wants the latest and greatest… yesterday? She subscribes to Wired and going to J&R in New York gives her a rush like Neiman’s can’t. “Barry-Jill?” She’s a knowledgeable, high-tone executive who expects special attention and professional follow up. I know these women and it is hilarious to watch the designated “girl facilitator” get deployed any time a “Jill” (woman of any description) walks in. I watched in horror as one guy READ descriptions, word-for-word off of the pricing cards to one of my Barry-Jill friends as a method of calling out (literally?) laptop features. Barry-Jill was in the mood to purchase multiple high-end laptops for her firm but walked after being read to for about twenty minutes with no end in sight.
Retailers, start walking the talk and get serious about understanding the female tech consumer. I’m sorry to report that she’s just as complicated as the guys.
The single most common and expensive mistake I know of is to use the phrase “women” as if that was a distinction you can actually market to. Gender, alone, can often be found as the sole or dominant segmentation variable in a marketing scheme, particularly at retail.
Women as a group are no more cohesive and predictable than any other large group of people with dissimilar lifestyles and dissimilar preferences. While there are statistically significant differences between genders in retail behavior, they are almost completely without power.
A case in point is “women love to shop.” This implies really big things about store ambience, the shopping experience, etc. The reality is that some women do not love to shop. They have neither the time nor do they see it as a fulfilling social experience. Buying things may continue to offer feel good rewards, but for this group there is no value in “shopping.” How big is this group? Who knows? We don’t study it because “women” works as a variable without distinction. Except it doesn’t, does it?
Since the stats indicate that 70+% of ALL purchases made in the US are either INFLUENCED by, or MADE by females, I would assert that the primary focus across all sales channels should be a focus that appeals to females in whatever complex array of methods is appropriate for the product, service and situation.
Yes, guys, that goes for that Harley you’re thinking about too.
The female influence affects that purchase as well; either for or against; as to color, accessories and gear.
But you don’t have to admit it to the guys down at the barber shop. They’ve got their own secrets to keep. (That is, if you can find a male-dominated barber shop that’s not been tamed into a unisex SuperCuts-type shop….)
Apologies to all who disagree, but our data shows no statistically significant differences between male and female shoppers in many of the categories discussed here. “Women shop for fashion” — what percentage of women and to what extent? 100% of women to a 100% extent? Or 67% of women to a 10% extent (which would possibly be statistically insignificant). I have seen very few gender-different shopping distinctions made on the basis of reliable and large-sample data, and stated in a valid way. It is possible — but not certain — that instead of actual differences, we are proclaiming our long-standing gender biases. Women are “supposed to” or “said to” shop for entertainment, but do we have reliable statistics that prove this? How large was the sample? How was the data collected? What was the question or the parameter being measured? Or are we possibly simply stating the prejudices our society has had for the last 300 years?
Even more, our data shows that the core retail consumer expectations (quality, selection, etc.) are statistically the same for both genders, and are defined statistically the same (sample size: 18,700). Perhaps we might find one day good data that shows that 89% of women prefer to a 78% extent off-white tiles in stores when they shop — but so what? Retail as a whole is still meeting core expectations at a 68% or less. I think it might be energy better spent to focus on core issues in this matter.
I used to own a specialty retail store that sold mid-to-high end bicycles and fitness equipment, along with accessories. I learned very quickly that both women and men will buy specialty equipment from a knowledgeable female, but women were less likely to buy from a male. Since women generally make (or influence) most of the significant purchasing decisions in a household, I hired and trained a staff of women with an interest/background in fitness to be our sales staff. When a “gear-head” guy came in, we’d let him talk to one of our mechanics. Sales improved dramatically and, women were no longer intimidated to come into our store. Incidentally, apart from me, the owner who had to be there all the time (one reason I no longer own a retail store), our female staff outsold their male counterparts almost every month.
It has always amazed me that more retailers don’t have more women in management positions, whether it be in operations, purchasing, finance or distribution. After all, for supermarkets the majority of shoppers are still female. Being in closer touch with these shoppers is paramount for today’s successful retailers and having a diversity of viewpoints in management to focus on the customer is a necessity.
More retailers would benefit by asking their customers directly what products or services they would like to see in their stores. But don’t ask if you are not willing to listen to what your customers have to say.
Female shoppers, like all shoppers, like to be treated with respect, receive good customer service, and check out quickly. It seems to me that more customer service training is needed by retailers to focus on even the simplest examples, like “hello,” “thank you” and “did you find everything you were looking for today?” Another example is greater attention to restrooms as noted in the 2006 Integrated Retailing article. Having well designed, convenient and clean restrooms (with shelves to put your purse on and maybe fresh flowers) are features appreciated by more female shoppers.
There are more examples and your customers will clearly tell you what they are.
Ryan could not have put it any better or any more to the point.
A recent study by The Boston Consulting Group suggests that if current trends continue, women will earn more money than men by 2028. Women are taking charge of their households. They are running them like purchase managers taking control of purchase decisions.
According to Julie Gilbert, a vice president at Best Buy, “[we] used to be a boy store, built by boys, for boys, but 4-5 years ago, there was a dramatic flip.” That change occurred with the advent of must-have products like digital cameras, MP3 players, cell phones and other mobile devices, and products like flat-screen televisions that have became fashionable accessories for the home. She further states, “Women are outspending men in our industry $55 billion to $41 billion. Not only that, they are actually influencing 90 percent of the purchases. It is a new day in consumer electronics.”
Additionally, single women are the fastest-growing segment of home buyers, according to the National Association of Realtors, purchasing 21 percent of homes, compared with just 9 percent for single men. According to a recent study conducted by the Home Improvement Research Institute, women account for more than $70 billion worth of purchases in the home improvement industry, up from just over $55 billion in 1995. A Home Depot survey noted that 80% of the women surveyed were planning to engage in a do-it-yourself remodeling project. Yet what are Makita, Husky, Porter Cable doing to merchandise their ‘gadgets’ to this amazing and influential new audience?
More often than not, when a man shops with a woman, the car salesperson automatically addresses the man primarily. When I shopped with Emily for her car, all but one salesperson lifted the hood to show me (not Emily) the engine. In a full-service restaurant, the server usually gives the check to the man, not the woman, without asking.
PS: why do car salespeople raise the hood to show the engine? Are there any new cars sold without engines?
I agree with Carol and her perspective. I’m a tech savvy, very busy childless female that gets irked to the max by the one-size-fits-all “pink” approach. As a Barry-Jill, I don’t want to be treated with Tech for Dummies speak–I want appropriate speak. However, I do realize that my mom would want a much gentler, hand holding approach. This being the case, I support the point made above that it’s all about profiling your customer and ensuring a relevant, helpful conversation.
Not that I watch commercials much any more, but when I do, I find it just sad that every single cleaning, baby, and household item is still showing a woman with rubber gloves on delightfully advocating product X. The main reason for this is that there are a majority of male creative directors and we are still somehow representing a 1950’s family stereotype. Yes, this is a generalization…but as Odonna points out, management within retailers often reflects this as well.
As a retail consultant with an interest in store technology, I entertain myself often by counting how many client-side women are in the room at industry conferences. Often, it’s less than 10%…very odd considering how influential women are to retail.
I believe that it’s the different lens that women use to gauge situations and problem solving that may make the difference in retail management teams. Also a gross generalization, but women most often look at situations–and customers–with a more empathetic approach. We try to put ourselves in our customers’ shoes and we have a natural desire to help improve situations for others.
We could use more of this in our general approach to retail problem solving, as it’s this empathy for our customers that will ultimately help us solve the most pressing issues holding us back from better retail store experience design. For all colors!
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I’m still pondering the placement of a “woman” related discussion in the “multicultural marketplace” category. Yes, there are certainly differences between men and women. There are also differences between women and women. Lifestyle has an impact, education has an impact, ethnicity has an impact. So what women are we talking about? And who doesn’t go into the multicultural bucket these days? It’s seeming more and more that the only consumer that is excluded is the non-Hispanic white straight male with no physical challenges or disabilities.
From the November 2006 issue of Integrated Retailing:
Be advised, retailers: men shop differently than women. Men look for large selection and trusted brands; shop for a purpose, not entertainment; want to find what they’re looking for easily; look for clothes that are easy-care, high-quality and comfortable; buy features, not benefits; appreciate helpful salespeople who carefully suggest, coax, coach and validate.
Women, on the other hand, look for fashions and trends; shop for entertainment and a purpose; don’t mind browsing; respond to creative store layouts; buy benefits, not features; want helpful, not smothering, sales staff. Small details matter more to women shoppers and that’s good news for retailers, according to Martha Barletta, author of Marketing to Women, because it means that even small improvements can produce big results. Among the details that matter most are cleanliness, good signage, a streamlined shopping experience, quick checkout, informed, friendly customer service and clean, accessible restrooms.
The same gender differences that impact store shopping also impact online shopping. Men and women use web sites differently. Retailers need to take those differences into consideration as they target their customers, communicate with and learn from their customers, and then meet and surpass the expectations of their customers.
Marketing to a woman’s standards shouldn’t feel “girly” – rather it should raise the bar and serve ALL consumers better. In a retail sense that may mean that if the specific unique women in your market (not the homogenous “all women everywhere” – as many of you have already pointed out) appreciate wider aisles, less clutter, a visibly clean store, salespeople who can apply technology to lifestyle/useability as well as quote specs – so, probably, would a lot of men appreciate those things.
Women, in general, take in a lot more along their buying path (they consider the same things men do, and more) – so they can often be the most demanding customers. Serve that higher bar, and everyone will more likely respond.
It is fantastic that publications like the New York Times have considered this a worthy topic. I hope yesterday’s article inspires a lot of discussion in companies across the country (and around the globe).
My guess is that business makes a broad assumption that all women think and act the same when it comes to shopping. This can be a very costly assumption depending on the product or service being sold. Not all women love to shop, keep a nice home, cook, buy tons of shoes and fashion accessories and get their hair done every other week. My wife, for instance, detests shopping malls and only ventures out to a mall when it’s time for Christmas shopping. She’s not a big fan of jewelry either (lucky for me) but loves to travel. I think the key for manufacturers is understanding their (female) target audience fully,(and often it can consist of various sub-segments). Then, making sure they’re addressing their needs, communicating to them in a way that respects and connects, ensuring that the entire retail/sales channel is in congruence to the intended purchaser and treats them appropriately. Women are the key decision makers or strong influence behind many household purchases, including big screen TVs, SUVs and the house itself. “Women are Doing It For Themselves,” as per Aretha Franklin/Annie Lenox and businesses should be ensuring that they have this gender front and center when formulating marketing strategy.
The worst mistake marketers make about “women” is that they are some sub-species of humanity easily categorized and pigeon-holed who–with the proper stimulus–will move sheep-like through the commercial maze–happily buying as they plod along. Come on! It’s the 21st Century. Why are we still having these kinds of conversations? It’s a big world–one in which women represent a majority of the population. Generalize at your own risk.
Two things are clear. (1) Men and women approach shopping differently. (2) This behavior is changing very quickly.
Just a few years ago, all retailers learned the stereotypes. Men were technical buyers with a keen sense of purpose. Women were more influenced by style and fashion. But now everything is up for grabs.
Yesterday in a long piece in the New York Times, we learned that women are quickly grabbing major pieces of consumer responsibility, especially in consumer electronic, home repair, automobiles, and real estate.
But what do retailers really know about this? Do you have empirical data that reinforces old stereotypes? What percentage of your actual customers are of each sex? How do the average purchase statistics differ? Frequency? Does it vary by category? What are the long term trends? Is the marketing message of your key products oriented to one sex or another? In short, do you have it right? And more importantly, can you keep it right?
The key, as always, is feedback. Flag your products with the targeted gender. Capture POS data to indicate the gender of your customers. Analyze. Discover trend. And make adjustments to your message, display and product mix based on what you learn.
You’ve hit on a hot issue that so many retailers seem to be completely ignoring. When it comes to facilitating tech sales with women, I find that the retailers that talk the most about it do the worst job (sorry, Best Buy), and experiences there should serve as a cautionary tale for others. Did anyone else notice that Best Buy’s initial Customer Centricity model held multiple male consumer profiles yet only one woman (“Jill”)? Message loud and clear: You’re all the same and will be treated the same. Jill is supposed to get “rock star” treatment and on rainy days, that means being escorted into the store by an associate holding a pink umbrella. She’s all about buying technology…for her kids, and don’t throw confusing “jargon” like megabytes and gigabytes her way. Ever been in a Jill store? Brighter colors, pictures of families and kids all around — talk about condescending.
I propose that Best Buy and others acknowledge the many faces of female technology buyers (and when I say “technology,” I’m not just talking about cell phones, televisions and other entertainment-delivery devices). How about the “Buzz-Jill” who is on the cutting edge of technology and wants the latest and greatest… yesterday? She subscribes to Wired and going to J&R in New York gives her a rush like Neiman’s can’t. “Barry-Jill?” She’s a knowledgeable, high-tone executive who expects special attention and professional follow up. I know these women and it is hilarious to watch the designated “girl facilitator” get deployed any time a “Jill” (woman of any description) walks in. I watched in horror as one guy READ descriptions, word-for-word off of the pricing cards to one of my Barry-Jill friends as a method of calling out (literally?) laptop features. Barry-Jill was in the mood to purchase multiple high-end laptops for her firm but walked after being read to for about twenty minutes with no end in sight.
Retailers, start walking the talk and get serious about understanding the female tech consumer. I’m sorry to report that she’s just as complicated as the guys.
The single most common and expensive mistake I know of is to use the phrase “women” as if that was a distinction you can actually market to. Gender, alone, can often be found as the sole or dominant segmentation variable in a marketing scheme, particularly at retail.
Women as a group are no more cohesive and predictable than any other large group of people with dissimilar lifestyles and dissimilar preferences. While there are statistically significant differences between genders in retail behavior, they are almost completely without power.
A case in point is “women love to shop.” This implies really big things about store ambience, the shopping experience, etc. The reality is that some women do not love to shop. They have neither the time nor do they see it as a fulfilling social experience. Buying things may continue to offer feel good rewards, but for this group there is no value in “shopping.” How big is this group? Who knows? We don’t study it because “women” works as a variable without distinction. Except it doesn’t, does it?
Since the stats indicate that 70+% of ALL purchases made in the US are either INFLUENCED by, or MADE by females, I would assert that the primary focus across all sales channels should be a focus that appeals to females in whatever complex array of methods is appropriate for the product, service and situation.
Yes, guys, that goes for that Harley you’re thinking about too.
The female influence affects that purchase as well; either for or against; as to color, accessories and gear.
But you don’t have to admit it to the guys down at the barber shop. They’ve got their own secrets to keep. (That is, if you can find a male-dominated barber shop that’s not been tamed into a unisex SuperCuts-type shop….)
Apologies to all who disagree, but our data shows no statistically significant differences between male and female shoppers in many of the categories discussed here. “Women shop for fashion” — what percentage of women and to what extent? 100% of women to a 100% extent? Or 67% of women to a 10% extent (which would possibly be statistically insignificant). I have seen very few gender-different shopping distinctions made on the basis of reliable and large-sample data, and stated in a valid way. It is possible — but not certain — that instead of actual differences, we are proclaiming our long-standing gender biases. Women are “supposed to” or “said to” shop for entertainment, but do we have reliable statistics that prove this? How large was the sample? How was the data collected? What was the question or the parameter being measured? Or are we possibly simply stating the prejudices our society has had for the last 300 years?
Even more, our data shows that the core retail consumer expectations (quality, selection, etc.) are statistically the same for both genders, and are defined statistically the same (sample size: 18,700). Perhaps we might find one day good data that shows that 89% of women prefer to a 78% extent off-white tiles in stores when they shop — but so what? Retail as a whole is still meeting core expectations at a 68% or less. I think it might be energy better spent to focus on core issues in this matter.
I used to own a specialty retail store that sold mid-to-high end bicycles and fitness equipment, along with accessories. I learned very quickly that both women and men will buy specialty equipment from a knowledgeable female, but women were less likely to buy from a male. Since women generally make (or influence) most of the significant purchasing decisions in a household, I hired and trained a staff of women with an interest/background in fitness to be our sales staff. When a “gear-head” guy came in, we’d let him talk to one of our mechanics. Sales improved dramatically and, women were no longer intimidated to come into our store. Incidentally, apart from me, the owner who had to be there all the time (one reason I no longer own a retail store), our female staff outsold their male counterparts almost every month.
It has always amazed me that more retailers don’t have more women in management positions, whether it be in operations, purchasing, finance or distribution. After all, for supermarkets the majority of shoppers are still female. Being in closer touch with these shoppers is paramount for today’s successful retailers and having a diversity of viewpoints in management to focus on the customer is a necessity.
More retailers would benefit by asking their customers directly what products or services they would like to see in their stores. But don’t ask if you are not willing to listen to what your customers have to say.
Female shoppers, like all shoppers, like to be treated with respect, receive good customer service, and check out quickly. It seems to me that more customer service training is needed by retailers to focus on even the simplest examples, like “hello,” “thank you” and “did you find everything you were looking for today?” Another example is greater attention to restrooms as noted in the 2006 Integrated Retailing article. Having well designed, convenient and clean restrooms (with shelves to put your purse on and maybe fresh flowers) are features appreciated by more female shoppers.
There are more examples and your customers will clearly tell you what they are.
Ryan could not have put it any better or any more to the point.
A recent study by The Boston Consulting Group suggests that if current trends continue, women will earn more money than men by 2028. Women are taking charge of their households. They are running them like purchase managers taking control of purchase decisions.
According to Julie Gilbert, a vice president at Best Buy, “[we] used to be a boy store, built by boys, for boys, but 4-5 years ago, there was a dramatic flip.” That change occurred with the advent of must-have products like digital cameras, MP3 players, cell phones and other mobile devices, and products like flat-screen televisions that have became fashionable accessories for the home. She further states, “Women are outspending men in our industry $55 billion to $41 billion. Not only that, they are actually influencing 90 percent of the purchases. It is a new day in consumer electronics.”
Additionally, single women are the fastest-growing segment of home buyers, according to the National Association of Realtors, purchasing 21 percent of homes, compared with just 9 percent for single men. According to a recent study conducted by the Home Improvement Research Institute, women account for more than $70 billion worth of purchases in the home improvement industry, up from just over $55 billion in 1995. A Home Depot survey noted that 80% of the women surveyed were planning to engage in a do-it-yourself remodeling project. Yet what are Makita, Husky, Porter Cable doing to merchandise their ‘gadgets’ to this amazing and influential new audience?
More often than not, when a man shops with a woman, the car salesperson automatically addresses the man primarily. When I shopped with Emily for her car, all but one salesperson lifted the hood to show me (not Emily) the engine. In a full-service restaurant, the server usually gives the check to the man, not the woman, without asking.
PS: why do car salespeople raise the hood to show the engine? Are there any new cars sold without engines?
I agree with Carol and her perspective. I’m a tech savvy, very busy childless female that gets irked to the max by the one-size-fits-all “pink” approach. As a Barry-Jill, I don’t want to be treated with Tech for Dummies speak–I want appropriate speak. However, I do realize that my mom would want a much gentler, hand holding approach. This being the case, I support the point made above that it’s all about profiling your customer and ensuring a relevant, helpful conversation.
Not that I watch commercials much any more, but when I do, I find it just sad that every single cleaning, baby, and household item is still showing a woman with rubber gloves on delightfully advocating product X. The main reason for this is that there are a majority of male creative directors and we are still somehow representing a 1950’s family stereotype. Yes, this is a generalization…but as Odonna points out, management within retailers often reflects this as well.
As a retail consultant with an interest in store technology, I entertain myself often by counting how many client-side women are in the room at industry conferences. Often, it’s less than 10%…very odd considering how influential women are to retail.
I believe that it’s the different lens that women use to gauge situations and problem solving that may make the difference in retail management teams. Also a gross generalization, but women most often look at situations–and customers–with a more empathetic approach. We try to put ourselves in our customers’ shoes and we have a natural desire to help improve situations for others.
We could use more of this in our general approach to retail problem solving, as it’s this empathy for our customers that will ultimately help us solve the most pressing issues holding us back from better retail store experience design. For all colors!