• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, April 8, 2005

Females now constitute 51.6 percent of the U.S. online population--up from 35 percent in 1997, according to an eMarketer report released Thursday. The report, "Women Online in the U.S.: A Growing Majority," predicts that women's online presence will continue to grow throughout the decade--and that as a result, women will account for 52.2 percent of all U.S. online users by 2008.

The report advises marketers that they will need to adjust to the growing prevalence of women, especially because of women's influence on household shopping. Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer analyst and the report's author, said women influence over three-quarters of U.S. household expenditures, and "that level of influence may not have been fully felt online yet ... but it will be soon."

Williamson recommended that online retailers need to mimic and/or significantly improve upon the shopping experience women have grown accustomed to offline. "This means," Williamson explained, "instead of thumbnail pictures of blouses, retailers can use the power of the Internet to build customized shopping experiences tailored to a woman's browsing or previous buying patterns."

It's critical for marketers and agencies to give women a voice, according to Williamson's report. "Companies have relate to women on their terms, and let them feel like they're 'in the know,'" Williamson said.

Not all research organizations agreed with eMarketer about which gender represents the majority of online users. According to eMarketer, females actually acquired their majority status in 2002. comScore MediaMetrix found that males still led in January 2005 by a fraction: 50.4 to 49.6 percent. A Hitwise spokeswoman explained that Hitwise does not collect annual data, but said: "Looking at various monthly periods over the last 15 months, we show that women account for between 48 percent and 51 percent."

Regardless, few question women's growing online influence, especially in online retail. The Pew Internet & American Life Project found that between March 2000 and Jan. 2005, the percentage of U.S. women going online rose 21 percentage points--from 44 to 65 percent, overshadowing a 17 point gain for men--from 49 to 66 percent.

What's more, it appears that girls are now more likely than boys to spend time online. A Taylor Research & Consulting Group study conducted in Jan. 2005--referenced by eMarketer--found that 40 percent of kids and teenagers said they spend time online, compared to just 33 percent of boys. Notably, 68 percent of boys said they played video games, compared to just 16 percent of girls. Taylor Research's report did not specify whether respondents play video games on a computer or TV.

Jupiter Research analyst Vikram Sehgal, who recently authored a report, "Women Online," found that women lead men online by a small margin--but that marketers can't afford to neglect either gender. "What marketers should be concerned about is buying behavior of both men and women," said Sehgal. "We found that women are making more purchases, while men tend to have a considerably higher price point than women because they're buying the big-ticket items."

What else can marketers do to adjust to the growing female presence online? "They have to remember that there are key differences between men and women and their online browsing and shopping behavior," Sehgal said. "But, if you're a marketer, all you have to know is your target market and how to attract them."

Williamson said: "You're seeing a concerted effort by marketers to attract women," adding that even marketers in industries that previously "ignored" women now court them.