Commentary

Meet The Super Consumers And Influencers

by Nancy Shonka Padberg , March 19, 2012

Have you noticed that women are multi-taskers, run the family social calendars, are the majority of caregivers, do the household purchasing, gift buying and most all family communications? Now, women can get information online to streamline their busy lives but also to do research and shopping for autos, travel, clothes, shoes, caregiver solutions, gardening, finance, hobbies and more. Women are super consumers. The brands that engage, connect and provide them with solutions will earn their business.

Brands that provide helpful tips and advice on how to improve their busy lives will be embraced with a loyal consumer. How well do you know your super consumer? Here are three quiz questions to get to know her better:

1. Women Ages 45 + Make or Influence 80% of all Household Decisions affecting trillions of dollars annually.
A. True
B. False

True. Women ages 45 + make or influence most of the household decisions. Think about your life and the women around you; they influence products for the home, auto selection, education, pharmaceutical, health care, cell phones, technology, care giving options.

2. Women 45 + who are Empty Nesters leave the extra bedroom empty when their children move out.
A. True
B. False

False. The extra bedroom now becomes a home theater, game room, yoga room, reading or mediation room. This means opportunity for those manufacturers and retailers that can help women transform their rooms and enhance their busy lives.

3. Women 35 + Socialize Online Once per Day to Relieve Stress.
A. True
B. False

True. According to Harris Interactive Poll Fall 2011 Women ages 35 + are driving the growth of social media to relieve stress and connect with friends and family.

We know that Baby Boomers are buying three out of five new cars; here are additional auto facts for consideration:

Women buy over 50% of the new cars in the U.S.
45% of all light trucks and SUVs are purchased by women
Women request 65% of the service work done at auto dealerships
Women spend over $200 billion on new cars and mechanical services annually

We have been working with marketers and ad agencies for several years on new ways to reach Boomers and women online – beyond the banners. Some of the unique online advertising programs we utilize include integrating brands into games, pages, video and content on our 143 site partners.

The questions marketers should ask: Is my brand reaching and engaging women online where they spend their time on a trusted site with relevant content? Is this custom program scalable? Will my brand be in a premium position?

Whether its gaming, gardening, grand-parenting, socializing, quilting, chatting on auto sites, learning about finance and wealth strategies, reading about health issues or planning the next big trip – the fact is women are online, spending 15 hours per week vs. teens’ 13 hours per week and hold 70% of the U.S. wealth. Indeed, women are super consumers influencing not only the majority of household purchases but their friends and family, too.

Sources: Women-Drivers.com, 2010, PEW Research, Harris Interactive, Census Bureau.

baby boomers, women

3 comments about "Meet The Super Consumers And Influencers ".

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Jim Gilmartin from Coming of Age, March 19, 2012 at 2:55 p.m.
Nicely put together. Tom Peters said “American Women. The numbers are unequivocal, the gender differences are undeniable, the opportunity is inarguable and the market is enormous. . . economic opportunity No. 1”. Statistics overawe: Women are responsible for 83% of all consumer purchases: Vacations - 92%, Houses - 91%, Consumer electronics - 51%, Cars - 60% of purchases and significantly influence 90%. The choice of a new bank account by women - 89% of the time. Health care - 80% of decisions and over two-thirds of all health care spending. And, the Boomer+ women (born before 1965) have the most discretionary spending habits of all. Add in Boomer women's role as "purchasing officer" for consumer goods and for corporations and agencies, and, in effect, you have an American Women's Economy that accounts for over half of the U.S. GDP - about $5 trillion. The opportunity - trillions of dollars in the U.S. alone is waiting. American women by themselves are, in effect, the largest ‘national’ economy on earth. Unfortunately, too many companies don't get it and often pay little attention to these lucrative targets.
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Susan Macabee from unknown, July 23, 2012 at 1:28 p.m.

Well, we've always been aware that women "run the show" as they say. I am a new mom, breadwinner, head of family, member of PCA, doctor, sister, and owner of my own business. Speaking of being a new mom, I see a lot of articles about children and the high cost for clothes, cribs etc. I found a lot of affordable stuff at tinytotties.com recently. Any new moms needs advice about ANYTHING, I'd be more than happy to share!

Doug Garnett from Protonik, LLC, July 23, 2012 at 6:55 p.m.

No question about the influence of women within any household's spending. Marketers ignore this at their own peril. However, it's a leap to conclude that "influencer" at home has any ...ANY ...connection to what social media types like to call an "influence". Hence, the conclusion of this post is quite suspect.