Marketing to Women: How to Understand, Reach, and Increase Your Share of the Largest Market Segment (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The first thing you notice when you open the proverbial purse is a good sign: there's a big fat wallet inside..." (more)
Key Phrases: female gender culture, purchase path, corporate halo, Marketing Model, Perfect Answer, Social Values (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

"Women are the world's most powerful consumers." So begins Barletta as she presents her thesis that men's marketing doesn't work for women. We learn that in comparison to men, women have a very different set of priorities, preferences, and attitudes; their purchase decisions are radically different; and they respond differently to marketing media and messages. The purpose of this book, then, is to explain why marketing to women should be different than it is to men and to help readers avoid neglecting women in their marketing strategies, gain understanding of what makes them a worthwhile market, and develop specific action plans directed at women. Barletta presents her model for understanding women's responses to marketing efforts and then applies that model to the planning process for most markets. Also, she urges CEOs to gain an understanding of the importance of marketing to women so that necessary corporate resources and support will be provided. This book offers important insight for today's highly competitive marketplace. Mary Whaley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"Barletta's book contains more of the kind of information that resonates with marketers, regardless of gender." -- Wharton's Knowledge@Work newsletter

Barletta produces solid advice on how to market products that both appeal to women and increase company profitability." -- Harvard Business School, Working Knowledge newsletter

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Product Details

a suggested reading list and an article written by the author of Marketing to Women. [333kb PDF]

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Kaplan Business (December 12, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0793159636
• ISBN-13: 978-0793159635
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #285,299 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good information but it could be more professional., April 17, 2004

By	Mongoose (MA United States) - See all my reviews

First off, I'm a guy. I found this book had a lot of information that I never knew before. I asked a few women I knew and was suprised that their responses were identical to the information in the book. For example what they liked to see in advertisements and what they said their aspirations were, were identical to what was said in the book. Some of it made no sense to me but it made perfect sense to the women I asked.

I have to say I'm disappointed with the minor male bashing in the book. Some of her male point of views are a bit extreme, for example: "Men, on the other hand, are more likely to hold the view that people are important, but no more important or interesting than current events or new ideas in computer animation, or something more material like cars or cameras." I value my relationships and found this a bit extreme. Do all women think this?

I took off one star for her point of view on men, but other than that this is a good book. If you are marketing to women, this book will give you insight on the subject.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to Succeed in the World's Largest Market Segment, June 21, 2004

By	Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

In this uniquely informative volume, Barletta answers three separate but related questions: What makes women a worthwhile market? Why market differently to women? and How do we get beyond gender generalities to actionable tactics? In her Introduction, she lists "Eight Myths of Marketing to Women" which, during the course of her book's narrative, she convincingly repudiates. For example, #5: With women, marketing is all about relationships. "While it's true that women put more emphasis on relationships -- personal and corporate -- than men do, their purchase decisions and response to communications are affected by far more than `relationships.' From word meaning to word-of-mouth referrals, product priorities to Internet usage patterns, women differ from men in many, many marketing dimensions. And, to overlook their complexities would be to undermine the effectiveness of your company's programs." According to Barletta, there are four components of the women's market: earning power ("What's in her wallet?"), high-net worth women ("the ultimate asset-holders"), consumer spending power (the "household chief purchasing officer"), and women in business ("controlling the company checkbook").

A majority of consumers in the U.S. are women. Research indicates that online spending will increase 26% this year to $96 billion. Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the economy and women influence 95% and make 85% of all consumer buying decisions; moreover, the majority of corporate purchasing agents and managers are women. Female entrepreneurs account for 70% of new business start-ups. If you are still unconvinced of the upside potential of marketing to women, consider these facts:

* Between 1970 and 1990, the number of women living alone doubled from 7.3 million to 15.3 million and this pattern has continued.

* At least 55% of those online each day are women.

* By the year 2010, women will control 60% of wealth in the U.S.

* College students were responsible for $210 billion in sales in 2002 and 58% of them were female.

* Women purchase more than 50% of the cars and own more than 46% of the homes in the U.S.

* More than half of all business travelers are women.

In Part II of her book, Barletta introduces and then explains what she calls the GenderTrends™Marketing Model, a systematic and simple tool to help her readers understand, reach, and increase their share of the world's largest market -- women. The model is designed to achieve three objectives:

1. "Structure the complexities of the gender differences into an organized view of female [in italics] gender culture."

2. "Show you how gender culture interacts with each of the 12 [in italics] marketing elements [end italics] in the marketing mix."

3. "Apply the resulting insights to the four stages of the consumer's [in italics] purchase path." FYI, the four are activation through market entry, nomination of purchase options to consider, investigation and decision with regard to nominees, and finally, succession (i.e. repeat business and, hopefully, evangelistic loyalty).

Few books fully deliver on the promises stated or implied in their subtitle. Barletta's book is the commendable exception. She offers a wealth of information and an abundance of wisdom which will help decision-makers in literally any organization (regardless of size or nature) to understand, reach, and increase their share of "the world's largest market segment." This book provides just about everything you need to do precisely that. What are you waiting for?

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Marketing to Women, January 27, 2004

By	Thomas M. Loarie (Danville, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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SHORT BUT SWEET...I have co-founded a company to develop and market a new fashion accessory for active women who misplace their glasses frequently. All of the founders have been in the sales, marketing, and/or advertising fields for years. But, this is the first time any of us have been involved in a business that will live or die solely on creating "awareness of", "interest in", and "demand for" with women.

I found Marketing to Women, read it cover to cover (I could not put it down), and have now made it mandatory reading for anyone associated with our company. Barletta offers great insights and provokes "out of the box thinking."

As an extra aside, I learned a lot about female buying habits (Eg. women need to find the perfect answer) that, in the past, frustrated me. This book has and will continue improve my relationship not only with my female customers, but also, and probably most importantly, with my wife, and daughter.