Women are one of the world’s biggest growth markets, and meeting their needs as customers is key to succeeding in the modern economy. Women have a multiplier effect on the businesses and sales professionals that serve them well. Understanding the pace of women’s educational and economic progress is fundamental to staying relevant with this market.
Four Motivators Framework
The Four Motivators Framework can serve as your guidepost for creating positive emotional outcomes for your customers. Ideally, customers want to feel
- Connected to you, your brand, and your business,
- Inspired to buy from you,
- Confident in their buying decisions, and
- Appreciated for their business.
#1 Connected
Women’s societal roles and increased education and wealth means that they are not only the primary consumers of today, but also the primary consumers of tomorrow.
It’s true E-commerce has changed our expectations for buying IRL and increased the importance of strong interpersonal skills and customer engagement. Still, great sales experiences are the exception and not the rule. This creates an enormous opportunity for those who can deliver valuable experiences to customers.
#2 Inspired
You can inspire customers by what you do (your product), how you do it (your service), where you do it (your physical space), why you do it (your mission and values), and who you are (your unique personality and style). Your ability to inspire customers can lead them to value your guidance, overcome price concerns, and choose you over a competitor.
#3 Confident
Giving customers a little bit more than they expect can make a big impact on their impression of you.
Customers’ confidence increases when you successfully curate product choices, as Sephora does. Third-party credibility and an online professional presence are important for earning customers’ confidence. Selling the experience of being your long-term customer, as Lexus does, increases customers’ confidence that they’ll receive value beyond the product price.
#4 Appreciated
Making customers feel appreciated takes time and effort, but it’s well worth it in terms of increased customer loyalty and referrals.
Appreciation has many dimensions behind thank you It also includes elements such as anticipating customer needs and celebrating purchases. Consistent follow-up is one of the most important ways to demonstrate appreciation for someone’s business. It shows the customer that her business wasn’t considered a mere “transaction.”
Top Trends Driving Women’s Buying Patterns
Trend #1 Double Duty, Half the Time
Busy women are looking for services and not just products.
Being easy and convenient to work with is now “table stakes” for serving a market of modern women. If your business isn’t helpful, convenient, and easy to work with, you’ll eventually be disrupted by a competitor that is.
Trend #2 The Mini-Me Effect
Unlike previous generations, parents and kids now often want the same brands, products, and services. The potential for business growth through “age elasticity” exists in many products and services, thanks to the Mini-Me Effect.
Kids are more active and engaged in family decision-making than in previous generations. They are brand aware at a young age, and as digital natives, some kids regard themselves as product “researchers in chief” for their households.
Trend #3 Visual Storytelling
We have become a world of visual storytellers, shooting the documentaries of our own lives. Our tool is the smartphone; our medium is the social network.
No life milestone is too small to film, photograph, or post. This is often true for purchases too, which presents an opportunity for every brand and business.
Trend #4 Health & Wellness as a Lifestyle
Health and wellness are powerful motivators for women’s decision-making, across industries.
There are a vast number of ways to bring health and wellness to life, because “wellness” can be defined so broadly.
Trend #5 Sixty is the New Forty
Toss out old stereotypes about the over-fifty-five segment of the population. Being sixty-five or seventy years old doesn’t mean the same thing it did even a generation ago.
People are staying active, social, and youthful more than ever before—especially women. This is also the age group that has most of the money. There is a “coolness” and style gap for products and services targeted to this age group, especially for women.