The hit television show “Mad Men” depicts the lives of New York City ad executives during a time in American history when women had little clout in the workplace, the economy, the home—you name it. Those times have changed, but it might be interesting, surprising and even shocking to know how much clout women wield in the marketplace today. On Stephanie Holland’s website Sheconomy, she lists some amazing facts about women and their money:

• “Senior women age 50 and older control net worth of $19 trillion and own more than three-fourths of the nation’s financial wealth.”
• “Over the next decade, women will control two thirds of consumer wealth in the United States and be the beneficiaries of the largest transference of wealth in our country’s history. Estimates range from $12 to $40 trillion. Many Boomer women will experience a double inheritance windfall, from both parents and husband. The Boomer woman is a consumer that luxury brands want to resonate with.”
• “Once the college bills are out of the way and children launch their own households, the discretionary spending power of 50-plus women soars. They spend 2.5 times what the average person spends. Women are the primary buyers for computers, cars, banking, financial services and a lot of other big-ticket categories.”
• “The number of wealthy women investors in the U.S. is growing at a faster rate than that of men. In a two-year period, the number of wealthy women in the U.S. grew 68%, while the number of men grew only 36%.”

With numbers like these, you’d think that Madison Avenue gurus would be experts on women. Yet, “only 3% of advertising agency creative directors are women.” And it shows:

• “59% of women feel misunderstood by food marketers;
• 66% feel misunderstood by health care marketers;
• 74% feel misunderstood by automotive marketers;
• 84% feel misunderstood by investment marketers
• 91% of women in one survey said that advertisers don’t understand them”

Clearly, marketers have missed the target when it comes to reaching out to women. Don’t let your company make the same mistake. Not only is Trade Press Services a woman-owned company, its management teams consists of experts in reaching your target audience through trade publications, books, white papers and a wide variety of other means. Call Gerri Knilans at Trade Press Services today at (805) 496-8850 or e-mail [email protected].