Just over two years ago, WITI set out to explore women’s usage and preferences for technology following a widely publicized 2003 Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) report that women represented about $55 billion of annual sales to the consumer electronics industry. Manufacturers and retailers had only just begun to realize that women, who were actively purchasing and influencing technology purchases for themselves, their households, and their companies, might be overlooked as a serious customer segment. As recently as 2006, companies still had little insight into the technology purchase drivers and attitudes of women that would enable them to jump on this potentially lucrative bandwagon.

Fast forward to the current day, where the shift towards more college-educated women, a closing of the technology gender gap, and the dramatic increased buying power of women translates to women spending more than $125 billion in consumer electronics and more than 50% of the buying power (CEA’s “What Women Want and How It Differs from Men study”). However, if women are now deemed such a dominant market force in the technology arena, why do many women today still feel disillusioned that brand owners and retailers don’t care about them or perceive them as a relevant group of customers? It’s become fairly obvious that technology companies can no longer afford to ignore their female customers – they must take an active role in understanding and responding to women’s lifestyle needs, style preferences, and shopping experience requirements if they want to best serve this market.

Applying the Female Perspective While Preserving Functionality

Today, a handful of companies are rethinking their approach as they make a concerted push at the female market to increase sales into this relatively mature U.S. market. “Fashiontronics” has surfaced, and we’re starting to see the emergence of designer styles in PCs, notebook computers and accessories as well as more subtle changes, such as wider keyboards to accommodate women’s longer fingernails. More importantly, product developers are just realizing the need to maintain the fine balance between fashion and function so that simplifying and feminizing products do not diminish the levels of product functionality that women demand. Unquestionably, technology companies must get closer to their female customers to understand what really matters to them – engage them in dialogue, listen to them, and respond accordingly.

Your Chance to Influence the Development of Technology Products

WITI members are invited to have their voices heard by a major technology brand in a private, online community of 300 professional women and female business owners in North America. Community members will serve as “consultants” to influence the development of computers, mobile devices and home entertainment products and services for this company as they share their ideas directly with company decision makers in moderated discussions.