Women’s Voices

The 85% Niche opened its Leading Voices series with women as a whole. Its former page described women as a major force in consumer spending and said they directly or indirectly influenced more than 85% of purchases. That figure was part of the firm’s period marketing proposition, not a measure of today’s market.

Beyond a single consumer profile

The page immediately complicated its own large-market framing. It broke down the U.S. female population by cultural background and pointed to differences in age, education, family situation, income and work. It argued that buying influence should not lead a brand to address every woman in the same way.

Decisions across industries

Examples from the former page included cars, first homes and consumer electronics. It also pointed to rising educational attainment and women-owned businesses. The original statistics drew on different years, including 2002, and should be read as part of the site’s former argument rather than current market research.

The practical question remains: whose decision is being described, in which setting, and what evidence supports it? Continue through Latina, Black and Asian voices for the collection’s more specific perspectives.

Read the February 2016 source capture for the original context.