How Women Use the Internet

By Theresa Delgado

Marketing to Women Online Should be Influenced by How They Use the Internet

When it comes to online shopping, women tend to use the internet to research and gather information on issues like health, wellness, spirituality and religion. We also seek support and to build as well as maintain relationships online. In fact, a study conducted by Burst Media in early 2009 found that nearly 52% of females who use the internet use it as the primary way to stay in touch with their families.

That same study also found that around 62% of females use the internet as their primary source for information on products they were considering purchasing. For women, it’s all about the research. We want to know all about the products as well as what others are saying about them.

According to research conducted by Resource Interactive, an e-commerce consulting firm, in conjunction with the help of comScore Networks, females were responsible for over 58 percent of online spending vs. male’s 42 percent between April of 2004 and March of 2005.

So why are women spending more time actually shopping online than men? Well, while females are more likely to browse online just as they do in the store, they don’t altogether abandon their particular to-do list. They simply add on to it.

Edd Johns, executive director of strategy for Resource Interactive puts it best. “Women… might… say, ‘I’m interested in a digital camera,’ and the next thing you know, they’re looking at clothes for their kids, they’re thinking about what they’re doing that weekend and if they need to pick something up for their husbands.”

What does this mean for online e-tailers? Well, Johns also says that a list of recently viewed items is highly important when marketing to women, less so for men and ease of navigation should also be a top priority.

Johns teaches us that “shopping online for [women] is just like window shopping.” So we return to the “gatherer” analogy. Females browse. We seek solutions as we shop, be it at the store or online. And while men might be ideal shoppers in their ability to make a purchase once they have found what they are looking for, women are ideal in their ability to be sold to.

So how do you market to both male and female shoppers online without boring or alienating either? The key is balance. In the next article we’ll be bringing all the aspects of marketing to women and men together to help you improve your marketing message!

-Theresa