dispatches from the new world of work

A Company Gets It

We know that the women's market is booming and that many haven't taken full advantage of this market. Not so Harley-Davidson. They've noticed that there is a huge market of women who are buying motorcycles—about 100,00 a year. As stated in the New York Times today, "'Fifty percent of the population is female and there is pent-up demand,' said James L. Ziemer, Harley-Davidson's chief executive. 'We need to remove barriers.'"

Companies that remove the barriers and recognize the power of women buyers can cash in on a great market, but I think Tom's been saying that for awhile now.

How does your company take advantage of today's key markets, boomers/geezers and women??

Val Willis posted this on 07/25/07.

Comments

Trying to make a complex product more female-buyer-friendly, we upped the explanatory pictures and downed the technical details. The women prefer it - and apparently so do the men! A picture is indeed worth a thousand words, and a million numbers.

Posted by Mike L at July 26, 2007 2:37 AM

Yes, but the most powerful communication is when the words, pictures and technical details work in unison to give the IDEA of the product and service.

Lest you make the huge mistake of thinking women are of a lesser mind.

For women it's all about the idea of what it does and how it adds value to life, not the details of how it does it.

Posted by MLM at July 26, 2007 8:07 AM

Ho-Hum...another "revelation" NYTimes story about Opportunity No. 1. That's Great...but I'll really be impressed when I see more "boards" that are WILLING to "get it". Just kidding about the Ho-HUM, by the way...but not the "boards".

Posted by Roger Conant at July 27, 2007 9:35 AM

As long as companies don't confuse "removing barriers" with "dumbing it down." And, the technical details should always be available for those who want them (behind the idea presentation). Different personalities, of both sexes, want to see information differently.

Posted by Mary Schmidt at July 27, 2007 5:07 PM

To reassure buyers of that complex product, we certainly did not "dumb down" the explanations. In fact, focusing on the pictures indicated several potential improvements to the product which our "smart" product developers had overlooked. The effect has been to broaden our market ... And then there are the non-English-speakers. Our agents in Hong Kong tell us that sales in China may overtake those in the USA.

Posted by Mike L at July 27, 2007 6:25 PM

Companies that remove the barriers and recognize the power of women buyers can not only cash in on a great market, they can also change the world - and make it a better place for everyone.

Just one example - Grameen Bank, Bangladesh
Founded by Dr. Yunus

Jay, from Bangalore

Posted by jayakumar Hariharan at July 31, 2007 7:00 AM

Val,

Have you been in to a Harley Davidson dealership recently? I went in to the one in Austin TX. David (Pilbeam) and I wanted to hire bikes to explore Texas a bit during a recent client project (Ambion). ... That's another story. My point is...

... Not a woman in sight ... and I'm good a spotting women!

Testoserone enriched, leatherclad , pony tailed, alpha males at every turn ... But not a single molecule of oestrogen anywhere in the building?

I think James L. Ziemer may need to rethink his recruitment strategy a bit. Otherwise the armchair guru's amongst us will start to accuse him of too much talk and too little do!

Posted by Chris Nel at July 31, 2007 10:49 AM

There's nothing like the sound of a Harley - it's definately the 'king' of motorcycles. Everytime I see one of those guys (rarely female by the way) cruise past my car it brings up feelings of a free, worriless life - with the wind in your hair (err...helmet) and the slow pokes at your back.

But, that doesn't mean I would 'buy' a Harley. The Harley image in my mind has a tough, rugged, troubles-in-town feeling with riders you wouldn't exactly want to 'take home to Mom' - if you know what I mean. Even Harley's website has a rough feel to it. I'm not saying that Harley should change it's tune (and never its sound!), but if they want to appeal to a broader female audience they've definately got their work cut out for them. (Tom could be a 'big' help with that...).

Robin
http://www.firedupcareers.com

Posted by Robin at August 1, 2007 3:14 PM