SheSpeaks Study Reveals Purchase Drivers for Motivating Female Shoppers this Holiday Season

   By drodriguez  Nov 11, 2008

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SheSpeaks Study Reveals Purchase Drivers for Motivating Female Shoppers this Holiday Season

Women consumers are key marketing targets this holiday season, as they help spread deals and coupons at a time when consumers are looking to spend less. SheSpeaks, the leading social network for women’s insights and word-of-mouth marketing, found in a recent study of its members that women will rely on their personal networks to find and share the best holiday shopping deals on the Web.

SheSpeaks members are representative of influential and engaged consumers nationwide, and they want to be able to pass along the ’wealth’of being in the know, said Aliza Freud, CEO of SheSpeaks. Brands and retailers really stand to benefit from making women feel like they have access to a unique offer. This year it is especially important for marketers to engage women using direct marketing that gives them a personal
incentive to shop.

A national poll of 2,000 SheSpeaks members revealed that a majority of women intend to limit their budgets, take advantage of coupons and conduct more online research in order to save money this holiday season. Women will look to recommendations and online research to make smart purchase decisions.

Personal recommendations will be the largest influencer on women’s holiday spending. According to the study, nearly 75 percent of women have purchased a product following the recommendation of a family member or acquaintance. Though blogs and shopping sites are also important sources of information, women indicated they are more likely to purchase products a friend or family member has e-mailed them about.

Increasing the circulation of coupons and flyers will play an important role in women’s choice of holiday shopping destinations. In addition to driving traffic to stores and Web sites, the SheSpeaks study found coupons and promo codes will help bolster impulse purchases at stores. More than 75 percent of those polled said they are likely to make additional purchases beyond the items they are intentionally shopping for.

The study revealed that women enjoy sharing deals with others. Two-thirds of poll respondents indicated that they forward online coupons, with nearly 80 percent reporting they have shared a coupon with a friend during the last three months.

Additional results from the SheSpeaks study, conducted in October 2008, can be viewed at http://www.shespeaks.com/CStudy