Female Boomers Demand Your Attention
Women control 91 percent of homebuying or remodeling decisions. This finding from a recent Harvard University study caused Doris Perlman, founder and president of Possibilities for Design, a Denver-based home design firm, to delve more deeply into the homebuying habits of female baby boomers (women born between 1946 and 1964).
Among her observations:
- This target market is looking for practicality and comfort, which translates into demand for wider hallways and stairs, living areas on the main floor, and open-air floor plans with multifunctional spaces.
- Both task lighting and natural light are of major importance to compensate for declining vision that many baby boomers are starting to experience.
- For aging eyesight, any marketing material in smaller than 13-point type is “retail suicide.”
- Seventy-five percent of female boomers will settle for a smaller house if that’s what it takes to get high-quality products and amenities.
- Women buyers are looking for strong character in home design, such as cottages with a crisp and clean look, urban enclaves with rich colors and textures, and calming and contemporary Asian influences.
- Women are attuned to colors, while men do not seem to care as much. In response, the color trends of 2005-2006 included brown becoming the new black; grayed-out greens; reds coming up orange; classic colors with such new names as Wasabi, Aero Blue and Vanilla; and textural effects suggesting copper, pewter and stone.
- Female baby boomers now have more time to relax, engage in social activities and explore hobbies, making “special-interest” rooms an essential feature in their home selection. “Women shop with peripheral vision: They notice everything,” Perlman said.
- Women 55 and over are cyber-savvy, and use their computers for ordering and correspondence.
If female boomers are a segment you market to, knowing how they think and act can give you the inside edge on winning their business.
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