Men are from mars and women are all over social media

If the differences between men and women are widely acknowledged in best selling books, why do social networks still talk with a unisex voice?

It’s already well known that women make 85% of the buying decisions in this country but did you know:

• 65% of people using social media are women
• 60% are boomer women
• 55+ is the fastest growing segment on Facebook
• 52% of searches women do are for someone else
• 85% are looking for an independent review by another woman

The numbers get even higher on the subject of health care where virtually all health care buying decisions are made by women, not just for themselves and their families but as caregivers to parents, relatives and extended family.

I work with a woman named Kelley Connors who is doing something about it.  Kelley started an online community called Real Women on Health ( http://realwomenonhealth.com ), a place for Baby Boomer women featuring candid conversations and expert commentary about health and wellness.  Kelley has shown me study after study where women who talk with other women about the same health interests or conditions actually have better health outcomes.

As a testament to women sharing their collective wisdom in social media, in just a couple of months, Kelley has built a multi-channel social network of over 10,000 members on her community web-site, blog-talk radio show, Facebook Fan Page, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts and received a content sponsorship grant from the National Women’s Health Resource Center, the largest clearing house for women’s health care information.  When linked to affliliate partners, Real Women on Health’s reach is 5,000,000.

Kelley is using Real Women on Health for moderated conversations with health advocates and the messaging, sampling and sales of health and wellness products and services that can benefit this high value group and the network they influence.  What I like most about  Kelley’s approach is her ability to listen to her constituents and ask questions like “what are the health topics you’re most passionate about?”  These serve as a roadmap for future development more than a business plan and keep new and existing users coming back to hear what she has to say.

Listening skills are important because women don’t feel listened to by:

• 59% of food marketers
• 66% in health care
• 77% in automotive
• 84% in investing

According to the Harvard Business Review, their primary sentiment with marketers in these categories is frustration.

If you don’t believe me,  just ask the woman up top.

[Via http://robpetersen.wordpress.com]