Cambridge Business Association
The 85% Niche
Book

The 85% Niche

The Power of Women of All Colors – Latina, Black, and Asian

Miriam Muléy
Paramount Market Publishing, 2009
Buy book or audiobook

Read or listen offline

Amazon Kindle
  • 0.5×
  • 0.75×
  • 1×
  • 1.25×
  • 1.5×
  • 1.75×
1×

Editorial Rating

6

Qualities

  • Eye Opening
  • Overview
  • Background

Recommendation

Companies can’t afford to ignore women because they influence up to 85% of all purchasing decisions. And, they can’t afford to ignore women of color, a rapidly growing segment of the population, expanding “three times faster” than Caucasian women. Although the phrase “women of color” traditionally refers to African-American women, workplace-diversity expert Miriam Muléy uses the term to include black, Hispanic, Native American and Asian-American women. These women make $1 trillion in purchases annually as US consumers and generate $230 billion a year as entrepreneurs. Muléy presents an avalanche of statistics, mostly from 2007 to 2008, to convince companies to employ and market to this underserved American demographic. Her decision to emphasize statistics and downplay interpretive discussion may frustrate some readers, but even so, getAbstract recommends this marketing discussion and its data bank to CEOs, presidents, and other senior leaders, as well as to marketing and advertising managers seeking eye-opening statistical support.

Summary

Women of Color: Rich Diversity

American companies should expand and pinpoint their marketing to include women of color, an underserved population with enormous purchasing power. In the US, the term “women of color” refers to non-Caucasian – that is, Hispanic, African-American, Asian-American and Native American – women. Traditionally, many companies thought reaching out to women would antagonize the corporate world’s traditional core audience, males. Some companies, including automakers, tried to entice female buyers but wound up alienating them instead. Women of all ethnic groups have experienced less-than-stellar customer service from bankers, real estate agents, financial planners and more. Smart companies in all industries can profit from reaching out to women of color.

America has almost 54 million women of color, some 35.2% of all US females. From 2000 to 2007, their population grew three times faster than the US’s total female population. Among American women of color, 40.8% are Latina, 39.5% are black, 15.4% are Asian-American and 4.3% are Native American or Native Alaskan. The Census Bureau forecasts that the US population of women of color will grow to 63...

About the Author

Workplace-diversity expert Miriam Muléy is CEO of The 85% Niche, a marketing firm.

Comment on this summary