“Hey, she said, “don’t touch my Harley.”

Imagine having customers so loyal that they tattoo your logo on their arms. That's the kind of brand awareness--and loyalty--Harley-Davidson enjoys.

So, imagine the eye-popping that went on earlier this year when H-D discovered that its fastest-growing market was...women! The marketing department immediately started making plans to invest heavily to secure that market.

Why would H-D commit so much to a niche or specialty market? Because it's not just a niche or specialty market! In fact, given both their purchasing behaviour and their influence over purchasing, women comprise the world's largest--and most lucrative--market segment.

Current research shows that women are responsible for purchasing

• 83% of consumer goods;
• 94% of home furnishings;
• 92% of vacation packages;
• 91% of homes; and
• 55% of all consumer electronics.

In the automobile sector, women buy six cars for every four cars purchased by men. Even more, women heavily influence up to 90 percent of all new-car purchases.

Similar numbers can be found in the services industry. As just two examples, new bank accounts are chosen by women 89 percent of the time and, when it comes to health care, women make the decision 80 percent of the time.

To those in the know, marketing to women can be a goldmine. And it can be mined without "going pink" or alienating men. You can have it both ways!

Businesses are just starting--and we mean barely starting--to understand the significance of this market. Those who get on board now will almost inevitably enjoy first-to-market advantage.

But not for long...