Women ‘still underestimated by brands’ despite spending power
Despite having more financial influence than ever before, 49% of women globally still feel that brands don’t understand them and aren’t taking them seriously.
This is according to a new study from The Collective, the female-focused global advocacy and advisory arm of global sports, music, and entertainment company Wasserman.
The Collective surveyed 8,700 women aged 18-65 across ten major markets — Australia, the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, India, Mexico, Japan, and China. It found that women are shaping the future of commerce and hold two-thirds of the world’s discretionary spend in their pockets, but their buying power is still being underestimated by brands and marketers.
In 2024, $792 billion was spent on global advertising. Despite this, nearly half of the survey respondents said they feel brands — and their products — don’t reflect the real needs of women or fit their lifestyles. Only 4% felt “completely understood” by brands.
According to the study, 66% of women are juggling personal goals and family priorities. But most marketing still speaks to only one side of a woman’s identity — motherhood. And for women who can’t, or choose not to, have children, the isolation worsens.
Further, nearly half of women (40%) being marketing still leans on outdated stereotypes.
“Women are telling us what matters to them and what doesn’t, and they clearly want products that support and reflect their lives, values, and priorities,” Thayer Lavielle, managing director of The Collective, said.
“This research provides a global pulse on how women feel they are being marketed to, by region, and where they feel brand marketers may be missing the mark.”
The data varied according to regions and generations, with older women feeling increasingly overlooked compared to younger women. 62% of Boomers said brands “get” them, compared to 83% of Gen Z.
And what matters to women in Australia doesn’t translate to India, for example. This is another area the study found brands are missing the mark, taking global narratives and expecting them to fit locally.
The report also introduced six personas for marketing to the modern woman. Lavielle said these personas can act as a blueprint for brands wanting to build “stronger connections, greater impact, and lasting growth” with female audiences.
- The Mindful Multitasker: balancing work, family, and wellbeing (regardless of motherhood)
- The Family-First Realist: grounded in practicality and long-term security
- The Independent Striver: driven by growth, career, and financial autonomy
- The Empowered Advocate: cares deeply about justice, visibility, and making change
- The Global Dreamer: outward-facing, creative, and connected
- The Creative Explorer: Defining life on their terms, and it has to mean something
Each persona has different values, lifestyle, purchasing behaviours, and media habits, according to the study.
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Lauren McNamara is the associate editor at Mumbrella, covering the creative and PR beat. She joined in November 2022 as editorial assistant, after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS.
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That’s interesting that women feel, that given women are the overwhelming majority of CMOs.
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