ShesGeeky.org Plans UnConference for Women in Technology

An idea that started between women working in technology has grown into She's Geeky. The group plans an "unconference" that utilizes open space technology to 'self-organize'. An unconference has an agenda created by the people who attend.

According to the group these type of "open space" events are bursting with high energy among attendees.

Event Goals:

• Our goal is to create an open space forum for women in tech to come together to:

• Exchange skills and learning from women from diverse fields of technology.

• Discuss topics about women and technology.

• Connect the diverse range of women in technology, computing, entrepreneurship, funding, hardware, open source, nonprofit and any other technical geeky field.

Where:

• Computer History Museum, Mountain View, CA.

When:

• October 22-23
• Start Time: Noon on Monday
• Ending Time: Close 6pm on Tuesday.

Stylish IT Boutique Debuts Online

Designer laptop bags are just one of the accessories women can purchase online from 21stcenturydiva.co.uk, which aims to bring "fashionable technology" to females.

Women Ignored by Technology Marketers

Saatchi and Saatchi UK, an advertising agency within Publicis Groupe, released a study September 10 lamenting how consumer electronics retailers are missing out on $600 million by ignoring female consumers.

Highlights of the report include:

• Thirty-five per cent of female internet users polled said they would increase their spending on consumer electronics if marketers and retailers thought harder about how they approach them and offered more guidance in stores and on e-commerce sites.
  
• A staggering one in two women said they walk out of shops and leave websites without buying anything because they’re unable to find what they want.
• One third of women do not feel confident enough to ask questions in stores with one respondent describing electronics retailers as reeking of a “strong scent of man”.
  
• Almost one in three women do not consider technology advertising relevant to them and the majority of women feel disillusioned that brand owners and retailers don’t understand what they care about and don’t view them as a relevant group of customers.
• Almost one in two (43%) women go shopping for consumer electronics without a specific brand or product in mind representing a massive opportunity for retailers and brand owners to reap the financial rewards if they effectively market to this group of women.
• Only nine per cent of respondents think it’s important that their gadgets look feminine.

Opinion leaders and women consumers do not like to see "pink" gadgets and many feel "offended" and “patronised” by this approach. Instead they prefer "sleek and beautifully designed and packaged products."

Download PDF here: