Auto Estrogen

In a recent appearance on the Oprah Winfrey show, Suze Orman discussed what she knows best — Money. With an audience full of women, Suze discussed credit, debt, investing and more. This newfound awareness of women and their money is an interesting one, so much so that Orman dedicated a whole book to the subject. In it she states, Women have been thrust into an entirely new relationship with money that is profoundly different from anything we have ever encountered before. The shifting roles of women at home and at work have dramatically changed where and how money interacts with a woman’s life.

I’ll say it has, take a look at some of these statistics:
- Women control $7 trillion in consumer and business spending and make over $1 trillion dollars annually
- Sixty percent of adult women in America work outside the home and thirty percent of married women now out-earn their husbands.
- Over the past thirty years, women’s income has soared a dramatic 63 percent.
- Women bring in half or more of the income in the majority of U.S. households.
- Women account for more than 50 percent of all stock ownership in the United States.

Women have reached a time in our society where they are much more powerful when it comes to finances. Over the last several years I’ve received numerous invitations to dinners and lunches hosted by financial institutions focusing on women and money.

Why all the sudden interest and attention? Well, if the stats didn’t give you a clear answer, there’s also the fact that women are living longer (twice that of men) and divorce rates continue to climb so at some point and time in her life, a women will have to manage her own money. And we obviously need some help. With all this money and power, women can still find it all a bit intimidating. During her appearance on Oprah, Orman stated that women often don’t trust themselves when it comes to money. Her advice: Women should trust themselves more than they trust others.

There is an interesting relationship between women and money and when you add additional components to the equation, buying a car for instance, things become even more complex. Why don’t we trust ourselves when it comes to cars and money? Why haven’t we taken more interest when it comes to investing, financing and cars?

Now that we have, what can we do? How do we get the knowledge, one Oprah audience member asked? Well for one, we have to get educated. Purchasing Orman’s book is just one way to get started, among others.

So what about you? What will you do?

Car-Buy-Her loves Her Skirt . . . .Skirt!Magazine, that is. The self described magazine is all about women . . . their work, play, families, creativity, style, health and wealth, bodies and souls. Skirt! Is an attitude . . . spirited, independent, outspoken, serious, playful and irreverent, sometimes controversial, always passionate. Ahhh . . . the same quintessential qualities of a Car-Buy-Her, a woman that is informed, in control, and ready to buy. Car-Buy-Her’s are empowered through information and education and Skirt!Magazine is filled with information, articles, and wonderfully feminine messages and editorials each month.

Skirt!Magazine teamed up recently with Car-Buy-Her during our Fall (2nd) Auto Clinic for Women. Ladies attending the auto clinic not only received a wealth of great automotive information but each participant went home with a fun-filled Skirt! Goody Bag including a personalized hanger for Her Skirt!

The ladies packed the room, listened intently and hurled questioned such as: What do you think of auctions? What about auto dealers that remove the haggle from car buying? How do you get your credit score? How often should you get your transmission checked? How often should you service your vehicle? Is it true that car color raises your insurance? These very engaged ladies were participants of Car-Buy-Her’s 1st auto clinic for women What Men Don’t Want You to Know: Auto Buying and Maintenance Clinic for Women, held this month in conjunction with the Car Care Council’s National Car Care Month.

Ladies attending the clinic shared car stories and chocolate; laughter and camaraderie as a panel of female automotive experts provided information and insight on car buying, auto financing, auto insurance, and auto maintenance.

“I had loads of fun and was very enlightened by the knowledge of all of the speakers. I took away great information to share with my policyholders both present and future, says Sheri Robinson of Triple AAA Club South. “This was a great clinic. I have a page full of notes”, stated Pamela Coman.

The three-hour clinic was the first of its kind held by Car-Buy-Her and the first comprehensive clinic for women covering all-things automotive.

“This was our first automotive clinic and it was hugely successful and a confirmation of the need for this service. We are already in talks with women’s groups, Parks & Recreation departments, and credit unions about hosting additional clinics. Educating women is one of our primary goals,” states Sheronde Glover, Car-Buy-Her founder and the coordinator, organizer, and developer of the auto clinic.

All ladies attending the clinic received a certificate of achievement for their participation and recognition as an official, Car-Buy-Her, a woman that is informed, in control, and ready to buy.

For more information on how to request this clinic, attend this group or become a sponsor, visit our website at http://www.car-buy-her.com.

When I first started Car-Buy-Her I knew advocacy was a part of the equation. I knew it, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to say it. After my personal experience, a lot of secondary research, and a number of conversations with women, I recognized that women had to take a stand. Women Standing Up was the title of a speech given by Mayor Shirley Franklin of Atlanta at a League of Women Voters meeting this month. For those of you who are not familiar with Mayor Franklin’s work, her accomplishments are too numerous to mention. Mayor Shirley Franklin has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune magazine, Ebony magazine, Black Enterprise and many other local and national publications and is certainly one to be admired. I listened intently at the issues at hand, the resounding message and completely understood the many variables that play into the everyday lives of women.

It’s hard for some to get it. Many don’t want to accept the fact that speaking to women, for women, with women, is not about separation, but more so about recognition, confidence building, self-awareness, relating, understanding, and support. Although the context for the meeting was a discussion of the local politics at hand the inferences were across the board.

Here are some of the Mayor’s sentiments and how they relate to women and car buying:

1. Women have a different perspective - Women’s viewpoints on car buying are different. Women tend to look for cars that are safe and reliable. Women look for showrooms that are clean and visually appealing. Women tend to like low-pressured sales tactics and want to be acknowledged, respected and told the truth.

2. Women shouldn’t try to emulate men - Absolutely! Whether in business, politics or car buying there is no need for women to go at it as if they are men. Women can be informed, empowered, and in control as their own feminine selves!

3. Reflect the experiences of women - One of the goals of the Car-Buy-Her site is to listen and share women’s stories and to provide useful information that can be used to make the car buying experience more enjoyable.

4. Gender Budgeting - I had never heard of this one, but in a nutshell there are cities that actually budget for women’s issues. Are you listening dealerships? It’s time to incorporate a Women’s Budget into your marketing plan. Car-Buy-Her has both training and marketing programs that can help dealerships work more effectively with the women they serve, but it’s up to the dealership to determine that it’s important enough to address and invest in. We know that many of you have, and for the others I suggest you give us a call when you’re ready.

Car-Buy-Her will continue to advocate for women as we fulfill our mission to 1. educate women 2. educate dealerships and 3. bridge the gap between the two.

Women are coming together more than ever to equalize the automotive playing field. Just ask Mishy Smith, the brains behind WOW Tuning, an automotive club for females. Women can network, learn about cars, discover different automotive interests and hone the skills, talent, and passion that they already have for automotives can be done in one spot.

Why WOW Tuning? According to Mishy . . .

The automotive industry is a heavily male dominated arena. Many women initially find it intimidating to break into such a scene. We have often found ourselves bombarded with imagery of show girls and machismo guys at car venues, almost exclusively male racers,
and the majority of spectators at such events being male. This can create a lack of appeal in an otherwise interested woman (we hear you Mishy, we understand and we agree).

WOW-T wants to change all that. It was created to be both a social group and a way for women to network with other fem-friendly automotive organizations. Our mission is to make women in automotives just as conventional and respected as the men. And we are not far off.

The Goals of the organization are:

- To be a nationwide resource for women already in or just breaking into the automotive scene

- To be a social network for local and national females with interests in cars

- To give women a comfortable place to learn about different automotive interests and activities without the “good-ol-boy” feel

- To show the automotive world the feminine side of cars and racing

- To mainstream women in the automotive industry, becoming more than the exception or the accessory

- To give women just starting out the same opportunities as the men

- To give women a different option for the car club scene than the largely male dominated clubs out there

Ready to join? Check out WOW at wowtuning.com

Three years ago I didn’t know anything about car buying and maintenance. Forget the fact that my father worked at GM for years or that I grew up the only girl out of three children. Running with the boys (or better yet, wrestling with the boys, especially my older brother who is just 18 months older) doesn’t equate to auto knowledge, insight or enthusiasm. I was quite content assuming my position on the passenger’s side as a chauffeured observer. Now, here I am, some . . . well no need to get into numbers (smile), let’s just say some odd years later, the founder of an automotive education and marketing company. So what happened?!

Reality hit three years ago and I realized as an independent woman seeking to buy a car that I needed some auto knowledge to empower myself as a consumer. Go figure! Since then I’ve learned some things. I’m still learning things and I want to share that information with you.

So here’s what I’ve done ladies. I started this website for me and you. I figured we can learn together, what do you think? Together, we can all become Car-Buy-Her’s, informed and in control!

I’m challenging the auto dealerships and repair shops to rethink their strategies, marketing, and communications programs and update them to reflect the needs of women. Right now, I’m calling them but soon they’ll be calling me!

And now I’m coordinating our first auto buying and maintenance clinic for women, hosted by my company Car-Buy-Her so that we (the ladies) can come together and learn from each other and female experts.

Take a look at the press release below. I hope you’ll join us in April and I hope you’ll spread the word as well. Shhh! Don’t tell the men if you don’t want, but tell the ladies that we’re about to be enlightened.

SHHH! WOMEN’S AUTO CLINIC REVEALS MEN’S BEST KEPT SECRETS
What Men Don’t Want You to Know: Auto Buying and Maintenance
Clinic for Women Premieres in Atlanta

Atlanta, GA —What men have traditionally known about cars, how they work and how to buy, have eluded women for years, until now. Car-Buy-Her, an automotive resource for women, will host, What Men Don’t Want You to Know: Auto Buying and Maintenance Clinic for Women, a specially designed automotive clinic for women on Saturday, April 21, 2007, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. at Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia.

The clinic is the first of it’s kind hosted by Car-Buy-Her, an automotive resource that educates women on car buying and maintenance and works with dealerships and auto repair companies to help them become more women-friendly.

“When I was searching for my car, there were no workshops or clinics to help me figure out what I was doing, there was just the Internet, which is why we established our website at car-buy-her.com specifically for women, but this clinic will give women the opportunity to meet face to face, talk one on one with female experts, and get all the information they need to make informed decisions as a consumer”, says Sheronde Glover, Founder of Car-Buy-Her.

The goal of the clinic is to provide women with simple tips and techniques to help them become more empowered when buying and maintaining a car and to offer insight and knowledge in a non-threatening environment that allows women to become more comfortable and confident as automotive consumers. An all female panel of automotive experts and professionals will offer insight and information on everything from how to buy, when to buy, what to buy and more. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at www.car-buy-her.com.

Additional information on the clinic and sponsorship opportunities can be found at www.car-buy-her.com or by calling 770-210-0726.

About Car-Buy-Her
Car-Buy-Her is an automotive resource that educates women on car buying and maintenance in addition to consulting with automotive companies and dealerships on marketing effectively to women. The company provides training, marketing, and copywriting services to dealerships and hosts a virtual resource for women at www.car-buy-her.com

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