Leading expert on selling and building loyalty among women, sought after speaker and trainer, and Founder of WomenCertified®, Delia Passi was kind enough to take the time to answer a few questions about her organization.
Delia Passi described the mission of WomenCertified®, as well many of its activities. At the same time, she also discussed what WomenCertified® does not do, as she dispelled some misunderstandings about her company's goals and objectives.
Thanks to Delia Passi for her thoughtful and informative answers.
What is the mission of your business WomenCertified®?
Delia Passi: WomenCertified® helps to bring a better buying experience to women, and men, by improving the skills of sales and service professionals.
How does your site help women reach better informed and more satisfying buying decisions?
Delia Passi: Women can use our database of WomenCertified professionals to locate those businesses that have learned how to give them the kind of experience they want and deserve.
Is honest and unbiased consumer information part of your business objective and how can you helpwomen become better educated about the marketplace and their purchases?
Delia Passi: WomenCertified does not certify the products or services provided by the professionals and businesses in our database. We do train and test the sales and service employees so that they are able to provide a better experience to women. This will result in happier customers who will return to buy again, and will recommend the business to their friends, family and associates.
How can your company help women seeking to purchase products that are truly green and
environmentally friendly?
Delia Passi: WomenCertified does not evaluate the environmental practices of the companies that participate in our program.
How can your company help women find products that are manufactured by workers who are treated fairly, and who don't suffer exploitation?
Delia Passi: WomenCertified does not evaluate the employment or human resource practices of the companies that participate in our program.
How does your concept of communicating effectively and listening to women differ from the usual approach of selling to women?
Delia Passi: Most sales training programs are based on practices that are more effective with men, and encourage sales people to get quickly to the closing of the deal. Women won’t respond as well to these practices, and require more patience and communications skills than needed to sell to men. The WomenCertified program shows sales and service professional how to talk so she will listen, and how to listen so she will talk.
Delia Passi (photo left)
What is wrong with the current buying model for women and why has it not been well addressed until now?
Delia Passi: Not all companies or their personnel practice non-women friendly selling. Many sales and service professionals have learned how to sell to women through trial and error, adopting practices that they have learned the hard way. WomenCertified is where any professional or business owner can quickly learn what works and what doesn’t when it comes to selling to women.
What are retailers and salespeople doing wrong when they fail to find real sales solutions for women?
Delia Passi: Often they are not practicing good listening skills and are assuming they know what women want. They go for a quick solution and don’t take the time to understand her needs. She won’t necessarily tell them in simple terms. Women are not as quick as men to make a decision, and look to their friends, family and associates to validate their purchasing choices.
How critical are women to building this current economic recovery?
Delia Passi: Women’s spending will be critical to the recovery. Women influence over 80% of all consumer purchases, and if women aren’t confident in the economy, they will not return to their prior spending levels, with the result being a slower recovery.
What are some of the challenges that your business has faced in reaching your target markets?
Delia Passi: Businesses are not quick to change their marketing and selling practices, even when they understand the importance of their women customers. We are at the beginning of a movement toward appreciating the importance of improving the buying experience of the largest and most powerful segment in the market.
Your company has a Canadian partnership. Are there plans for more international expansion of your business as well?
Delia Passi: Our Canadian partner is only the beginning for us internationally. In the past year I have spoken to a conference in Dubai on marketing to women, and contributed an article on the subject of women’s vs. men’s shopping behavior for a newspaper in Hong Kong. Women are similar in their buying expectations and behavior regardless of geography or culture, and I expect our business to grow all around the world.
What is next for WomenCertified.com and for Delia Passi?
Delia Passi: We want to excite the women of the world about their power in the marketplace, and motivate business to give her the experience she demands when she seeks someone to buy from, whether it is for a car, a plumber, a computer or a hotel room. I won’t rest until women know where they can expect the right kind of experience.
