Technology Blog

Capitalism at work: Getting more women to buy software

Today I read in the paper that software companies have found a niche in which to market software to women. Seems that women make up the majority of people who scrapbook (verb, not noun) and that women have less time to get out all their stuff and make the analog versions of scrapbooks. So digital scrapbooking is taking off and women can grab a minute here and there to create digital version of scrapbooks that they can then print out, complete with text and photographs. I applaud capitalism and its search for new markets and found it particularly interesting that the format for scrapbook pages--big and square--is incompatable with current printers so HP and other printer companies are creating niche printers to go with niche software. The new printers print big square pages.

I would have thought that women might move to different aspect ratios for scrapbooking, following the standard 8 1/2 x 11, but that wouldn't sell new products, but having to print odd size pages will. Also, companies that used to sell film and who are now in trouble because no one uses film and companies that used to make prints, because people shoot more pictures and print fewer, thought up the new printer and software systems.

Curious the interplay between analog and digital media and the continuing development of niche markets. Look at the Adobe site for more specifics on how a .pdf product has moved into this new market.