The role of women has greatly changed over the last 100 years and even over the last 20 years. Once the assumed homemakers of a male-dominated society, the financial future of a woman was tied up entirely in her spouse. No longer is this case. Women, with many taking over much higher corporate roles, have been in the workplace far too long for society to think of them as being of any less importance than men. As of June 2015, 23 women were CEOs in Fortune 500 companies, and that’s a number very much on the rise. It’s easy to see a correlation between women and investing. Unfortunately, many investment firms are unable to see this growing trend of women with wealth. Women who want to invest are currently under-served by most of these investment services. Hardly anybody is marketing to this growing trend of women in business --women who have savings that they want to grow through smart investments. Women should be a focus of financial investing for the following reasons: - They are caregivers and breadwinners. According to an article in the New York Times, women are increasingly becoming the breadwinners. The rate has grown from about 10 to 40 percent over the past 40 years. If this evens out between men and women or perhaps even flips on its head altogether, women must be provided the same opportunities to plan the future of their wealth. The role of caregiver has expanded into also being that of provider. In some cases, the woman is also the sole provider for her family. Any parent wants to be able to leave something for their children. Financial planning is an important part of that.
- The pay gap is decreasing. Although the pay gap is still present, it has greatly diminished. Women are being accepted in higher paying jobs and are now given the education and training opportunities that were once denied them. The amount of women who are the primary breadwinners in their families will only increase as the pay gap is eliminated.
- They have different wants. As children learn in health class or earlier, men and women are different. It’s natural for men and women to want different things. Although the offerings should be the same, what if you want specialized offerings as a woman? Women should understand women better. It may not be a universal truth, but many people find it’s just easier to talk to someone like them. The more financial institutions that understand that, the better off they’ll be. Fortunately, many financial institutions are beginning to offer personalized, specific opportunities designed to meet the specific needs of women.
The group that was once considered solely as caregivers is now increasingly adding breadwinning to the list of responsibilities. Add to that the decrease in the pay gap between men and women, and the future is quickly becoming bright for women and investing. Women have their own wealth, they want to invest it wisely, and they deserve the best financial advice and services available.
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