The future of marketing—how women are prioritizing humanity, inclusion and philanthropy over profit

As brands plan the future of their communication with consumers, they need to consider how women are disrupting the status quo of every field, from art to business, from technology to government. Women's History Month is the perfect time for brands to understand the ways women are impacting major sectors of society.

We are used to envisioning the future through lenses created by men—think about most traditional science fiction with its dystopian focus on war and conquest. But women are shaping the ways we create new technology, start businesses and distribute wealth, all of which are essential to connecting with consumers. And right now, according to a recent survey, 91% of women feel misunderstood by advertisers.

Here are three areas where women are changing the future:

Technology will prioritize humanity over profit

There are three main ways of classifying technology. There's tech for tech's sake. There's tech created with the claim that inventors want to change the world, but really just exploits people and damages the planet. And then there's the kind of tech that augments the ways humans fundamentally exist and operate.

As women advance in the fields of research and development, we will see more tech to improve the quality of the human experience, such as health and wellness. Research into sound healing, for instance, shows that the human body responds to various sound frequencies including drumming, humming, singing and or chanting, which can improve healing and a greater sense of balance to our lives. Technology that replicates these sounds can expand our conception of how to promote health and wellness.

Among the corporate leaders spearheading the way for the next generation of women in tech are Kimberly Bryant, founder and CEO of Black Girls Code; Ellen K. Pao, co-founder and CEO of Project Include; Kate Crawford, co-founder of the AI Now Institute; and Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of Girls Who Code.

Major institutions will be inclusive in their approach to equity

Large organizations such as corporations and governments were largely created by men with top-down structures. Businesses created by women look different.

The hierarchical systems currently in place reinforce inequality. As more women create and lead large organizations, they will implement new systems informed by inclusion. Many of these systems will be based in networks, community and cooperation. A structure like this—a corporate web rather than a corporate ladder—is better equipped to enable change, reorganization and growth within the system.

As marketers look to retain and recruit top talent, they must think about how to organize their businesses differently. Venture capitalists including Nathalie Molina Niño, author of “Leapfrog: The New Revolution for Women Entrepreneurs” and co-founder and chief strategy officer of Known Holdings—which directs investment to entrepreneurs of color, especially women—are helping to create successful women-owned enterprises.

Marketers must not only take a page from this book to organize their own houses but also need to realize they have a growing consumer base of women building businesses according to these principles.

Philanthropy will be for the greater good

Women are becoming wealthier. According to statistics from the Federal Reserve, MassMutual Financial Group, Gallup and Businessweek, women in the United States control more than 60% of personal wealth. With that greater wealth comes more social responsibility.

Historically, business philanthropy has been criticized as vanity philanthropy. Donations from the John D. Rockefeller fortune, for instance, were denounced as tainted money made through the exploitation of natural resources and cutthroat business practices by Standard Oil.

Such philanthropy has also been criticized as perpetuating systems that allowed the ultra-wealthy to accumulate wealth.

When wealth sits in women's hands, by contrast, it is directed in different ways. Take Mackenzie Scott—Jeff Bezos' ex-wife—who has given billions of dollars to grassroots organizations with successful track records to scale up and further their missions. Scott has donated more than $14 billion to approximately 1,600 nonprofits since 2019, she said in December.

Throughout history, women have shaped culture, advanced civilization and ensured the survival of the human race—though powers that be have not always recognized it. That is about to change. Women are going to shape the future in clear and identifiable ways.

If brands and marketers don't want to be left in the dust, they need to pay attention to how women are shaking up industries and learn from how they lead.