A recent Wall Street Journal headline asserted, "Videogame firms make a play for women."  It seems that videogame publishers are racing to launch games geared to both young and older women by the holiday shopping season.  Well, what took them so long?  Women aren't exactly a niche market; in fact, they now constitute more than 51 percent of the population--they ARE the mass market.

Here are some stats that might surprise you.

• Women bring in 55% of household income in the U.S.
• They control 51.2% of U.S. personal wealth.
• Women do 80% of household buying, account for 53% of investments, and make 80% of healthcare decisions.
• They buy 60% of all new cars and 66% of computers

And lest you think that these stats will diminish as the baby boomer crowd gets older, think again.  Women over the age of 50 are 15% of the population and account for 40% of discretionary spending. 

Getting back to video games, it's not just for guys anymore--women now make up 40% of the videogame market.  Mass market games that cross genders like Guitar Hero and Rock Band are propelling women of all ages to get involved in videogaming.

So as you're looking for markets that have real pains and money to spend for products and services that solve those pains, look at women.  They just might be the best market.