Did you know it’s National Women’s Business Week? Admittedly, these days, there is a “week” for everything. But, I couldn’t help but feel a little twinge of pride when I read that this morning.

As you may or may not know: Costa DeVault was founded by Linda Costa almost 25 years ago. Under the company’s original name, Wordwise, Inc., Linda began her business career out of the spare bedroom in her home … writing technical and creative copy for a variety of clients. Two years later she added design to the company’s repertoire. Today, her “startup” agency is creating big-time results for some of Central Florida’s most influential businesses.

It seems more and more successful women business owners, like Linda, are having a substantial impact on the evolving landscape of today’s workforce.

According to MomsRising, women-owned businesses:

Employ 23 million people (16 percent of the workforce, which is nearly double the number of those employed by the 50 biggest companies in the country combined);

Generate $3 trillion in revenue; and

Are more likely to offer supportive, *family-friendly benefits like flex-time and profit sharing.

Pretty powerful numbers. So, if you know a woman in the workforce, give her a shout-out. I’m proud that I work with some of the smartest women I know. Who are you celebrating this week?

*Costa DeVault offers flex-time and holds annual holiday parties and activities like “trick-or-treating.” Above is a coworker and I with our toddlers at last year’s Halloween celebration.

When I first saw this Cingular commercial in early 2007, my first reaction was: “Give me a break. Nobody actually talks like that.” A grammar fanatic at heart, I was still stubbornly writing out and correctly punctuating text messages. Not yet on Twitter, I didn’t even understand the term “character limit.”

Fast forward to yesterday, when I actually said “NBD” in a verbal conversation (meaning, “no big deal”). I was instantly embarrassed, but the person I was talking to was nonplussed. This got me thinking – how acceptable is “netspeak” in everyday communication?

There’s been a great deal of talk about this question, but this morning via BoingBoing, I saw an informal study on OKTrends (the blog of OKCupid.com, an online dating web site) that hammered the point home for me.

To find out how to write the most effective “first message” to someone, OKCupid analyzed more than 500,000 first contacts made on their site. Among other conclusions (Atheists get the most responses, “How’s it going” is the best greeting), the analysts found that the five worst words in a first contact are all a form of netspeak. Messages containing the following had the lowest response rates:

• ur
• r
• u
• ya
• cant

It’s not the most scientific study, but the “no-netspeak” trend was dramatic enough to make a point: Bad language is a turnoff in a first impression.

What do you think about the results of this study – do they surprise you? Share your thoughts about netspeak in the comments!

Photo: futureatlas.com

Fortune magazine recently interviewed Avon CEO Andrea Jung in an article about how companies are changing their marketing to reflect the times. Jung pointed to research that found only 13 percent of people who are tightening their budgets will go back to their old spending patterns once the recession ends. Avon has taken this opportunity to tell customers that Avon is a good value – using language such as “Shop smart: Shop Avon” and “Beauty on a Budget.”

Other companies, like Proctor & Gamble, have tweaked their product lines. They’ve recently rolled out Tide Basic, which The Wall Street Journal reported as lacking some of the cleaning capabilities of the original Tide – but costs 20 percent less. And almost a year ago, SunTrust changed its tagline to “Live Solid. Bank Solid.” Banks are also reviving “Christmas Club Accounts” to encourage people to save.

Just watch advertisements during a one-hour prime time show and you’ll find dozens of examples of companies catering to the frugal consumer. What this means is that the public doesn’t mind buying products or services – they’re just doing so with a value-centric attitude. And this affects the way companies communicate.

This subject of tailoring marketing messages to the economy will be addressed at the Orlando Area Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association’s Professional Development Workshop on Thursday, October 29 at Rollins College. Guest speakers from Tupperware, SunTrust, Firehouse Subs and more will share insight about their communication strategy in tough economic times. It’s a timely topic worth checking out. For more information about the event, visit www.fpra-orlando.org.