Moms interact online — big time. They not only read blogs, they write them and post to them. In fact, prominent social media groups estimate between 23 million and 26 million moms read and post to blogs. While this might sound like a large number, remember that according to the U.S. Census Bureau there are 83 million moms in the United States. This means that only about 33% of all U.S. moms participate in blogging. If we as marketers are communicating to and with mothers solely through blogs, then we’re leaving two-thirds of our target market in the dark. This is not a recipe for success. Instead, marketers must utilize a variety of media to create a meaningful dialog with moms. The best are videos, at home parties, and radio or podcasts.
According to BSM Media research, 90% of mothers watched an online video in the past week. Some, like Yahoo, say this number is even higher. Moms who visited major video channels aimed at moms viewed 11 to 15 videos per session and they currently have over 500 mom Vloggers (Video Bloggers). Video is fun and easy, and a mom can watch one while tending to other tasks. In fact, that’s one reason why the audio portion of any video aimed at moms must be self-sufficient.
Moms love to get together with like-minded moms and share. In-home parties are a great way to get your company into the conversations. Moms invite their peers to share wine and stories at themed events that include product samples and fun activities. Some researchers say that 80% of the moms who attend an at home party will tell three to five other moms about the product or company for whom the party was about. An additonal 10% will tell five to ten other mothers. That’s not social marketing — it’s word of mouth, which is even more powerful.
Then there’s radio, which does one of the best jobs delivering information to moms since their schedules are so inconsistent and their driving times so dramatic. Moms spend up to 75 minutes a day in their cars. Of course, when not listening to their passengers, they’re listening to the radio. Podcasting takes radio even one step further because podcasting allows moms to enjoy listen to information and learn as they go for a walk or shop for anything. Creating podcasts allows a company to connect with moms on iTunes or other podcast directories. This really isn’t hard. In fact, you can subscribe via iTunes to this blog and have it downloaded to your iPod whenever you want. I didn’t have to record this as I read it live. Instead, we use software that sounds really good for a computer. Click on it and see for yourself. And go to Odiogo.com to download software to automatically create your own podcasts.
To summarize, today’s moms are bombarded with information almost as much as they bombard others. They’re talkers/socializers/learners. And they’re great brand advocates. As a marketer, it’s important to establish a meaningful dialog with moms through various channels and not just blogs and eblasts. Think about where moms go — and put your message there.
This article is great. Being that I come from a family of 4 women and one man, I can tell everyone out there that what you say is definitely true. (I actually laughed out loud at one point) Women talking to women is a very powerful thing, especially when it is about products they like and dislike. The second I find anything that I like I can’t wait to tell all my friends and family. If you make a good impression on women you have a good chance of word of mouth spreading around and helping you…but if you make them angry you better watch out!