Mom Market Trends

Moms can’t live without their smartphones, according to recent research by BabyCenter. In fact, moms’  adoption of smartphones has increased 64% over the past two years, and 51% of moms report that they are “addicted” to smartphones. The survey looked at 5,000 moms across the U.S. Following are some key findings:

• More than half said they bought a smartphone “as a direct result of becoming a mom.”
• After becoming a mom, the most important smartphone features became, in order, the camera, the video, then apps. Fifty two percent of moms said they had 10 or more apps on their phone and one-quarter of them were for their kids.
• Moms are 40% more likely than avergae to use their smartphones for social networking.
• 68% of moms use their smartphones to shop and 62% report that they use shopping apps to compare prices and do research.
• The majorty of moms sleep with their smartphones next to their beds and more than half check their phones first thing in the morning.

Moms, are you devoted to your smartphone? What do you use it for and what kinds of apps would you like to see? Marketers, what apps do you offer for moms and how else do you use smartphones to reach them?

It’s not quite Disneyland, but the annual Toy Fair – starting today — in New York City generates its own high-pitched version of child-like fun and excitement. For the past 20 years or so, I’ve joined the crowd cramming the aisles of this much anticipated event which introduces the toys that will land on moms’ must-have lists come the holiday shopping season. It’s here at Toy Fair that companies launch their latest to retailers, traditional press, and in recent years, social media alike. We invite you to stop by the Summit Toy booth, #1973, where we’ll be demonstrating  the popular Backyard Safari Outfitters and Zillionz toy lines. I’ll also be walking the aisles with my colleagues, Julie Livingston, former head of public relations for Toy Fair and now Director of New Business Development at Child’s Play, and Marie Baker, who heads our social media program. We’ve  got dozens of meetings booked with companies who are leaders in the toy industry, to discuss how our combination of traditional public relations, social media and word-of-mouth expertise can help them reach moms.

So whether you’re a toy manufacturer looking for more awareness among moms or a mom blogger interested in reviewing toys, we hope to meet you at Toy Fair! Connect with us at childsplay@childsplaypr.com.

See you there!

The Journal of Adolescent Health reported this month that girls who play video games with parents had better mental health than girls who played them alone or with friends.   The study, entitled “Game On… Girls:  Associations Between Co-Playing Video Games and Adolescent Behavioral and Family Outcomes,” not only found that playing games with mom or dad helped girls feel more connected to their families, but that the same girls were better behaved overall.

“It’s tough for many parents to connect with their teenagers, who sometimes view the other as an alien life form.  Maybe bonding over video games, at least for teen girls, is the way to go,” wrote Rachel Silverman in The Wall Street Journal’s popular blog, “The Juggle.”  It’s the face-to-face interaction – the quality time spent on an activity that adolescents enjoy – that makes the experience so impactful, she said.

The study, which focused on children ages 11 to 16, found that the games needed to be age-appropriate to make an impact.  When games were too mature, the research showed that parents and daughters bonded less.  The reason: intense games interfered with conversation and interaction.

While the results sound logical enough, some parents may find comfort in having a scientific study back up their pricey e-game purchase.  (The study found that boys, surprisingly, did not show a measurable benefit when playing video games with parents.)    

Moms: do you play video games with your tweens and teens?  Will this study influence your decision to purchase certain types of video games?

Marketers: Do you make any games that would be perfect for moms and their daughters to play together?

Yesterday, I posted the highlights of an intriguing study just out from BabyCenter.  Today, some more details…

The study maintains that there are five unique segments of social moms and that these five are broken down into two categories

Influencers: Field Experts, Lifecasters and Pros

Influenced: Butterflies and the Audience 

According to the study,  these Influencers make up only 18% of social moms, but account for 78% of the influence. The research defined influence based on how often moms post or comment on social networks, along with the size of their networks. The study defined those networks as including “e.g., BabyCenter, Twitter, Facebook or blogs.”

Following is a summary of how BabyCenter breaks down its categories:

Field Expert. A young stay at home mom who uses social media to share parenting advice, typically  focused on a specific topic (e.g.,  raising twins, breastfeeding issues), with a large network of moms who seek her out for advice. She is defined as being most active in “parenting-focused social media environments.” According to the study, Field Experts make up 8% of social moms and have a 33% share of influence overall.

Lifecaster. A Millennial mom  of young children who is very active in social media.  She has a strong need to stay connected and enjoys being recognized as the person to go to on many topics, not just parenting. She has a large number of connections in social media.  Lifecasters make up 8% of social moms and 34% percent of influence overall.

Pros. Gen X mom bloggers who have turned their passion for social media into a profession. “She posts opinions and advice on a wide variety of topics including parenting tips and product reviews and giveaways.” Often, she has been compensated in some way for writing about brands on her blog. Pros represent 2% of moms in social media and have an 11% share of influence overall.  BabyCenter explains: “While they are incredibly influential individually, they account for a lower proportion of the influence overall due to their small size.” Pros are most influential on blogs, where they have an 89% share of influence and on Twitter with 68%.

And who are the Influenced?

Butterflies. Young professionals expecting their first child. She  has a lot of friends online and off, but little time, so  she tends to only post  important updates and primarily uses platforms such as Facebook.  She also seeks advice about her pregnancy on parenting-focused social media networks. She tends to be more on the receiving end of advice and recommendations rather than a dispenser of such information. Butterflies represent 16% of moms in social media but only wield 7% of the influence overall because of their low level of activity.

 The Audience. This, the largest group of social moms, is listening to the other moms. This group ranges from expectant moms to moms of older children. They have fewer online friends and comment less frequently in social media, but are highly influenced by the other segments. “Moms in this group use parenting-focused social media environments…to find useful information, ask questions, get product recommendations or receive support. They use mainstream social sites to keep in touch with friends and for consuming entertainment. They are there to observe and obtain information – not to comment.” At 66% percent of moms who use social media, the audience makes up the largest group but wields little influence relative to their size at 15% overall.

Moms, do you feel these categories make sense? Into which group do you fall? Marketers, what is your reaction?

 For more details on the “2010 Mom Social Influencer Report,” visit here.

BabyCenter just released the results of a fascinating new study that dug deep into the kinds of moms who are involved in social media, how and why they spend their time there, and — most importantly for marketers — their varying levels of influence.  I’d like to share their findings, in two parts.

First, a summary of key messages:

• Motherhood is the #1 reason for social media usage.  According to the research, pregnancy and birth motivated the vast majority of mothers in social media —  94% — to seek out information and share opinions with others online.
• Just 18% of social moms wield an astonishing 78% of the overall influence.
• Mom bloggers — as compared with all moms in social media  — make up 16% of the audience but are responsible for a huge percentage — 67% — of the influence.
• Not surprisingly, moms use different social sites for different reasons, from socializing to gathering information.

Moms, what motivated you to get involved in social media? What do you use it for? Where do you like to go, and why? Marketers, how do these findings impact your plans for reaching moms through social media?

For more on the BabyCenter “2010 Mom Social Influencer Report”  visit here. or check out tomorrow’s post for more on the subject.

On August 5th — the evening before BlogHer 2010 begins– Child’s Play Communications will host a more intimate gathering, Dinner’s On Us, where 100 leading mom bloggers and 10 sponsors can easily network and learn about what each has to offer the other. As an added attraction, the event will also feature the first annual Bloganthropy Awards, designed to recognize bloggers who have used social media to support good causes.

This will be Child’s Play Communications’ fourth major mom-blogger event. (Click here for information on our last one, the LA Bloggers Brunch.) The agency will treat blogger guests to an elegant and authentic NYC night out–drinks, with a view, on the terrace of a lovely location, followed by a great dinner buffet, the awards presentation and the opportunity to connect with fabulous sponsors interested in creating relationships. Sponsors to date include Nickelodeon, Toyota, Cuisinart, Giddy Up, K’NEX, Baby Boom, Hershey’s/Kraft, Backyard Safari Outfitters/Zillionz,  The California Strawberry Commission and Cold Stone Creamery.

Companies: For additional information,  contact Julie Livingston, (212) 488-2060 X 12, jl@childsplaypr.com.

Bloggers: We have a few spots left for guests. Because we want to give exposure to our sponsors, we are inviting moms who do product reviews to attend. If that describes you and you’re interested, please forward your name, blog name and contact information to childsplay@childsplaypr.com.

Dinner’s On Us will be a unique and exciting event. We look forward to seeing you there!