Posts Tagged "Marketing to Moms"

A new client is a wonderful thing, and we’d like to welcome three of them to the Child’s Play Team:

Music Together is an internationally recognized early childhood music program for children from birth through age 7 and the adults who love them. The company pioneered the concept of a research-based, developmentally appropriate early childhood music curriculum that strongly emphasizes and facilitates adult involvement. Based in Princeton, NJ, Music Together has locations in more than 2000 communities around the globe. Child’s Play Communications will position Music Together as a thought leader in music education and create further awareness of the value of its brand, through an extensive traditional media and social media campaign.

 Fairy Tales Hair Care is the U.S. leader in all-natural lice prevention products for children.  Headquartered in Passaic, NJ, the company produces a best-selling line of organic Rosemary Repel hair care products, and a wide range of natural products for bed bugs and mosquitoes.  The brand is available in over 7,000 salons, specialty stores and pharmacies across the U.S. Child’s Play will be responsible for launching the company’s new products and expanding awareness of its existing lines, through traditional and social media outreach.

My Twinn is the leading creator of one-of-a-kind personalized dolls since 1993.  Designed to look like children ages 3-12, handcrafted My Twinn dolls are cuddly companions today and cherished keepsakes in the years to come.  My Twinn is headquartered in Chatham, VA. Child’s Play will spread word about the brand and introduce new products, through both traditional and social media programs.

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!

Add the economic downturn to the recent shift in traditional gender roles and what do you get?  A modern day dad worthy of your marketing dollars.

In a recent  Advertising Age article entitled “Time to Rethink Your Message: Now the Cart Belongs to Daddy,” the magazine takes a look at how the expanding role of today’s American father is shifting the way companies are marketing the consumer goods and services formerly considered “for mom only.”  Jack Neff writes:

“Through decades of media fragmentation, marketers of packaged goods and many other brands could take solace in one thing – at least they could count on their core consumers being moms and reach them through often narrowly targeted cable TV, print and digital media.  But a study by Yahoo finds that… dads in particular are taking up the shopping cart, with about six in 10 identifying themselves as their household’s decision maker on packaged goods, health, pet and clothing purchases.”

While the men’s perception is a tad off – the article goes on to state that “actual behavioral research of these shoppers shows a number more like 35%” – it does raise the question: what about dad?   With more men embracing additional responsibilities at home, not to mention the recent surge in the number of “stay-at-home-dads” pushing strollers around the city,  it’s no surprise that savvy companies are interested in reaching the new “modern day” dad. 

According to the article, brands such as Head & Shoulders and Huggies have already started running ads targeted specifically to men.  And online, marketing giant P&G has recently launched manofthehouse.com, an online destination for dads where they can find articles, blog posts and product news on topics ranging from “family & parenting” to “looking good” – subjects traditionally reserved for women’s magazines and mommy blogs.

At Child’s Play Communications, we’re dedicated to reaching moms with influence over the family’s purse strings.  We also have a longstanding Digital Dads program, for some of the very reasons outlined here.  

Moms, when it comes to purchasing everyday household goods, who wears the pants in your family these days?  Do you think it’s time for marketers to start paying more attention to dad?

Marketers, have you shifted your focus to include dads in your outreach?

It has been quite a year.

First, here at Child’s Play we are utterly thrilled that despite the terrible economy, we had the opportunity to represent an amazing array of companies, expand our services and even hire new staff.  So, first and foremost, a huge thank you to all the companies that have turned to us this year for traditional public relations, social media outreach, word of mouth communications or a combination of the above. It has been a true pleasure to work with you.

Second, on behalf of myself and my staff, I would like to thank all the bloggers who attended our Bloggers Brunch events this year, in Los Angeles and Chicago, and our special Dinner’s on Us during BlogHer in New York City, where we had the honor of hosting the first annual Bloganthropy Awards. I hope you all had a blast — we certainly did! And bloggers we reconnected with or met for the first time in the halls at various social media conferences – terrific seeing you, too!  We are grateful, also, to the many wonderful bloggers who spoke on the panels we organized this year to help companies work most effectively with moms in social media.

And let’s not forget the moms around the country who hosted home-based brand immersion events through our new Child’s Play Party! program,  then posted the most fabulous photos and comments online.

Last, but by no means least, a huge thanks to my amazing team, many of whom the moms out there have had the opportunity to meet: Marie Baker,  who heads our award-winning, Team Mom blogger review network; Julie Livingston, the wizard behind our blogger and home-party events; Shara Benison, our infant and toddler expert; Erika Sanchez, queen of holiday gift guides and local event publicity; Alyson Rowe, who is somehow managing to get her master’s degree despite us, and Fiona MacLeod, our special-projects assistant. Big hugs to all of you — I could not do any of this without your warmth and wisdom.

That said, starting now I will be taking a break from blogging for the next  few weeks while I visit my son, who is spending the year in China. Seeing him for the first time since he left in August is yet something else I am most grateful for this year.

Happy New Year everyone!

What a day in LA!

On  April 13^th, Child’s Play Communications hosted its third annual Bloggers Brunch – and its first on the West Coast.  The Los Angeles event, designed to connect companies with mom bloggers in an intimate atmosphere conducive to conversation and personal connections, featured a panel  presentation by leading West Coast mom bloggers, titled, “Connecting with Moms in Social Media.”

Speakers included Jill Asher, Silicon Valley Moms Blog; Ciaran Blumenfeld, Momfluential; Caryn Bailey, Rockin’ Mama and Maryanne Conlin (MC Milker), The Not Quite Crunchy Parent. I had the opportunity and the distinct pleasure of serving as moderator for this great group of women, all of whom offered terrific, thoughtful and highly useful advice to an audience of corporate representatives mixed with other mom bloggers.

The morning presentation was followed by an elegant brunch in the sun-filled courtyard of the Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach, where 50 West Coast bloggers enjoyed each other’s company and engaged one:one with top-of-the-line sponsors including Bandai, Cold Stone Creamery, Dyson, Nickelodeon, PajamaJeans, Pottery Barn Kids, Summit Products and Toyota. Temptress, meanwhile, provided makeovers to all our guests. The sponsors offered wonderful giveaways and an amazing array of raffle prizes, from baskets full of toys to shopping and spa gift certificates to vacuum cleaners to a year’s worth of free ice cream. Guests also had the opportunity to test drive cars.

We were so pleased to have such a great turnout of bloggers and sponsors alike, and I would like to take this opportunity to extend our thanks to speakers, sponsors and guests. Based on the numbers of bloggers who attended, the quality of the sponsors and the  feedback from both—in person and on Twitter —  I’d have to say this was our best Brunch ever!

For photos of  the Los Angeles Brunch, please click here. Video coming soon!

We’ve got more Bloggers Brunch events and other great  mom-focused  social media activities planned for 2010. Be sure to get in touch if you’d like to know more about them (sa@childsplaypr.com). Hope to see you there!

Stephanie  Azzarone

President

Child’s Play Communications

135 W. 29th St., Suite 701

NYC NY 10001

Specialists in reaching moms

Phone: (212) 488-2060 x 11

Email: sa@childsplaypr.com

Website: www.childsplaypr.com

Blog: MomMarketTrends.com

Twitter: ChildsPlayComm