Mom Market Trends » Shopping

Smartphones: Moms’ Shopping Tool?

Stephanie Azzarone, President, Child's Play Communications — Mon, 16 May 2011 16:04:27 +0000

To what degree do moms use use their smartphones for shopping? According to the (debatable) results of a recent survey, when it comes to hitting the mall, a smartphone is a mom’s best friend.

A survey by Greystripe, a mobile ad firm, showed that:

The most frequent smartphone use when shopping was to locate the nearest store (about 45%)
The next most common usage: to compare prices
Only 15% said they actually used their smartphones to make purchases

Given Greystroke’s business, of course, the limited number of respondents and how they were recruited (239, via banner ads), the results have to be taken with a large grain of salt. A SheSpeaks online survey found that only 10% of women have downloaded shopping-related applications to their mobile devices; 62% were not even interested in doing so.

Moms: Do you use your smartphone for shopping? How often and in what way?

Marketers: How are you using smartphones, if at all, to entice moms to shop for your brand?

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Is Brand Loyalty Dead?

Stephanie Azzarone, President, Child's Play Communications — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:39:27 +0000

Has the Internet killed brand loyalty? Recent research shows that when it come to shopping, today’s consumers value research over loyalty. A study by AMP Agency, a Boston-based branding firm, found that unlike in previous generations “very few consumers between the ages of 25 and 49 are moved to purchase by habit, or sentimental considerations for a brand.”

In fact, just 3% of consumers surveyed said they are loyal to a particular brand and never buy anything else. A key reason is that it’s so easy for them to research a product before buying — even read reviews from other people about that exact same item or service. According to Allison Marsh, AMP’s VP, Consumer Insights, “with more information, consumers have seized control and are more open to the wide choices in the marketplace.” 94% of consumers said online research positively influenced their decision to make a purchase.

Some other findings:

44% of those surveyed said they do research when buying baby products
38% of the survey group said they do their research on social media sites

These finding relate to Child’s Play Communications’ own research, with the NPD Group, on how social media impacts moms’ purchasing decisions. We found that nearly a quarter of moms who are active in social media have made a purchase for their child based on a social media recommendation.

Moms: Has the ability to research a product impacted your loyalty to a brand? How does social media, specifically, help determine your purchasing decisions?

Marketers: How has consumers’ access to research negatively impacted your sales — and what have you done about it?

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‘F’ for Back to School Spending

Stephanie Azzarone, President, Child's Play Communications — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:32:09 +0000

Consumers will cut their spending for the 2009 back-to-school season, but not as much as in 2008, according to a recent NPD Group study. There was a 5% drop in those who said they don’t plan to shop for the season (77%) compared to the same time last year.

Most will buy school supplies, followed by apparel, footwear and electronics. 79% will buy a product because of its value, 45% because “it’s required.” 82% will shop at an office supply store, 42% at mass merchant/discount stores, 29% at chain stores and 20% at department stores.

What are your back-to-school shopping plans this year?

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