It’s a Mom’s World We’re Living In

The buying power of moms in the U.S. is estimated to be $21 trillion annually, so as marketers and brand stewards, it is important to keep a finger on the pulse of “Mom”. GKV recently attended the 12th Annual Marketing to Moms conference in NYC, where marketing leaders gathered to discuss the latest trends in speaking to this specific audience. Here is what we felt were the top-three strongest takeaways from the event:

Emotional connection is key for brands that want to engage moms, and understanding the latest emotional drivers can help brands focus.

Passion Points are Changing – Emotional connection is key for brands that want to engage moms, and understanding the latest emotional drivers can help brands focus. An interesting perspective came from The Family Room’s passion points research at this year’s conference. In 2016, the number one passion point that is driving moms’ purchasing is protection and safety (up from the least important passion point in 2015). Moms feel they are raising families in an uncertain world, and it isn’t that they fear big catastrophes in their community, but rather they want to ensure the home, family and nest they have created remains safe and intact. Moms want their children to always feel loved, secure and cozy in the home with their family. Other top passion points included ensuring kids are prepared for success, and playing and laughing as a family. Aligning brands with the right emotion is key to success.

Social Rules – Few brands would argue against the merits of social media to connect with current and potential fans/ambassadors, but everything we heard at M2Moms points to this channel becoming even more valuable as the population of millennial moms grows (currently 83% of new moms are millennial moms). Eighty-six percent of moms surveyed by Influncer Central said that social media content has become a chief source of research when making a purchase decision, and moms are three times more likely to try a new product if they have seen a recommendation on social media from a third party (influencers). This is also a platform to tell your brand story in your own voice, and it is important to be consistent in that voice as moms look for brands that truly reflect her life and values.

Collaboration Nation — Things are moving fast, and the marketing industry has changed more in the last three years than it did in the last 30. There are more niche vendors, automated software developers and marketing tools than ever before. If you are a brand marketer that is embarking on a project and thinking “if we could only identify a larger engaged audience on social media or get our product into the hands of a new audience that really wants it, or if we could ensure a better open rate on our eblasts…” you name it and there are partners to help. There are new partners emerging all the time that can help lead marketers and agencies achieve their specific goals — from Sampler to Social Toaster and Imbotta or Seventh Sense and beyond. As brand champions, it is important not only to know about the latest and greatest options available, but to also test-drive different methods and collaborate to find the right balance and marketing mix.