To witness the social media buzz of Ambassador Programs, cruise your favorite mom blogs to feel the excitement these women have created around being named to the Papa Murphy’s Mom Panel, HP Moms Panel or Claritin Mom’s Crew. They are engaged online and offline with the sponsoring brand and produce millions of impressions and referrals for the brand that invested in a deeper relationship with them. In-Home Parties are making their mark on social media and local communities as well. I invite you to visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/disneysidecelebrations/ or search #DisneySide on Twitter to read the millions of tweets that the 2000+ mom hosts have posted.

At first glance, marketers and agencies might think it’s time to go into launch mode and begin throwing parties around the country or invest in the first proposal that hits their desk.  But buyers beware!  Like any marketing program, these initiatives are only successful with the right mix of people, strategy and execution.   We’ve put together a few considerations marketers and brand owners should heed before rolling out the carpet to mom panelists and party hosts.

1)     Creating a Mom’s Panel requires a larger budget and a longer commitment than your most recent mom campaign.
Doing it right can, rather should, cost you more than a blogger tour or a full-page ad in a parenting publication.  If you see a price tag that doesn’t have six figures, something is missing.  A Mom’s Panel requires the brand to invest in long-term, unpaid relationships with moms that include constant engagement via product samples, promotions and consistent dialogue. It also requires a commitment of 12 months to 5 years.

2)     Not every mom is the right mom for your brand.
This cautionary phrase is one that I say as often as I say my nightly prayers.  You can’t successfully launch a Mom’s Panel or In Home Parties if you are using a database of moms that is used over and over by multiple brands.  For both types of programs, it is necessary to select the right moms for your brand.  If your plan of execution doesn’t include a solid platform to screen the moms during the selection process, you won’t be successful.

3)      Jumping before you look will only take you to the bottom.
It’s exciting to watch other brands use new marketing initiatives that seem promising for your brand. You see their hashtags trending and their brand floods your news stream. However, jumping into the mix without a clear vision for your ultimate desired results is dangerous.  Engaging moms in either of these new trends requires a solid communication plan between your brand and the moms you recruit.  Before you start the conversation make certain you have clear goals for the relationship.

Moms enjoy engaging with the brands they buy but they also like to know your expectations as a marketer.  Before engaging her with the latest and greatest marketing initiative, prepare your brand with a solid communication plan built on the right strategy. Sometimes it’s best to watch and listen before you react.  To see more of what’s new in mom marketing, watch the hashtags #DisneySide, #HPSmartMomPanel and #PapaMurphysMNO.

The post New Marketing Trends Come With Caution Signs appeared first on BSM Media.

1)     Leverage the new holidays Millennial moms have created to new marketing occasions.
Babymoons, gender reveal parties and ½ birthdays are all events created by Millennial moms.  They enjoy being in the spotlight of friends and family and sharing it all on social media.  Find a way to put your brand in the middle of the action either as a food item she serves, a gift she receives or the location she selects to host her event.

2)     Get into video. Really. Get into video.
Maybe you have dabbled in video and uploaded a few YouTube videos, but you need to do more.  And it’s not professionally produced videos that I’m talking about.  Quick product commentary, mom video reviews and consumer-generated Vine videos are the types of videos that moms are watching.

3)     Host live events online.
Last month, HP decided to take their in-store demonstrations to the Internet with live online demonstrations.  They partnered with MomTV.com, and were able to demonstrate the HP Chromebook to hundreds of moms online and generated over 9 million impressions for the product along the way.

4)     Hang back on jumping into Google +  and Google Hangout.
Mom bloggers aren’t as excited about Google + as the media and Google + would like you to believe.  Mom bloggers in particular have spent years establishing their communities and as mothers they are just too busy to re-establish them on a new platform.

5)     Meet moms in their living rooms.
Disney is doing it.  So is Morton, Leap Frog and Cadbury.   This month alone over 5000 moms will be hosting MommyParties on behalf of a brand.  I like to call it social media meets book club on steroids.  Moms with influence are recruited and screened to host a party themed around the sponsoring brand’s product.  The outcome is a more personal engagement between moms and brands.

6)     Engage with mom bloggers in a new way.
Moms are moving away from writing product reviews on their blogs. However, this doesn’t mean they are passé marketing.  No, mom bloggers still provide a very effective relationship to maintain for marketers.  Brands need to leverage a mom’s Instagram followers, Pinterest boards and Facebook friends in order to leverage their established level of influence rather than requesting a product review in return for a free piece of swag.
7)     Recognize that the newest form of marketing hasn’t even been introduced yet.
Don’t believe that the marketing plan you set into place today will be fresh until my 2015 trend list is published.  There are technologies and social media platforms that will spring up in the next 12 months that none of us can predict yet.  Last year at this time, SnapChat wasn’t on my iPhone!

I wish everyone a successful 2014.

The post Advice for Marketing to Moms in 2014 appeared first on BSM Media.

For the holidays, I decided to spread good cheer through song. As this season flies by due to a late Thanksgiving, I hope 2013 was a success and your 2014 plans include effective strategies, like those listed below, to reach moms. Since you (luckily) can’t hear me sing in a written post, sing the tune to “The Twelve Days of Christmas” in your head for the full effect.

On the first day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
A trending Twitter Par-tee

On the second day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the third day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the fourth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the fifth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the sixth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Six Moms a -sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the seventh day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a-sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the eighth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Eight million impressions
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a-sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the ninth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Nine brand ambassadors
Eight million impressions
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a -sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter Part-tee

On the tenth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Ten seconds of Vine
Nine brand ambassadors
Eight million impressions
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a-sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter part-tee

On the eleventh day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Eleven Google Hangouts
Ten seconds of Vine
Nine brand ambassadors
Eight million impressions
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a -sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter part-tee

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my mom marketing gave to me,
Twelve months of sales
Eleven Google Hangouts
Ten seconds of Vine
Nine brand ambassadors
Eight million impressions
Seven Mommy Parties
Six Moms a-sharin’
Five viral videos
Four positive blog posts
Three Pinterest pins
Two thousand Facebook Likes
And a trending Twitter part-tee.

Have a happy holiday season and a prosperous 2014.

The post 12 Days of Mom Marketing appeared first on BSM Media.

Engaging with Millennial Moms, gaining their loyalty and winning their business means using dramatically different tactics compared to prior generations of moms. The differences are critical, and are sharply influenced by factors like how she was parented, school-aged influences, her parent’s affluence, and above all, technology. I’ve covered the demographics, parenting and school influences in a prior post; now, let’s dig deeper in to technology.

How Technology Shapes Millennial Behaviors

Technology impacts almost everything a millennial mom does and buys for herself and her family. Whether she is browsing through an online retail site, checking her Facebook page or posting a photo and location on Instagram, her phone or device (plus the device to entertain baby) is one of the most valuable tools she owns. If moms from older generations have mixed feelings about their cell phones and devices (is it a necessary tool or necessary evil?), Millennial Moms won’t leave home without them. They are rarely disconnected and expect immediate, 24/7 gratification. Our survey shows how much Millennials love their mobile technology and social media:

• Almost all Millennials — 90% — admit to texting photos of a possible purchase to another person for approval
• 58% say they use their phones to look up store hours and locations.
• About 55% check their social media accounts at least twice each day totaling an estimated 17 hours each week
• 80% say they watch at least one video each week

Millennials embrace new social media quickly, as seen by the explosive growth of Pinterest and Instagram. Almost 75% of moms use Pinterest for recipes, inspiration and decorating ideas. Keeping up with Millennials as early adopters of new technology and social media is the challenge of marketers, businesses and brands. Products and brands with a presence in social media are in the Millennial Mom’s virtual playground. Keeping her loyal and spreading the word to her friends and family involves engaging with her in a way that can be easily shared with those same friends and family. Recall that her background and experiences pre-parenthood mean that she is also looking for ways to customize products and relationships, paying attention to those that make her (and now her family) feel special.

Technology affects how these moms socialize, communicate and, more importantly, purchase items for themselves and their families. To reach the influential Millennial Mom means engaging with relevant dialogue that she can access with any electronic device, so your product or brand will capture her attention and purchase power while she is sitting in the cafe.

The post Technology and the Millennial Mom appeared first on BSM Media.

Regardless of age, race, ethnicity, family size or geographical location, there are five core values that drive Mom’s decisions. Health and Safety, Family Enrichment, Value, Simplification and Time Management are the core values that should be the starting point for every program or engagement you create with or for a mother. The first core value – Health and Safety – is at the top of the list for a reason and the one we will focus on here.

Few things rank higher on Mom’s list of priorities than the health of her family. Mom is smart enough to know that she needs help, advice and support to keep her children safe and healthy. She wants to know that a company, doctor or service provider cares about her family’s health and well-being. To achieve this result, companies who design products or programs that tell mom they understand and care about her healthcare needs are demonstrating a shared core value through actions.

Moms also use relationship building and community, among other factors, to connect with the five core values mentioned earlier. They are the channels mom leverages to ensure her children grow up safe and healthy with the hope of having “more”, whether it’s food or education, in the most value minded, simplistic way possible within her limited amount of time.

Relationship Building

Nurturing relationships speaks to the core of a mother’s existence. Mom inherently nurtures relationships with almost everyone and everything she comes in contact with throughout the day.

What does a healthy, satisfying relationship look like? Two important ingredients include knowledge and two-way communication. Information, knowledge and know-how are important currencies for a mom. In the world of moms, it all comes down to the fact that one mom may know something that Moms in her peer group may not know yet. Knowing the answer to a common (or not so common) children’s health question or concern gives Mom an elevated status as she spreads the news to friends and family.

Coupled with knowledge is the positive impact of relationship-building techniques. When Mom experiences quality service that exceeds expectations, she is empowered with knowledge that will enlighten her peers, with the added benefit of solidifying a healthy relationship. Mom will be a loyal customer and best of all, will spread the valuable “Word of Mom” to friends, family, even strangers on the playground.

However, knowledge is only a small part of the larger tool a mom will use to nurture relationships. Communication is the overriding means of a mom getting her message distributed and absorbed by the people around her. The strategy of utilizing new media speaks directly to her core definition of communication, if considered as a multi-channel delivery system. While Mom uses email and of course, her smartphone to communicate with the world around her, the same email or smartphone reminder about an appointment, a newsletter with industry news or local updates or the “old-fashioned” phone call (to the most convenient number) is a valuable tool when reaching a very busy Mom. It means that mom will engage with the situation by opening the email or picking up the phone or reading a web-based email with – and this a the critical point – an expectation of response, if requested.

Another important factor in communicating with Mom, especially using new media and technology, is that she can access the information on her own time. This on-demand access means Mom does not have to alter her routine and can keep the day moving at her own pace.

Community

Mom is a part of multiple communities, from family and the workplace to children’s school and usually more than one social group (think book club or playgroup). In order to develop a meaningful relationship with mom, it’s important to be a part of her community. How does a company or product accomplish this task? Determine a touch point that is relevant to Mom (and her peers) and present it in a way that is neither too commercial nor patronizing. Giving Mom something of value and relevance, along with a sense of validation on her part will open the door to Mom’s community groups.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to engaging with today’s moms. These tactics are just the tip of the iceberg. Remember that Mom is a powerful consumer that, once a loyal customer, can be the best form of marketing for your business and brand.

The post Engaging with Mom Means Relationships appeared first on BSM Media.