Working Moms Turn To Technology

According to M2Moms, 60% of moms feel that marketers are ignoring their needs, and 73% feel that advertisers don't really understand what it's like to be a mom. The challenge, says the report, is sensing her distinct, timely needs and responding in a way that truly resonates.

As CEOs of their households, Power Moms wield more influence than ever:

* Moms control 85% of household spending
* Are worth more than $2 trillion to U.S. brands, as reported by the Marketing to Moms Coalition
* According to the U.S. Department of Labor, over 78% of Moms with children under 18 were employed in 2000
* Working out of the home, telecommuting, or running a business from home, media technology and the Internet have become a true enabler

Nielsen Online reports that moms between the ages of 25-54 who have at least one child under the age of 18 within the home represent 19% of the total online population. Power Moms influence online purchase decisions for foods, beauty and household products, projected to grow to $12 billion in 2011.

Power Moms leverage digital applications to stay organized, connect with their families, friends and mom networks through Facebook and micro-blog platforms like Twitter, as well MomBloggersClub.com and TwitterMoms.com, and paying the bills, ordering groceries, downloading coupons and hunting for ideas for the next family vacation. Power Moms are also mobile enthusiasts who are 35% more likely to use text messaging/SMS on the go.

According to M2Moms, 68% of African American mothers are more likely to read articles online, and 45% more likely to listen to music. 45% of Caucasian mothers are likely to frequent social networks, and 43%, message boards. Blogs were the top choice among 55% of Hispanic Moms, followed by social networks at 42%.

Understanding the Power Mom's online behavior enables precision in online targeting for optimizing media plans. For example:

* Established moms aged 40-50 who have three or more children in the home are heavy online shoppers, over-indexing on sites like Shopzilla, Target and Walmart compared with the average online consumer. They also stay connected on email and are beginning to dabble in social networks, primarily Facebook.

Mothers aged 25-35 with at least one child at home are also heavy online shoppers, but the role of social networking is much more prominent. In addition to email, they are:

* 85 percent more likely to spend time with Facebook compared to the average online consumer.

While Power Moms aged 39-54 are only 23% more likely to post comments on social networks:

* Women aged 40-50 in the home are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook. According to Facebook Insight

Jessica Hogue, research director, Nielsen Online, concludes that "Established Moms gravitate to online shopping destinations... receptive to highly relevant promotions... to... indulge herself while saving on her family's needs... (but) marketers shouldn't rule out... social networking sites among this cohort... "

Top Sites Visited by Power Moms Online (Index, Average = 100)

Site
Moms 40-50, HH 3-4


Site
Moms 25-35, HH 1-2

Shopzilla
192


Target
276

Target
160


Craiglist
253

Walmart
155


Blogger
227

Glam Media
147


Walmart
190

Amazon
135


Amazon
187

AOL AIM
129


Facebook
185

AOL Media
122


Wikipedia
184

Wikipedia
121


eBay
178

Yahoo! Mail
117


Yahoo! Mail
162

eBay
116


Myspace.com
160

Facebook
114


YouTube
142

Myspace
112


AOL Media
140

Source: Nielsen Online, Winter 2008 (HH=Household)

Nielsen research, in January through March 2009, identified Mom Bloggers' value systems through thousands of online conversations about personal values touching on morality, integrity and ethics, as well as topical conversations pertaining to the new administration and the economy. The subtext association map also reveals the relationship of aspirational goals related to parenting, love, responsibilities to work and the community, as well as the environment, and the very attainment of these pursuits.

Top 10 Activities of Moms Online

Activity
% of Moms
Checking/Sending email
85%

Paying bills/Online banking
64

Reading news
57

Checking weather
56

Researching products/prices
49

Playing games
46

Shopping for children
45

Shopping for self
44

Planning travel
39

Researching healthcare info
38

Source: Marketing to Moms Coalition survey, 2008

Additional findings about moms and technology show that, overall, full-time working moms use technology at the highest rates.

* The cell phone is the technology used most often by moms to communicate with their kids, and 80% say it is the direct line to their child and babysitter
* 60% of moms use text messaging, and African-American moms and Hispanic moms text more than Caucasian moms
* MySpace is the most common personal networking site used by all moms (42%)
* Best Buy is the leading electronic retailer for moms of all income groups, and particularly moms in high-income households.

Maria Bailey, CEO and founder of BSM Media, concludes "Mothers, now more than ever, are using technology... to multi-task through their busy days... 2009 stands to produce a record number of tech-savvy mothers... "

And, in a separate study, Moms Annual Media Survey, Nielsen reported daily media habits of moms, finding that the media that moms are using daily the most are television and email, closely followed by cellular phones/PDA and internet websites.

Everyday Media Habits of Moms (% of Moms)



Age Range
Medium
18-24
25-44
45+

Television
74%
84%
75%

Radio
35
57
46

Newspaper
13
23
36

Magazine
13
10
12

Cell Phone/PDA
62
69
63

Internet websites
67
64
52

Internet chat rooms/message boards
17
9
9

Internet blogs
17
8
4

Email
73
87
79

Source: Nielsen Moms Annual Media Survey, 2008 Report

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