Chances are, even if your business doesn’t target moms directly, somewhere along the line a mom has made a purchasing decision about your product or service. Underestimating the power of the mom market can be a big mistake for large and small businesses alike. So how do you not only reach this diverse group of women, but make a lasting (good) impression while you’re at it?
We spoke with Kat Gordon, founder of Maternal Instinct, a Palo Alto agency of creative problem solvers for marketing to moms. Since knowing your audience is rule #1 when it comes to marketing, we asked Kat to give us a closer look at the characteristics of this demographic. Her answers might surprise you.
SS: What makes the mom market so powerful?
KG: Three things: moms’ purchasing clout, scope, and influence. Moms make 80% of household purchasing decisions and have veto power over the other 20%. They buy not just for themselves, but also for their husbands, kids, nieces, nephews, friends and, increasingly – for their aging parents. Moms also share what they know, telling everyone in their tribe (including online circles) about brands they love and those that have let them down.
Having moms in your corner can catapult brands to entirely new places. Overlooking them can leave you apologizing to your shareholders.
SS: What’s the biggest mistake you see companies make when trying to market to moms?
KG: Missing the central truth of what matters most about their product to moms. It’s mystifying to me why in today’s world of real-time media – where it’s never been easier, faster or cheaper to get a quick read on what the marketplace wants – companies still brazenly assume they know from the comfort of their conference rooms.
SS: When you think of who’s doing it right, what’s the first brand that comes to mind? What makes their marketing efforts work and what can we learn from them?
KG: If I had to pick one, it would be Stouffer’s. Their “Let’s Fix Dinner” campaign is very tightly crafted to appeal to moms. It’s based upon a central truth that matters to moms, which is research that bears out that families that eat together have less divorce, better performing kids in school, fewer girls with eating disorders – and a host of other wins.
Stouffer’s figured out that families want to eat together, but dual-working couples and busy family schedules make it all but impossible. They created a mini movement where families can pledge to eat together more frequently and share their stories, recipes, etc. through a variety of online communities.
What we can learn from Stouffer’s is that you need to answer one true need of a mom and deliver it in a way that is doable in her perfectly imperfect life. Stouffer’s didn’t challenge families to eat together seven nights a week or make complicated menus. They gave moms a way to improve a little on something that matters a lot.
SS: What are some behaviors/characteristics of this market that most businesses don’t know about? How can we turn these into an opportunity to connect better?
KG: I have a Marketing to Moms quiz I give at presentations that is filled with surprise facts about the mom market. I use this quiz to remind people to “know what you don’t know.” Moms are a constantly evolving demographic and you need to keep your ear to the ground to keep up with them.
Some facts on my quiz include that 72% of women work, regardless of whether they have kids or not (excluding families with infants). That 41% of babies are born to unwed mothers. And that 67% of moms will try a brand if it supports a cause. Insights like these help you depict moms more accurately in your ads, and give your brand the halo effect of giving back to a cause that matters to moms.
SS: What’s a piece of entrepreneurial advice you chose not to take? Why?
I resisted a lot of advice about “priming my website for Search Engine Optimization.” As a writer, I’m well versed in the principles of SEO, which I jokingly say stands for “Say Everything Over and over.” Rather than shoe-horning key phrases into my site, labeling things with search-friendly terms, and designing without the richest graphics, I told my story – in words and graphics – the way I felt it would best connect to my market.
For instance, one marketing “guru” recommended I change the tab on my site that is labeled “What’s Your Blanket?” to “Marketing Philosophy.” I refused. The What’s Your Blanket? question – while meaningless to a search bot – is intriguing to site visitors and the linchpin to my approach to marketing to moms. People read the story behind the question, they remember it, and they are inspired by it. I read recently that “stories are the coat-pegs of the mind” and I’m glad I didn’t sacrifice these authentic details to appease some SEO gods.
If you have an e-commerce business or rely heavily on search engines to drive traffic to your site, SEO should factor more heavily in your decisions. But if you run a service business like I do, think about how you will capture the types of customers you really, really want. I realized that my business would still be largely word of mouth and that my vigilance with on-topic blogging would launch my name to the top of the search engine rankings anyway (which it has).
SS: What was your biggest roadblock before starting your business and how did you overcome it?
KG: The fear that I would be exposed as an impostor. Positioning yourself as an expert is scary, especially for women. I was paralyzed by the fear that someone would ask me a question that I couldn’t answer. Luckily, I plowed forward. Three years later, I never, ever have that fear and I realize it’s because I spend all my time and energy learning about the mom market. If I don’t know the answer to something, I’m not defensive about it. It’s likely an answer that isn’t immediately knowable, even by an expert.
You need to take that first step, realizing you don’t know absolutely everything yet, but with the dedication to keep learning as you go. Don’t let the desire to be perfect stop you from sharing your light and heat with the world right now. Life’s too short.
SS: Name two things you have and one thing you need.
KG: What I have: a fantastic husband and nanny who help me hold down the fort at home while I’m out making my mark on the world. What I need: brands to sponsor a new event I’m organizing: The 3% Conference. Only 3% of creative directors in this country are women, yet women make the majority of household purchasing decisions. Our conference will connect the 3% of female creative directors (and other thought-leaders in marketing to women) with brands wanting to capture their share of the pie.
SS: What is your instinctive response to “women in business”?
KG: That it’s redundant. We don’t say “men in business.” See the figure I quoted above; 72% of women are in the workforce. Women in business? Damn right. Look out.
To learn more about Kat, visit the Maternal Instinct website, read the company blog, or follow Kat on Twitter: @KatGordon.
Sharp Skirts, in what ways does your business market to moms, whether it’s directly or indirectly?
