Gone are the days of handwritten grocery lists and family calendars hanging on the fridge. Moms today have gone high-tech.
From cell phones to blogs, more and more mothers are using technology to organize their busy lives. According to Maria T. Bailey, author of Mom 3.0: Marketing with Today’s Mothers by Leveraging New Media & Technology and CEO of BSM Media, in 2009, moms will continue to leverage growing technologies and combine multiple high-tech devices to simplify their daily schedules.
BSM Media, Bailey’s mom-centric marketing firm, surveyed 3,000 mothers and found that 65% of them use five or more forms of technology everyday. As Bailey explains, “Moms today actually act in a 3.0 fashion using Web 2.0 technology.” From using cell phones to stay in contact with their families to using blogs to converse and connect with other mothers, moms are finding new ways to leverage existing technology to make their hectic lives easier. “Moms are driven by certain key emotional motivators,” says Bailey, “They want to feel connected to family, feel validated, and have a sense of accomplishment. Moms have discovered technology can help satisfy these emotional triggers.”
According to Bailey, cell phones are the most popular technology with these women. Her research found that most commonly, mothers use them to stay connected with their families through texting and to stay in touch with childcare providers. The next most popular technology moms use is social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. “Moms like using those sites because they can stay connected with family and friends, and 37% are using it to reconnect with old friends,” says Bailey. Research also showed that working moms are more likely to text using a cell phone than in-home moms, while in-home moms are more likely to use blogs and social networking sites. “The similarity between traditional working mothers and in-home mothers is that the majority are using some form of technology to gain specific purchasing information on products,” says Bailey.
for the rest of the article please visit http://www.econtentmag.com/Articles/News/News-Feature/Mom-3.0-Marketing-to-High-Tech-Moms-52710.htm
By Eileen Mullan – March 2009 Issue, Posted Feb 27, 2009
http://www.econtentmag.com/?ArticleID=52710
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A university is to offer a master’s degree teaching students about social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and Bebo.
The one-year course at Birmingham City University will consider social networking sites as communications and marketing tools.
The course, which will start next year, was advertised through a makeshift video on the university’s website.
Jon Hickman, the course convener, said he had received a good response from potential students and described what the course would entail.
He said: “It’s not for freaks or IT geeks, the tools learnt on this course will be accessible to many people.
“During the course we will consider what people can do on Facebook and Twitter, and how they can be used for communication and marketing purposes.
“There has been significant interest in the course already, and it will definitely appeal to students looking to go into professions including journalism and PR.”
for the full article please visit http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/5073683/University-offers-social-media-degree-about-Facebook-Twitter-and-Bebo.html
Let’s talk about budgets.
It took a while.
Even though tens of millions of users were flocking to social media sites every day, most marketers stayed away. They either didn’t understand how to join the conversations—without sounding like shills—or they were frightened away by the prospect of associating their brands with questionable content.
But things are changing.
Companies are learning how to leverage social media and tap into the rising tide of consumers participating in social network sites, blogs, wikis and Twitter.
According to the “The ROI on Social Media Marketing” report from the Aberdeen Group, sponsored by Visible Technologies, marketers have developed the tools and methodologies to drive marketing ROI by listening to and learning from customers and prospects.
Originally posted on emarketer for the rest of the article go to http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1006989
I saw a Facebook status update the other day from a busy working Mom. “waiting for Grace to finish practice so I have time to check in with Facebook”. How often do Moms……and Dads find themselves with a little a downtime and reach for their smart phone, ready to check in with their favorite, or multiple social networking site? Very often and growing is the answer. The recent “Power Moms” Study by Nielsen reports some findings that validate what we are seeing and hearing:
“Women ages 25 to 54 with at least one child are nearly twice as likely as the average American Internet user to provide frequent online advice about parenting and family issues (88% more likely), non-food household products (84% more likely), and beauty/cosmetics (82% more likely).
These “power moms” are also 51% more likely than average Web users to provide frequent online advice on clothes and fashion, food and beverage products (39% more likely than average), home decorating (36% more likely than average), and health, dieting and exercise (27% more likely than average).
“We’re seeing women using online avenues like email, online forums, and social networking websites to extend a role they’ve long held as information seekers and relationship builders,” Chuck Schilling, research director, agency and media analytics, Nielsen Online, noted. “Moms, in particular, look to the Web to connect with other parents for tips and support, and they aren’t afraid of new technologies – this group is nearly 25% more likely than average to author a blog.”
By perianne for the rest of the post click perianne.wordpress.com
Package-Goods Brand Earns $1.28 Million in Sales From $1 Million Social-Media Campaign
Package-goods brands are still cautious about social media, figuring that the return on investment can’t be accurately measured. After all, marketing on Facebook or MySpace might generate a conversation but not necessarily a sale. Now, however, a method is emerging to relate one to the other, potentially eliminating a major impediment.
Read moreLast week, TechCrunch reported on rumors that Google was in “late-stage talks” to buy microblogging service Twitter.
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Moms are one of the Internet’s most desirable groups. eMarketer estimates that there were 35.3 million US mothers online in 2008, a number that is expected to reach 39.6 million by 2012. New communities and content sites for moms appear practically every day. Marketers and advertisers are constantly trying to reach this all-powerful group, who not only carry strength in their numbers but also in their purchasing power.
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CINCINNATI (Reuters) – Maternity leave. Affordable child-care. Flexible work arrangements. When first lady Michelle Obama said she wanted to help working women balance career and family, American moms applauded — and immediately came up with a wish-list of policy changes.
“I’m so psyched she is bringing this issue to the forefront,” said Geniene Pernotto, 43, a marketing director and single mother of one in Youngstown, Ohio.
Pernotto quit her demanding corporate job in New York City in exchange for a pay cut and shorter hours at a nonprofit in northeastern Ohio. But she laments that she had to choose.
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Truth be told, it’s kids, even twenty-somethings
MySpace became one of the country’s most-visited sites thanks to users under 30 who joined it to reconnect with long-lost friends. Facebook rose to prominence with a cadre of high school and college devotees who messaged about school, social outings and sports practice.
The fastest-growing social networking destination on the web these days is being driven by a very different demographic: older adults. They make up nearly double the visitors to Twitter.com as those under 30, according to new data from Nielsen Online.
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Twitter.com continues to grow in popularity and importance in both the consumer and corporate worlds. No longer just a platform for friends to stay connected in real time, it has evolved into an important component of brand marketing. Unique visitors to Twitter increased 1,382 percent year-over-year, from 475,000 unique visitors in February 2008 to 7 million in February 2009, making it the fastest growing site in the Member Communities category for the month. Zimbio and Facebook followed, growing 240 percent and 228 percent, respectively.
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