Research
Millennial mom: Catch her if you can
By Diego Vasquez
Nov 3, 2009 - 1:05:09 AM

All the talk a few years back was about soccer moms. No more. The new demographic that marketers are eager to reach is a younger generation of mothers, dubbed millennial moms. These women are more reliant on technology than soccer moms, more willing to offer opinions on what's happening around them, and more likely to be using several forms of technology at once, according to a new study from Mr. Youth. The study also found that millennial moms and college students have more in common than you might think, including all of the above characteristics. Millennial moms, classified as women born from 1977 to 1996, account for 68 percent of all births in a given year, and 79 percent of those births are to first-time mothers. While millennial moms share some characteristics with their older counterparts, the Generation X and late-blooming Boomers who made up the soccer mom demo, there are also some stark differences. Many millennials don't remember a time before the internet. They've been IMing, social networking and mobile calling for most of their lives, and they in turn tend to draw older parents in their circles into using these new technologies. Brandon Evans, managing partner and chief strategy officer at Mr. Youth, talks about what millennial moms and college kids have in common, why this group is so hard for marketers to reach, and why their peers are more influential than the so-called experts.

What made you decide to look at millennial moms?

We had begun doing a lot of work with this demo and it became clear that many of the successful ways we engaged millennial moms were very similar to the strategies we used in marketing to the youth market.

We also saw a need from our clients to understand the millennial moms, especially after clients started realizing that what had been tried and true in the past was no longer working.


What distinguishes this group from moms of the past?

Everything is driven by changes in technology usage, which in turn greatly affects social behavior.

Moms have always liked to talk, get advice and seek out information that is important to their families. Technology has super-charged that passion and has given them many more tools and outlets to express themselves.

The result is a major shift in the amount of information they have at hand and where they are getting it from.

This is coupled with two other strong shifts: First, moms now increasingly live farther away from their families, and are seeking out new support systems as a result.

Second, moms have a much stronger desire to maintain their individuality outside of motherhood. They love being a mom but seek outlets that enable them to continue to pursue their passions and other interests.  


What characteristics do millennial moms share with college students?

The four we base the Millennial Mom 101 white paper around are really the major similarities we have found. Those are:

They’re multi-tech multi-taskers. New technology is adopted and valued as a means to streamline busy lives, enabling them to do more.

They build communities to ease transition. The anxiety of entering a new life stage is offset by participating in online communities that provide support and information.

They crowdsource decisions. Peers are sought out for advice over expert sources and celebrity endorsements.

They’re masters of the overshare. The curtains are peeled back as the lines between public and private life are blurred.


Why is it difficult for marketers to reach millennial moms?

Millennial moms are extremely busy. Most maintain a career in addition to being a mom. They also want to continue to pursue their passions and their personality outside of motherhood. This ultimately leads to a lot of multi-tasking and little time to truly consume media.

Traditional media is also not built for how moms communicate. They want to have a conversation, a two-way dialogue, and traditional media doesn’t solve for that.

Millennial moms (and moms in general) are the most sought-after demographic by marketers as they control so much of the spending power. This leads to a lot of messages paired with little time and attention to absorb them. The result is the frustration that most marketers are racking their brains to resolve in reaching this group.  


How does this age group use technology most (i.e. for entertainment, staying in touch, finding answers, etc.)? Why?

Most of the technology that millennial moms focus on is that which either simplifies their lives and helps them better manage their over-programmed schedules, helps them find answers or support their decisions regarding raising children and managing their home life, or gives them an outlet and escape to pursue hobbies, passions and conversations outside of motherhood.


Why does this group tend to see their peers as more credible than "expert" sources? How does this differ from other demos?

Word of mouth from peers is typically the No. 1 influencer in all surveys. With the millennial market, where the majority of our work lies, this is consistent across the board.

With moms it is even a stronger source, as moms have always found it important to ask other moms before making important decisions that affect their families and kids. With social media, it became much easier for them to seek out advice on a variety of topics from a wider net of people, so it quickly gained in influence.


What are the most important things for marketers to keep in mind when targeting this group, in order to avoid alienating them?

In the white paper we lay out the millennial moms road map. These are 10 points we’d suggest marketers focus on when thinking about how to market to millennial moms.

1. Build platforms, not campaigns.

2. Create movements, not noise.

3. Look to peers over celebrities.

4. Create conversation topics, not a brand message.

5. Be authentic and stand for something.

6. Crowdsource ideas, don’t assume.

7.  Be democratic and participatory.

8. Think about engaging, not reaching.

9. Personalize, localize and customize everything.

10. Hand over the keys, let mom own your brand.



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