Are you a business or brand trying to market to mums? As a mother of four and an experienced digital marketer, I put together a checklist of 21 questions to ask before you try to engage mums online.
Day to day, we look for common ground when we meet people — shared interests or shared problems — and we use that to start a conversation. Online should be no different, yet many businesses keep pushing out content without first working out what their audience actually wants, or listening to what that audience is telling them.
If you can answer these 21 questions, and you’ve got your content and channels organised around the answers, your target mum audience is far more likely to listen to what you have to say.
- WHO ARE YOUR AUDIENCE?
- Are you trying to reach the mums of newborns, preschoolers, tweens or teens?
- Do you have a clear persona of your target mum in mind?
- Have you personalised the relationship by “naming” her? Can you visualise your ‘Maria’?
- WHERE IS YOUR AUDIENCE?
- If ‘Maria’ is your target mum, where will you actually reach her?
- Is she online?
- Does she favour desktop, tablet or smartphone for accessing content?
- WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO CONNECT?
- Mums’ schedules are often tied to the life stage of their children, so when does ‘Maria’ actually have time for your message?
- Does she sit down with a tablet once her baby is asleep?
- Is she scanning her phone on the sideline at football practice?
- Can she browse on her desktop during a lunch break?
- WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO CONVEY YOUR MESSAGE?
- Mums are busy juggling a lot — is your message clear, and have you got straight to the point?
- Have you spelled out how you offer ‘Maria’ a solution to a real parenting problem?
- Are you delivering high-quality content with timely, genuinely useful solutions for ‘Maria’?
- HOW DO YOU KNOW IT’S WORKING?
- Have you embedded trackable links to products and services to measure sales?
- Have you included a clear call to action to capture leads?
- Do you have a measurement and review process in place for every campaign?
You might also want to take a look at the results of a survey we ran on how mums use smartphones, and their views on content and social media: Insights on Smart Devices, Content and Social.
From the campaigns we’ve run at Mykidstime, brands and organisations who can answer these questions are far more likely to succeed in engaging mums online — and in delivering real results from their marketing efforts.
If you’d like to find out more about our survey, or about any other aspect of marketing to mums, you can get in touch by email, or find us on Twitter or LinkedIn.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the first thing to work out before marketing to mums online?
Start with who they actually are. Are you talking to mums of newborns, preschoolers, tweens or teens? Their needs, time and attention all differ, so a clear picture of your target mum makes every other decision easier.
Does it matter which device mums use?
Yes. Whether your audience favours desktop, tablet or smartphone affects how your content should look and where you should put your effort, so it’s worth finding out rather than assuming.
When is the best time to reach mums online?
It depends on their day. Some browse on a tablet once their baby is asleep, others scan a phone on the sideline at practice, and others get to a desktop on a lunch break. Understanding your audience’s rhythm helps you time your messaging.
How do I know if my content is actually engaging mums?
Build in a way to measure it — trackable links, a clear call to action, and a review process for every campaign. Without that, you’re guessing rather than knowing.
Related Articles
- Insights on Smart Devices, Content and Social
- Tips for Building Genuine Engagement with Parent Audiences
- Understanding What Busy Parents Want From Brands Online
Before You Go
Marketing to mums works best when you’re solving a real problem, not just pushing a message. Save this checklist and come back to it before your next campaign.
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