The document describes research conducted to understand how to better connect with modern mothers. Over 1,200 Facebook posts were made to a community of 7,000 mothers. The posts that received the strongest engagement provided insights. Key findings included that mothers celebrate their imperfections, see daily tasks differently than others, and have secret indulgences they hide. The research suggests brands should understand these perspectives rather than relying on stereotypes.

1. Motherhood is….
3 (of many) “fresh”
ways to look at
moms.
Going beyond clichés and stereotypes to better
understand their hopes, dreams, values and “little
secrets”. Ultimately to better connect with them.
All rights reserved, Ulli Appelbaum 2013

2. The marketing
community has a huge
opportunity to make
things better for moms.
73%
of moms feel that advertisers
don't really understand what it's
like to be a mom*.
60%
of moms feel like marketers are
ignoring their needs*.
80%
of moms think advertisers are
doing a poor job at connecting
with them*.
Source: M2Mom.com

3. Brands still focus on
motherhood “ideals” and
stereo-types and usually
miss the mark.

4. Mommies’ culture however
has evolved and changed.

5. The result is a major gap
between moms own
narratives and expectations
and the social norms
embraced by most brands.
Brands that will close the gap
first will win.

6. but first…
6

7. Who is this guy?
And what does he know about
MOMS?

8. Strategist
20+ years of global experience in
brand strategy and customer
experience design.
www.ulliappelbaum.com

9. Proud dad & husband
Lola, 4
Fynn, 4
Leo, 2

10. Entrepreneur
Co-founder of
www.wemothers.com, a start-up
focusing on moms emotional
wellbeing.

11. Online Community Manager
I’ve built a community of nearly
10.000 moms by listening to and
conversing with moms for the last
2 years (total investment = $0) .

12. The research.
12

13. The Stimuli.
Over 1200 Facebook posts capturing
insights, truths, needs, vulnerabilities, jokes,
aspiration about motherhood.
Delivered in a Facebook friendly format,
“digital posters*”.
To our community of 7000+ moms.
posters
*To learn more about digital posters visit www.ulliappelbaum.com

14. The Methodology.
•
Moms see one of our posts (digital posters).
•
They decide in a split second whether the content
(the post) resonates with them and whether they
want to engage (“like”, “comment” or “share”) or not.
•
This methodology measures moms’ “blink”
reactions. No rationalization, social filtering or
forced conversations, just real spontaneous and
visceral reactions that show moms hot buttons. A
real temperature check of what resonates with
today’s moms.
•
Facebook provides the analytics that allows us to
track the engagement levels and type of
engagements.

15. 1200+
Quick facts
Top
10%
Digital posters posted
7000+
Moms reacting to those posts
Top 10%
most engaging posts are the focus
of the research.

16. Nearly 250.000 “likes” and 64.000 “shares”
within the first 72 hours on the HuffPost alone.
To test the relevance4of
Estimated reach: 3 to million readers.
How relevant and
engaging are these
insights? No, really?
these insights, I ran an
artcile on the Huffington
Post
I published a “consumer friendly” version of
these insights on the Huffington Post entitled
:”24 Clear Signs You’re a Mom”.

17. 3 of the “Mommy truths”
identified in the research
are highlighted next.
The Digital Posters shown in the next section
were chosen because they triggered some of
the strongest engagement levels from moms
(liked, shared or commented). In other
words, they rung particularly true with moms.
17

18. Mommy Truth 1:
Today’s moms celebrate and
take pride in their lack of
“perfection”. They celebrate the
“anti-hero” archetype.

19. Moms are “heroes”. There is no doubt about that. However, the
“narratives” they use to describe themselves and the type of experiences
they use to relate to each other are those of “anti-heroes”. It’s all about
celebrating the little imperfections and short-comings of motherhood.
Thought starters.
While it is tempting for a brand to celebrate the “ideal” and portray moms
as the heroes (that they are), this approach often doesn’t ring true with
moms.
Try instead to explore and understand the little imperfections that moms
will admit to and “celebrate”. This will open up a whole range of new and
innovative solutions on how to relate to moms.

20. Mommy Truth 2:
Most people think daily chores
are, well, “chores” and vacations
are, well, ‘vacations”. Moms
however are not like most
people.

21. Most categories are based on certain conventions that define what is good
and what is not. Brands usually use those conventions to differentiate
themselves and add value.
Thought starters.
Moms however may experience the core conventions and drivers in your
category quite differently. A trip to a retail outlet, under the right
circumstances, can become a treat. A vacation is often seen as “work away
from home”.
How do moms’ perceptions and experiences differ from your own beliefs
and conventions about what the category is or should be. And how would
you change the way you interact with moms or the type of experiences
your brand provides if you were to re-frame your category understanding
around moms’ point of view?

22. Mommy Truth 3:
Hidden in the pantry in a box labeled “flour” is top -of-the-line chocolate
and a few joints. I rarely resort to it, but it’s a comfort knowing it’s there*.
Every loving, dedicated and
sacrifice-making mom also has a
dark side (often in the form of
chocolate) that she selfishly
hides from others.
* Source: Smokler, Jill, Confessions of a Scary Mommy: An Honest and Irreverent Look at Motherhood: The Good, The Bad, and the Scary.

23. Thought starters.
To build on the previous thought-starters, do you know your audience’s
little indulgences, “little secrets” and secret selfish little behaviors and
habits?
Once you have identified them, it becomes easy to identify better and
more meaningful ways to relate to her.

24. Interested in learning more about
this research, how it can help you
better understand and connect
with today’s moms and most
importantly how to translate
these insights into powerful
marketing strategies &
programs? Just reach out.
www.ulliappelbaum.com

25. What experts say about the
research.
“The study offers a fresh yet powerful approach to understanding what
moms today think, feel and want. Using a crowdsourcing and social
approach to garnering insights allows for a rich, and honest perspective
from real moms. His insights are very valuable to any company who wants
to reach the critical mom target and his ability to demonstrate how these
insights can reach moms will make meaningful impacts on your business.”
M. Edgin, Global Director, Digital IQ
at Kimberly-Clark Corporation (the makers of Huggies).
“The methodology is impressive in its ability to capture the real sentiment
of today’s moms. The presentation is full of fresh and interesting insights
that will benefit everyone trying to better understand and connect with
moms both strategically and creatively.”
S. Bamber, EVP Chief Strategy Officer at DraftFCB
and mommy marketing expert