It wasn't that surprising that the audience for 'Social Media and the Modern mother' at London's Social Media Week was predominantly female. Especially since this was my only #SMWLDN event to slot neatly between drop off and pick up school times (natch).
The sandwiches were great, and three knowledgeable women served us delicious bite-size nuggets about the how why (and won't) of socially connected mothers and Mum bloggers.
Co-founder Carrie Langford explained how the Mumsnet audience engages and interacts with brands; from the Tots100 Mummy bloggers network, Sally Whittle (@swhittle) explained how to get Mum bloggers on your side and Rosemary Duff from Childwise took us though her research into family internet use.
The stats in the tweets below will give you some idea of why the young marketeers in the room were paying such close attention: Mums are socially connected, almost perpetually online (!) listening to each other's opinions, seeking validation, seeking advice about products and problems. Modern mothers are influenced by reviews, turned on (or off) brands by their corporate social responsibility, want brands to be open and transparent, want to be asked their opinions, to get involved, hate to be looked at as 'just Mums', and, crucially, are looking for brands to help them be better parents. Mums feel guilty every day (we do, believe me) and brands which can make us feel that we are good parents after all, will have our porridge-smeared, somewhat wrinkled, damp-cheeked love and gratitude for ever and ever.
Here are the Storified tweets from the session (just click through on the titles), which tell it all more pithily than I could. And one last point from Sally Whittle: never start a pitch with "Dear Mummy Blogger,". It won't go down well, especially with the 3% of her members who are Dads.
How connected are UK Mums?
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How much of an influence is social media on UK Mums?
<a href="http://storify.com/emoderation/how-much-of-an-influence-is-social-media-on-uk-mum.html" target="_blank">View the story "How much of an influence is social media on UK Mums' purchasing decisions?" on Storify</a>
How brands can best engage with UK mums
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How should brands best approach Mum (or Dad) bloggers?
<a href="http://storify.com/emoderation/how-should-brands-approach-mummy-or-daddy-bloggers.html" target="_blank">View the story "How should brands approach Mummy (or Daddy) bloggers?" on Storify</a>