Forget The Slippers! Why Mother’s Day’s A Bonanza For Brands

In this guest post, female marketing specialist Bec Brideson (pictured below) says Mother’s Day isn’t all breakfast in bed, but, rather, it should be a perfect opportunity for marketers regardless of what they’re flogging…

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Mother’s have a powerful influence over their families. With a job description matching the Ministers for Health, Education, Tourism, Finance and Transport, there’s barely a portfolio that she’s not managing. Which makes her a very lucrative customer for any brand. Mums indoctrinate their brand preferences to subsequent generations and influence 90 per cent of what comes through the front door. And garage.

On the back of the strongest Christmas sales growth in 7 years, 2016 has begun a solid year for retail sales. According to the National Retailers Association the industry has seen positive trends due to gains in housing prices, employment levels and consumer confidence. The lower exchange rate kept more people on our shores over summer and overseas-based retailers were seeing less Aussie customers. Bottom line is an estimated sales growth of 4.6 per cent.

This Sunday 8th May is Mother’s Day. Couple buoyant sales with the IBIS World figures that predict an overall retail spend of $1.36 billion to celebrate it in Australia alone, and you are looking at perfect market opportunities to further woo the women who belong in your brand’s world. In fact it may even be the ideal scenario in which to consolidate, convert or convince the lucrative female audience about your brand.

Traditionally brands that sell flowers and cards have enjoyed the mother lode of all spikes: in America last year on Mother’s Day, $3.65 billion was spent on jewelry, $2.35 billion on flowers and $780 million on greeting cards. Which is why jewelry brands like Pandora focus a campaign specifically on the occasion.

Australian ad for Interflora brings us the idealised fantasy narrative of motherhood in a stark contrast to American brand Teleflora.

Exposing a gritty perspective on #Onetoughmother with believable insights into the modern woman. Whilst the attempt to provide inspiration with a heavy mantrack over it lacks genuine nuance, they deserve big ups for the imagery that celebrates mothers from all walks of life.

Apple continues to charm females with an ad shot entirely on the iPhone. Every milestone moment caught on camera/video documenting its proficiency without shoving the sales message down her throat. Bliss.

And of course, Proctor and Gamble present us with it’s latest sponsorship of Mother’s, perfectly timed for the Olympics (and Mother’s day wink wink), with it’s ongoing Thank You Mum campaign. After the success of this approach in the 2012 Olympics, they have shown that a masterbrand can truly communicate one thing in a magnificent piece of work that acknowledges it’s core consumer as the heroine of their existence.

What can we learn from these examples?

Women-the-worlds-most-powerful-consumer and Mother’s day are an event not to be missed. Think the success of owning “calendar events”, such as that which Meat and Livestock Australia have created with the Australia Day Lambpaign, and you have leverage.

Media channels lets see some serious Mother’s Day incentive to get women watching. Carrie Bickmore and Ten! Where is your Mother’s Day moment? Lisa Wilkinson… why doesn’t your network create programming to pull the mum audience on this annual day? There are plenty of advertisers wanting to talk to women. So let’s see a little more imagination from the networks… and see who took advantage of The Logies and the fall of Mother’s Day on Nine’s network.

There are so many insights about women waiting to be hatched, when you view life through their lens. Women do have a long list of other people’s needs to consider ahead of their own. It’s genetic, it’s hard-wired. But if there were any moment where she can justify taking the weight of mummy-guilt off her shoulders for just one day, then this would be it. She’s ready and waiting for some love. Whilst the expression “if they’re crying they’re buying” has become euphemised over the years it certainly holds a real human truth.

Engage a woman emotionally and you enter into a marriage with her that no other brand can put asunder.

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