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what mommy-women want.

Moms are women too, but according to the “What Women Want Consumer Survey” by Prospectiv, what they want changes when they have kidlets.

The research claims that "more moms than women without children said they did not mind seeing online discounts and coupons for products that interested them, and moms were less likely to report skipping over such offers. Mothers also reported trusting online coupons more than female Internet users without children.

When asked what they would like to see in marketing e-mails, 45% of moms said they wanted information relevant to their lifestyle, and another 21% said they wanted to see 'anything they send me.' Women without children were much pickier: 35% did not want any information at all, while 30% were interested in messages pertaining to their lifestyle."

So, with all the news about FTC regulatation surrounding bloggers, what about Mommy Bloggers?

"There is a lot of buzz around mommy bloggers, but Prospectiv data suggests marketers may be overestimating their usefulness. Just 1% of moms surveyed thought blogs were the most effective way to promote a brand, compared with 47% who favored product samples offered online and 40% who preferred coupons.

Female Internet users without children actually liked blogs better than moms did—but blogs still came in near the bottom of the list."

it's all about mom.

"In these tight times, teen-clothing retailers are focusing on their core clientele: moms.

Aeropostale is designing new stores with wider aisles to accommodate parents with strollers and more seats to keep them in the store longer. Aeropostale staff also is exhorted to "TTM," or target the mom.

Buckle Inc. is offering personal-shopping appointments outside of store hours to work around parents' schedules. Old Navy is slanting its assortment to stress value as much as glamour.

Aeropostale

'You need to make that mom feel comfortable, because ultimately she's writing the check,' says Richard Jaffe, managing director of apparel and softlines retail at brokerage firm Stifel Nicolaus & Co. "She is the one who is responding to the economic uncertainty, the employment uncertainty."

Stores that attract school-age shoppers have always had to balance the dueling interests of the teen who wears their merchandise and parents who foot the bill. Historically, retailers have gone after the former, relying on teens to persuade their parents to make the purchase. But as the economy stifles consumer spending and crimps kids' budgets, retailers are re-emphasizing their mom-appeal.

'We're cognizant of the mom and the impact that that mom has,' says Tom Johnson, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Aeropostale, a New York teen retailer that has built its brand around the dynamic of parents shopping with their kids. Mr. Johnson says meeting her needs 'is critical to our success.'"

Here's the thing though...at that age, haven't moms (or dads!) ALWAYS had the final word by choosing to withhold the allmighty credit card? At least that's how it was for me when I was a teen. Maybe that's how I learned how to be a marketer, or at least tweak my powers of persuassion...sorry Dad (for all those times you were stuck bored at in clothing store listening to me argue the merits of why I just HAD to have that pair of jeans or boots, as well as the laundry list of reasons why they were savvy, smart purchases that YOU should feel good about!).

Wondering what drives toy purchases these days? Well it isn't impulse shopping!

"When it comes to picking out toys for their children, it turns out that parents are a pretty decisive bunch: A full 70% of them know exactly what they want and where they plan to buy it before they head out the door.

The study, from NPD Group, a Port Washington, N.Y.-based market research firm, says about 75% of parents decide first where to shop -- critical information for toy marketers as the winter holiday season approaches. (About 50% of all toys are sold in the holiday period, NPD says.)

'A lot of purchases happen for a gift-giving occasion like Christmas and birthdays, and parents do put thought into planning what they're going to buy because they really want to make their children happy,' says Anita Frazier, NPD's industry analyst for toys and games. 'The economy is no doubt playing into it as well because when money gets tight, you definitely want to get it right and not buy the wrong thing.'"

When it comes to impulse buys in toyland, the big factor is kids themselves: Parents are more likely to buy a toy if a child asks for it, particularly if it's at a lower price point.

how do teens define health?

Ever wonder what the idea of “healthy” really means to teens?

 

According to Nielsen, 92 percent percent of teens aged 13-17 say that health and a healthy lifestyle are important and when asked to give themselves a ‘health report card,’ 76 percent of teens gave a grade of B- or higher.

 

‘While this self-awareness of how they rate their healthy living seems to contradict statistics on
child and teen obesity published by the CDC and other agencies, it shows that there is a foundation
or predisposition for turning awareness into actual healthy lifestyle patterns,’ said Steve Seraita, Executive Vice President, Scarborough Research.”

 

So how do teens go about getting their health information? It may not be where you think:

 

“Using the internet is an integral part of teen activity, but it ranks second as a source for where teens go for health information. 63 percent of teens say that when they have questions about health or nutrition, they seek out their parents or guardians, while half turn to the internet. In both cases, girls are more likely to use either source. Seriata notes that healthcare social marketing efforts designed to reach teens might have an even greater impact if their parents were targeted as well.”

nick at night tries to bring families together.

Nickelodeon is making moves to encourage family viewing by moving their 'Nick At Night' programming to an earlier time:

"Nickelodeon is moving its teenage and adult fare an hour earlier in the evening — but not because of any earlier bedtime for its young viewers. Instead, it is the network’s attempt to encourage children and parents to watch television together.

The network is expected to announce on Monday that the start time for Nick at Nite, its night-time schedule of reruns, is moving to 8 p.m., encompassing all three hours of prime time."

 

So, what's their argument?

 

"Cyma Zarghami, president of Nickelodeon, said the line between Nick at Nite and the younger Nickelodeon audience — which occupy the same channel but are rated and sold as separate entities — would 'start to be a little blurrier.' That is to reflect the company’s research that children and parents 'want to spend more time together.

'A generation of sitcoms and animated films have proved that shows intended for children can be equally appealing to parents. 'We hear adults talk about ‘iCarly’ all the time,' Ms. Zarghami said, referring to the show about a teenager who has her own show on the Web."

apple to implement parental controls on apps.

With the proliferation of apps for all ages,this is a great move:

"Apple’s App Store — arguably the most important technical development in recent years — resulted, at least in part, from the pressure created by people who were trying to unlock iPhones so they could add their own applications.

Now comes new detailsabout the parental control system coming to the App Store. All iPhone applications will be rated in one of four age categories: 4+, 9+, 12+, or 17+. When Apple announced the coming 3.0 release of its iPhone software, it referred to parental controls for apps."

zac efron avocados?

The Washington Post has a great look at Disney & their health-foods promotions. I'm talking Mickey Mouse eggs and Tinker Bell, yes, Tinker Bell, corn:

"Disney's practice of licensing its characters for placement on children's food products is not new, but its strategy is. Whereas cereal boxes and fast-food bags used to be prime real estate for company-to-kid marketing, alarming rates of childhood obesity caused Disney to think twice about aligning its name with sugary or fatty foods. So over the past few years, Disney has gradually distanced itself from junk food. It ended its McDonald's Happy Meal contract in 2006 and has been expanding its association with healthier foods since then. The result: an abundance of Disney-branded healthy stuff, including fruits, vegetables and dairy products.

This explains the advent of Disney-branded eggs, which landed on store shelves in Florida and New York in late March. The outside packaging of the egg carton brandishes Mickey's smiling mug and the message: 'Good source of Protein.' Each eggshell has been stamped with the face of a different Disney character -- from Tigger to Buzz Lightyear. Skeptics may doubt that any parent would pay more for branded eggs or that kids would eat them just because of a cartoon endorsement. But, however silly it may seem, if the past is any indicator, these eggs will be golden for Disney."

teens & clothing shopping.

Teens seem to be the latest demo the press seems to be focusing on when looking at how the recession is impacting different people. New research looks at teen spending...

"While the comparable-store sales declines of leading teen retailers have been telling a mostly dismal tale for months now, Piper Jaffray's new 'Taking Stock With Teens' survey pretty much confirms it: Among the 8,100 teens surveyed, with a median age of 16.7 years, spending on clothes is down 19%.

A bigger surprise, however, is that they are actually spending more on shoes -- a 9% increase, according to the 17th semiannual survey, and 8% more on accessories. In fact, shoes are hot: 'Footwear posted the strongest year-over-year and sequential results at a 4% and 21% gain respectively,' the Minneapolis-based brokerage firms says in its report -- 'an indication that the strong footwear cycle, particularly relative to the weakness in apparel, continues for the youth demographic.'

Overall, teen spending fell 14%. 'The decrease in spending leads us to believe that the economy is forcing parents and teens to cut back on spending across the board,' the report adds. 'Teens and their parents are still buying new clothes, footwear and accessories, but are more selective and increasingly price-conscious. This will force retailers to discount prices and offer unique promotions to keep a steady flow of spending until the economy improves.'"

A bit of good news was that among parents, who were also surveyed, the spending decline seems to have stabilized, and 2009 spring levels appear to be slightly ahead of last year. In this survey, parents say they spend $915 on clothes for their teens annually. And while that has dropped from $1,085 last fall, it's also above the $883 average in the survey last spring.

can a video game make a (social) difference?

We know that kids (of all ages, obvs) love video games. Nickelodeon understands that, but Dave Williams, senior vice president and GM of Nickelodeon Kids and Family Games Group, sees something even bigger: He "sees a move to build games around current news and events that can educate people and promote social awareness and change."

Awesome, right?

"Gaming division execs have begun to shift their thinking away from 'a game as a product that gets built, shipped and sold,' and more toward a 'media that's consumed, similar to television with an interactive twist,' Williams said. ' "We are starting to see news and culture become deeply integrated in game play.'"

And he's not all talk; there's action, too!

"Nickelodeon has developed a series of games that spoof events or promote awareness. Many have become huge viral hits. Most recently, the group created 'Hero on the Hudson' in less than 72 hours, from conception to launch. It has raked in about 4.0 million game plays since launching Jan. 21. 'It's making gaming more current and tying it into popular culture,' Williams said. 'It's bringing more people into the game space and pushing gaming into the mass media, rather than product category.'"

can social networks rewire your brain?

Yikes!

 

According to neuroscientist Susan Greenfield, “social networking websites are causing alarming changes in the brains of young users,” arguing that “sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Bebo are said to shorten attention spans, encourage instant gratification and make young people more self-centered.”

 

Taking it one step further, Oxford University neuroscientist and director of the Royal Institution, Baroness Greenfield, claims that social networks, video/computer games and TV shows have the ability to “effectively 'rewire' the brain,” arguing “We know how small babies need constant reassurance that they exist. My fear is that these technologies are infantilising the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the moment.”

 

Those are some intense statements, and reminds of the whole “tv will rot your brain” argument used when I was a kid.

 

What do you think?