By Mike Rush, 360PR @Home Practice Leader

My trip out to Chicago for the Housewares Show was fitting.  With inclement weather following me wherever I seem to travel (which I   dodged by a hair), I hunkered down on my flight with 360PR’s latest book club read, What The Dog Saw by Malcom Gladwell, which details the rise of Ron Popeil, inventor of the Chop-O-Matic and king of direct response TV infomercials.  I couldn’t help but think of our favorite As-Seen-On-TV brand at 360PR, The Snuggie, and how we PR folks are all pitchmen (and women), too.

For those of you that have never attended the Housewares Show, especially foodies, there are a number of questions you find yourself pondering in awe:  “Do I have enough storage space below my kitchen countertop to fit this?”  “Will a magnificent lime green mixer still look good in 10 years?” and “If only they were passing out samples…and I had brought an extra suitcase or two.”

After a full day of combing the show floor (which could have easily been a week), I was able to surmise a few emerging trends for 2013:

Colors.  Lots of them.  Retro colors on appliances started to pop up a few years ago – and I wished my mother had held onto her avocado-colored blender from the ‘70s.  But, this year, housewares are emulating ‘80s fashion, with turquoise, fuchsia, baby blue, and hot pink to even KitchenAid mixers in leopard and zebra prints.  Every year, PANTONE, the world’s authority on color standardization, selects the Color of the Year – and for 2013, it’s Emerald Green.

Kids as Foodies. With the rise of food TV for the whole family, like Food Network’s Cupcake Wars or TLC’s Cake Boss, kids are becoming serious foodies.  And food creations are becoming a central part of after-school and weekend fun for parents and kids.  Take 360PR client FamilyFun magazine – they nailed this trend early (check out my favorite “Treat of the Month” from February – Punxsutawney Pudding Cup).  Baking, cooking, and even cleaning up the mess that follows are all activities marketers see as a celebrated and fun opportunities for families – from OXO and Bakelicious to smaller companies like Boston Warehouse’s “Smart Cookie” line of kitchenware, which are designed specifically for kids’ small hands but are clearly not toys.

Brands Playing Nice in the Sandbox.   Last year, 360 launched the first-ever Honeywell with Febreze fan, which merged the $38 billion Honeywell brand with Procter & Gamble’s $900 million Febreze® brand to deliver air circulation AND odor elimination.  This year’s Housewares Show spotlighted a few unexpected partnerships.  SodaStream announced a strategic agreement with Ocean Spray for “a portfolio of juice blend concentrates co-developed exclusively for the SodaStream home beverage carbonation system.”  iRobot’s Roomba also now comes with neat accessories – scent strips developed with Yankee Candle so that the mobile vacuum cleans the floor and freshens the air.

Filed under: Consumer Marketing, Events and Conferences, PR Industry, Retail by Admin - 2 Comments →

CHICAGO, Oct. 23, 2012 – Cracking the word-of-mom code is the Holy Grail for brands marketing to moms today.  But who’s more influential – the Facebook mom or the mom chatting up other moms at school drop-off?  According to The Mom Next Door:  How and Why Moms Make Recommendations, a new study released today at the M2Moms conference by The 360PR MomSquad® and Mom It Forward ®, 83% of moms make recommendations about brands in-person, compared to 53% of moms who make recommendations via social media.  The majority of moms (59%) rated in-person recommendations at the top of the scale for trustworthiness, while only 14% of moms rated recommendations via social media as “most trustworthy.”

According to the study, close to three-quarters of moms (71%) make recommendations about brands, products and services to other moms at least monthly, with half of moms (50%) making recommendations about brands daily.  “We call these moms the recommender-moms and it’s clear they’re looking to connect offline – though social media plays a role, too,” explained Laura Tomasetti, CEO at 360PR. “Brands need to get to know the mom recommenders in their sphere and balance online activity with high-touch opportunities to engage these uber-influencers.”

Gen Y Paving the Way Online
While the study demonstrates the power of in-person, it also found that online social networks are important microphones for Gen Y moms.  As compared to Gen X moms, Gen Y moms of 0 -3-year-olds are more comfortable relying on recommendations from moms in their online social networks.  They’re the heaviest users of newer social platforms, like Pinterest, Google+ and Instagram.

“Social media has an important role to play, especially with younger moms,” said Jyl Johnson Pattee, CEO of Mom It Forward. “Fifty-eight percent of moms use social media for more than one hour daily, with Gen Y moms indexing the highest.  Interestingly, Facebook and Twitter are popular across the board – with no generational differences among moms.”

The Power of the Mom Next Door
The study amplifies the role of ‘the mom next door’ in brand marketing today, finding that 93% of moms are influenced by other moms’ recommendations.   Moms surveyed said they interact with other moms most often at daycare/school drop-off (58%), at a friend’s house (54%) or other off-line get-together, such as meeting for coffee, working out or shopping (48%).  Moms of older kids (9+) indexed higher for at-work conversations with other moms, while moms of younger children (0-3) indexed higher for conversations online.

While special offers continue to be the top motivator of mom recommendations (61%), more than half of moms said they make recommendations because it’s fun (54%) and gives them a sense of pride (51%).  Moms said they rely on online reviews, including those by bloggers they read regularly, particularly for bigger purchases.

The full study results will be revealed at the M2Moms conference today and tomorrow in Chicago.  Study highlights are also available online at 360PR.com/momnextdoor.

Study Methodology
The Mom Next Door research by 360PR and Mom It Forward included interviews with more than 1,000 moms via a quantitative web-based survey of 964 U.S. moms of children ages 0-12 conducted in August 2012 by Lindberg International and a series of live events with 95 moms conducted September–October 2012, including in-home events in six regionally diverse markets and one online event.

The 360PR MomSquad is a national network of influencer-moms who imbue 360PR client campaigns with the latest insights to reaching and engaging today’s parents.  The 360PR MomSquad® is a service of 360 Public Relations, a premier consumer-focused, multi-media agency, recognized as Boutique Agency of the Year by The Holmes Report in 2011 and a 2012 PRWeek Agency of the Year Finalist.

Mom It Forward is a social media community and worldwide network dedicated to enhancing the lives of women, their families, and the communities in which they live. By partnering with various brands and organizations, Mom It Forward provides in-the-know information via a weekly #gno event. The #gno parties enable women to share and learn about a topic of interest from expert panelists, effectively creating a unique platform for real-time interaction with hundreds of participants.

SOURCE 360PR MomSquad

Filed under: 360 Public Relations, Consumer Marketing, Media and Press, Parenting, Social Marketing by LauraTomasetti - No Comments →

Digital Digest: June 20th

The Digital Digest by 360social gives you the best digital secrets, trends, tips and tricks for new tools, and general news circulating in the digital world. Have a question? Curious about a new site and what it does? Never heard about a tool mentioned recently? Contact Lesley Ridge, 360PR’s content and community manager:  @lesleyridge or  Facebook.com/360pr and join in the conversation using #360PR!

Coca-Cola Creates Global TV Series for Olympics: First-ever original series for big-time marketer set to air episodes of celebrity and athlete interviews, musical performances, and more during 2012 London games to capture “the vibe of London, the social aspect of it for the fans.” The series’ target audience? Teens. Ad spots are available to other brands.

Take Your iPhone Underwater With This ‘Scuba Suit’: What better way to kick-off the first day of summer than grab a waterproof case for your beloved iPhone so you can literally capture every.single.moment. While it’s not the first in the category, it’s touted as having a bit more to offer consumers, including its ability to stay dry up to 15 feet underwater. Cost: $60 (buy here.)

How Sephora Used Facebook to ‘Thrill’ Its Fan Base [CASE STUDY]: Overwhelmed by multiple social channels? Feel like you’re drowning in attempts to keep up with consumers? Take cue from beauty empire brand, Sephora, and their recent social campaign that spanned platforms. Key points: big prizes draw big crowds; leverage both online and off assets to boost performance; and don’t underestimate the power of ‘exclusive’ with your community.

Does Facebook Know Your Love Secrets? [INFOGRAPHIC]: Today’s infographic is brought to you by WorldWideLearn. Using data from University of Wisconsin researchers, news outlets, and Facebook, the team at WorldWideLearn uncovered some of us are luckier in love than others. Warning: a peak break-up time is approaching. You’ve been warned!

Filed under: Consumer Marketing, Digital PR, Facebook, Social Media by Admin - No Comments →

Getting into the Shopping Mom’s Mindset

Family budget aside for a moment, moms are continuing to shop.  There’s no way around the weekly groceries and I still have to fight my way through the masses when shopping for shoes, the latest Apple device and for any number of things at Target (at least when I’m not shopping online).  So how can brands be sure they’re top of “the list” when mom goes shopping?  The 360PR MomSquad partnered with our friends at Cool Mom Picks to find out.  We surveyed 950+ moms to identify the values, media and other factors that influence moms’ purchases for their families and themselves.

Word-of-mouth reigned supreme, with 77% of moms pointing to their own circles as the #1 trusted source on which brands to buy.  But where does word-of-mouth originate?  Well, just behind their own circles, moms said they turned to blogs and web sites as trusted resources on brands.

Moms rated a brand’s web site higher as a trusted source than a brand’s social channels.  But don’t get lulled into social complacency:  close to half of moms (44%) we surveyed said they spend 1-2 hours a day with social media, and a third reported spending 2+ hours each day using social media.  That’s one sure bet this election year, at least when it comes to being a resource for moms:  brands need to integrate and connect the dots between the proliferation of a brand’s social channels and web site.  The opportunity is to be there for mom, wherever she is.

While marketers have traditionally distinguished between working and stay-at-home moms, we found virtually no difference among the sources moms turn to and their priorities when shopping.  When mom’s ready to make a purchase decision, there’s no way around it – value comes first, whether she’s shopping for the kids or herself.  That’s one reason deal sites are so popular with moms: 75% of moms increased their use of deal sites in the past year.

Apps were big winners with moms, too – 72% of moms are downloading more apps than a year ago.  And there’s no denying the power of social good:  70% of moms said they had “liked” a brand on Facebook to support a cause.

You can read more about our report here.  We’d love to hear what you think!

Filed under: 360 Public Relations, Consumer Marketing, Marketing to Moms, Parenting by LauraTomasetti - 4 Comments →

In 360PR’s 10th year, we are celebrating by sharing some of the things we’ve learned along the way in a “10 minutes with…” series featuring interviews with our practice leaders! Last time we chatted with SVP of our Entertainment & Electronics practice, Stacey Clement. Now we’ve sat down  with Victoria Renwick, SVP of our Healthy Living practice, to learn more about her and some of the trends she has spotted over the past 10!

What are some of the trends you’re seeing in the Healthy Living practice?

One of the most significant trends we’re seeing is the stepped up role consumers are playing in educating and empowering themselves before they make a purchase.  So much is happening before the consumer gets to the grocery store or other store or considers an online purchase.  Yes, price is still a consideration, but there’s a lot more that factors into what we buy these days.  This presents an opportunity for brands to act as educators, resources and connectors, instead of marketers.

How important is it for brands to “go green”?

The term ‘green’ has been thrown around pretty freely.  Brands were calling themselves and their products ‘green’ or ‘natural’ and the public, for the most part, took that at face value.  Consumers are more cognizant of green washing now and are making brands more accountable for their claims. People are more aware of how to read labels and investigate the products they are bringing into their homes  – and certainly there are a proliferation of resources at consumers’ fingertips to help. I love the Environmental Working Group site – The Skin Deep section is especially eye opening and a great place to decode confusing labels for cosmetics and health & beauty. The Organic Trade Association is also a great resource consumers can turn to for the latest news on organics and legislation as well as practical tips.

Green business practices are no longer a ‘nice to have’ but an expectation. We expect companies to be conducting business in a way that is ethically sound, better for the environment and better for us as consumers. A broad spectrum of CPG companies and food manufacturers has sustainability plans and goals in place to quantifiably demonstrate how they will be greener in the coming years. It’s all a step in the right direction.

Are there any particularly memorable 360 moments that stick out in your mind?

The way 360PR has been a leader in the social media space stands out to me.  Being part of that evolution over the last three years has been really exciting.  360 was one of the first agencies to really get the mom blogger space. We started connecting bloggers and brands in high touch settings like our Blunch™ series. That was right around the time I started here.

We’ve worked on some really fun campaigns over the years too. Just recently we were teaching the country to can as part of National Can-It-Forward Day, a campaign we created for the Ball® brand. From grassroots to top-tier media, we really struck a chord with people looking to eat more fresh and local year round.

You spent a good part of your early career in the event-planning industry.  How important do you find events to be to your client work here at 360PR and for public relations in general?

 

Events are part of our 360 full-circle approach.  We’re an agency that does events and does them well.  Events offer brands a high-touch, relationship-building forum with consumers and consumer-influencers, and that’s important as part of an integrated strategy to engage consumers.    At 360, we always have something exciting on tap – whether it’s cooking in the Muppets’ Kitchen or solving the Rubik’s Cube on the National Mall!  It’s also important to keep the formula fresh – virtual events via Livestream & Facebook help us extend the reach of ROI of a client’s investment in a physical event.

 

 

As the head of 360PR’s healthy living practice, have you found that your client work has had a significant impact on your personal life?

Absolutely. I’m so lucky to be exposed to the type of clients we have and the resources and knowledge that comes with them.  We’re PR practitioners but we’re also consumers.  Keeping on top trends for clients, you can’t help but take what you learn and apply it to your personal life.

For example, we conducted a speaking tour recently with food activist Robyn O’Brien on behalf of our Stonyfield Farm client. Robin’s a mom of four who compiled a staggering amount of information about our broken food system. As a new mom, I was a sponge, soaking up everything she had to offer.  I’ve bought her book, The Unhealthy Truth, for everyone of my friends who is a mother. It’s just too important not to share!

We also work with PBS KIDS.  When my son is ready to start watching TV or go online, I feel lucky to know what to look for when it comes to healthy, educational media. And as a busy mom, I really do rely on our clients’ services to make like easier. I use Peapod for grocery delivery every week (it’s a lifesaver!) and I do my family’s meal planning through Allrecipes.com.   This summer I planted a (small!) garden, started composting (it’s surprisingly easy!) and joined a CSA too – all things I probably wouldn’t have tried previous to heading the Healthy Living practice.

Filed under: 10 Minutes With Our Practice Leaders, 360 Public Relations, Consumer Marketing, Events and Conferences, Food Industry, Green Marketing, Marketing to Moms, PR Industry by EliciaBasoli - 5 Comments →