Suzanne Davis is Head of Sales at eumom, in addition to being a hockey player and mum to three children. She knows the intricacies of marketing to a group of women that are undergoing huge emotional and physical changes.
There are key times in a person’s adult life when they reach a new stage and therefore start experiencing new things ie. becoming a 3rd level student, renting for the first time, first job, buying your own house, starting a family etc.
Some, if not all of these, can be a bit daunting, none more than starting a family. When a woman becomes pregnant for the first time or on a subsequent pregnancy, she will encounter many different emotions – delight, apprehension, worry, happiness, excitement etc. – and for everyone it is personal to them.
What is standard across the board however, is that first time pregnant women are like sponges for information. They are keen to find out as much information as possible about pregnancy, labour, new-borns etc. and they will read websites, blogs, magazines, books, and chat to their own mothers, siblings, friends, colleagues etc. to make sure they are as fully informed as possible.
What they don’t realise is that they are now in the market for products and services that they don’t even know they need. Pregnant women and particularly first time pregnant women are a highly lucrative market segment for a plethora of brands from car manufacturers to interior paint companies and everything in between.
Did you know that 38% of first time expectant women in Ireland will need to change their car before their baby is born? (Source: eumom car survey 2015, 2,000+ responses) This equates to over 9,500 women buying new (to them) cars in a defined time period, ie. within 5-6 months of confirming their pregnancy. All of these women were driving 3-door cars and now need to upgrade to a 5-door to make it easier to get baby in and out and to ensure they have enough boot space for all the paraphernalia that comes with a baby plus the weekly shopping!
40% of annual births in Ireland are to first time moms, so if you can make her an advocate for your brand, you’re on the road to success.
Brands need to show that they understand pregnant women by encouraging and supporting her in a real way along her pregnancy journey. Brands also need to seriously consider ‘always on’ activity and not just doing bursts of activity a few times a year. There are new people joining this market every day and they are all relevant to you. Brands with creative designers that carefully consider the mindset these women are in and how they’re feeling at this time are likely to have campaigns that resonate better with this key market.
74% of millennial mums pay more attention to ads that feature a real mum (rather than a model or actress) and 52% say that a brand that realistically reflects parenting today is an important purchasing influence. (Source: Modern Parenting, Aug. 2017, 1,128 responses)
68% of mums are the main decision maker or have the greater influence in purchasing decisions made in/for the home, from preferred utility provider to insurance company; preferred car to where the weekly shop is done (Source: eumom car survey 2015, 2,000+ responses) When a couple start a family, they progress from being a ‘basket shopper’ to a ‘trolley shopper’ – you don’t fit many packets of nappies & wipes in a basket! Couples with two children expect to spend more than €540k raising their family (Source: Irish Times 2016) so make sure your brand is getting some of that spend.
eumom has been a valuable resource to the parenting community in Ireland for the past 18 years and we can help you reach this lucrative market in a safe and trusted way with a variety of opportunities, from content planning & execution, creative workshops and campaign planning to sponsored content, targeted email campaigns and highly engaged social platforms.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
