Self-Made Mom

A snowstorm in April:

This is not what I call “spring skiing.”

A random product I reviewed a long time ago (so long that I can’t even find it in my archives) staring at me from the bar where I was enjoying a drink called, “The Geisha.”

To my knowledge, Gloves in a Bottle is NOT a key ingredient to the Geisha drink.

Making it onto Alltop Moms. I can’t even believe I’m in the company listed on this site. I’m all the way at the bottom, but who cares, I’m there! (Thanks, Nicole.)

Kim, thanks for the button. That about sums it up for me too!

Seeing many friends of mine in the blogosphere meeting KATIE COURIC in NYC. Beth, next time you offer me a chance like this, remind me that my husband will always be there, while Katie may not be. You guys rock!!

Vacationing alone with hubby is overrated compared to meeting #1 female celebrity. Just kidding, honey.

That’s all until I get back from snowy paradise…

Edited to add: I SO did NOT meet Katie!! I think re-reading the caption it makes me sound like I did, but I didn’t. Just jealous of those that did. Next time I’ll get out of my vacation haze and proof before I write!

Hi! It’s me again. From the other side of motherhood.  The stay-at-home side.  Actually, staying at home hasn’t been all that realistic since I stopped working last week.  A visit to the family in Michigan, a mother-in-law visiting to take care of Junior this week, really makes me feel like a lady who lunches as opposed to a lady who should be cleaning up toddler messes.

But for fear that my leisure status will catch up with me; I’ve been keeping busy.

• For one, I’m currently conducting a fun giveaway ever on my pathetically-updated review blog.  If you tell me a good story about why you need a new diaper bag, you can win one from Land’s End. So go check it out!
• I’m also happy to announce that I’m going to be a featured writer on the amazing web site, Work It, Mom!  I’m going to be writing once every other while about working moms in the media.  Tell me what you think about Lindsay Davenport’s return to tennis after baby.



• Last, I’d like to thank my new blog friend, Alex at Flexible Parenting for awarding me a Roar for Powerful Words award. I never think my writing is all that great, but I’m honored that someone out there actually likes what I spew out! And I never really thought I had any blog friends, but I’m glad I do.
   
  

And for that, I’m going to award some bloggy-bling to a few of some of my blog aquaintances (do I have any other blog friends yet?) who’ve made my day recently.

• Foodmomiac:  Because before I stopped working I never quite knew what to make of all the great food advice and recipes she posts on her fabulous blog. Now I have time to cook!
• High Heels and High Chairs:  Because I can now totally relate to this.
• Mom, Ma’am, Me:  Because her blog title alone makes me chuckle, and her writing is infectious.  Plus she’s working hard at a job she isn’t thrilled with, so we gotta give her a little love.

So, that’s where I’ve been. Where you all been?

Getting dressed up and going to work occasionally has its privileges.  Like today, for instance.  I was able to wear my favorite new sweater dress and boots (it’s finally dipped below 50 degrees in Chicago, yay!), and could easily justify sneaking away for a few to attend a mom blogger event.  Add to it that I was able to meet up with some blog friends and I nearly forgot that I was on the hook for at least 10 major client deliverables by the end of the day.  This adequately describes a luncheon I went to today put on by a large office supply company (not sure if my firm represents them so not listing them by name yet) to talk about cool tech-y stuff you can buy for the holidays.  Of course, the tech pro on hand to help us all learn about the newest gadgets and gizmos was none other than Beth of Techmamas. She is the tech savvy one.  Me? As I told the crowd: I can buy the gadgets but I can’t seem to use or fix them properly.

However, I am a good note taker and copiously wrote down some thoughts as you peruse the consumer electronic aisles of your favorite stores. 

1. If you’re going to buy a point and shoot digital camera, go for one with a lot of megapixels. 7.1 works. And an optical zoom of 3X doesn’t hurt either.  When the conversation turned to face recognition, though, I admittedly started eating my lunch and tuning out.  They served a good salad, I mean, chocolate.

 

If you look closely, you might see a teensy weensy bit of chocolate cake left. Just a little bit.

2. Digital photo frames are Paris-Hilton-hot right now.  And they’re not as expensive to buy as they might seem.  I want Wendy to buy me the one she has with the wireless card that updates the photos on the frame as they are uploaded to the computer.  Think she’ll pop for it for me?
3. GPS devices give you REAL TIME TRAFFIC updates.  And they’re easy to put in your car.  If you live in Chicago, this is a no brainer.
4. Contrary to popular belief, laptops can be purchased for less than $1000.  And they aren’t made of plastic.  They’re like from a reputable brand. If you’re going to get one of these machines, though, Beth says you should have 2MB of RAM and a 120GB drive.  (I sound so tech-savvy! I’m quitting my day job!)
5. Now, this one is serious.  We all should back up our hard drives to avoid major catastrophes like your computer going to a “blue screen” while your keyboard begins to smoke. (No, this didn’t happen to me, but it sounded good, no?) You can buy a back up drive or go online and back up your system.  Please ’scuse me while I get up off of my lazy ass to go make sure the 71,000 photos I have of junior don’t just disappear now into thin air.

After all of this copious note taking we all then moved on to the display table.  Being the least tech savvy of the bunch, I went straight for the Crayola squeezable paint brushes and had my way with the fair princess.

At least I didn’t splatter the paint all over the new laptop, right?

Going back to my day job now.

Tags: techmamas, tech advice, gadget advice for moms, tech savvy moms,

This blog post on whether pregnancy (or working motherhood) is a liability really caught my eye.  Based on a response to the allegations that Bloomberg LP demoted female employees after they announced their pregnancy, the post’s author, BusinessWeek writer Lauren Young, questions whether or not being pregnant or returning from maternity leave inhibits your ability to move up the corporate ladder.

She thinks it does and so do I.

I am not the same worker that I was before I had my son.

I don’t hide in the working mom “closet” pretending everything is alright on the homefront.  I can’t stay late in the office every night to finish up work (that’s what going online at 8 pm is for!)  I’m working at home more than I’m not because I have some crisis to monitor, and when I should be writing a communications plan I’m usually texting my nanny to see when my son went to bed.

My head’s not in the game lately and it’s costing my team. 

I’m trying to make it all work, but I realize in my head that my priorities have shifted.  I’m not the breadwinner and don’t want to be.  So when push comes to shove and there’s an emergency at home or an emergency at work, guess where I’ll be?

My new boss should have inherited the old me - dilligent worker, top of her game all the time, going the extra mile.

Instead, she’s been saddled with a neurotic mother of a one-and-a-half-year-old trying pretty fruitlessly to make what others deem “the perfect balance” work.  This is definitely something a Band-Aid can’t fix.  And I hope to g-d she has an insurance plan.  Because I could be liable to do something crazy one of these days and just walk away from the scene of the crime.

Tags: Business Week Working Parents, Bloomberg LP lawsuit

Interesting Q&A session at BlogHer currently about self-promotion and self-branding. Professionals Penelope Trunk, Nina Burokas, and Stephanie Cockerl have some good insights about building and maintaining your own personal brand and blog.  This is all being written while sitting on the floor for an hour-and-a-half, so bear with me.

• Self-branding is like 5th grade- be smart with the smart kids and hip with the popular kids.
• You can blog about everything! You can’t blog about knitting AND politics - so pick one.
• You need to have a unique voice and find something that makes you stand out.
• A good way to build traffic on your site is to write posts that intersect two areas that interest you- like if you are an astronaut and write about diapers (all jokes aside) that might be interesting. But if you are an astronaut writing about being an astronaut, well, that’s not all that insightful.
• Good etiquette on the blogosphere is all about making the conversation- if you want to have conversations, blog. If you don’t, then write in a print medium.
• A way to get known on the blogosphere is being authentically interesting and being interested in others.
• Take some risks!
• Some good sites: www.progblogger.net, www.copyblogger.com, www.profnet.com, www.prleads.com

Oh, did I mention I didn’t bring enough business cards with me? Guess I failed in self-promotion today.

By the way, I just caught the facts. For a good opinion on the mood of this session (maybe it was too early in the morning?) click here.

Considering I live in the host city of the 2007 BlogHer conference, and I blog with many fine Chicago mommies, I thought it was my duty to share with all visitors some things to see or do in the city outside of meeting our favorite bloggers and partying it up. I even recruited a few friends to help expand my short and narrow-minded list.  Trust me, we’re better than any concierge at the W.

Sadly, my hubby nixed the idea that I camp downtown Chicago for the weekend. Boo.  But, if you are so lucky to be staying just off the Magnificent Mile, you might just enjoy the following in the Windy City.  (I personally believe the nickname is derived from politics, not by the strong winds off Oak St.  Just be glad you’re not visiting us in December!)

Eating Out: Why watch what you eat? You’re going to be hanging out with all women for the weekend, anyway.

• Pizza-  Although I prefer New York Style pies, many like Chicago-style pizza, with its oddly square-cut pieces that leave you with only a few crust options and center pieces of all cheese. But I digress.  Some choices for the ‘za: Giordano’s, (Rush St. location), Lou Malnati’s, or Gino’s East (East Superior location).  I like Lou Malnati’s the best, but you’ll have to take a cab. The deep-dish pepperoni pie just might be worth it, though.
• Quick bite or snack- My friends at the Chicagoist turned me onto this neat little market off the Mag Mile called L’Appetito.  Seriously, the sandwiches rock.  And they won’t cost as much as the peanuts from your snack bar.
• For the serious foodie in you - Head on over to Randolph St.  A short short cab ride away will offer you 3 consecutive blocks of some of the best eats in the city.  I’m partial to the sushi at Sushi Wabi.  But I realize that if you’re flying in from California, you’re probably laughing at the idea of sushi in Chicago.  So go to Red Light or Avec instead. Your stomach will thank me.

Out and About: You don’t have any kids with you… steal away for a few!

• Millenium Park- Everyone was skeptical when Millenium Park was built, but even the harshest critics were proven wrong. This free, 24.5 acre park has some of the coolest outdoor art I’ve ever seen.  And a free 8 a.m. exercise class will help you burn off all that great food you ate.  For more information about what to do at Millenium Park, read Kim’s great round-up.
• Lincoln Park - I know it’s like so cliche Chicago and all, but really, this park is ‘da bomb. There’s a free zoo, (petting zoo too!) a beach and conservatory.  And, oh yeah, every Saturday morning there’s a fresh “Green City” market.  (It opens at 7:00 a.m. so you have no excuse!)
• Architectural Tour - Chicago’s got some of the best architecture around, and the best way to see it is from our beloved river.  Take one of these river tours because it gives you the prettiest (and most relaxing) view of the incredible Chicago skyline.  You could take a walking tour instead, but well, I’m feeling too lazy right now to recommend that one.
• Navy Pier /Lakeshore Drive - Oh right, most of you are staying right next to this quintessential Chicago landmark and wonderful walking/ bike path. If you can break away from all the great speakers for a moment or two, tour around the Navy Pier grounds, ride the ferris wheel or rent a bike.  The view of the pier is great from any angle!
• Be like the paparazzi - If you don’t have time to do any sightseeing, the ladies at Cool Mom Picks are giving incentive to stalk out your favorite bloggers at the conference. Go on a BlogHer scavenger photo hunt and earn points to win cool stuff.

Shopping: You would all be lying if you didn’t want to do a little shopping while you’re all alone in the nation’s third largest metropolis.  Unfortunately, we don’t have that cool “no sales tax thing” that New York City does, but we do have some good places to get some great duds.  Trust me. I like to shop. A lot.

• State Street - Believe it or not, State Street between Wacker and Madison has some of the best discount shopping in any 4-block radius I’ve seen.  Besides checking out the summer sales going on at our beloved Marshall Fields, er, Macy’s flagship store, you’re just a stone’s throw from Nordstrom’s Rack, Filene’s Basement and H&M.  You didn’t come all the way to Chicago to go boutique shopping, right? 
• Oak St. - If you’re hitting it rich from your blog, you can probably afford to buy a thing or two at one of the chic boutiques on this famous Chicago shopping block just off the Mag Mile.  I’m not yet, so I just go down there and drool over the diamonds in the window at Graff. (I wonder how many more click-throughs I’ll need for that canary yellow one?)
• Boutiques - Unfortunately, most of the good boutiques in Chicago are a cab ride away.  But if you’re in need, check out Wicker Park (stretch of Division St. near Damen Ave.) or Armitage Ave. between Sheffield and Halsted streets.  Lori’s Shoes is still my favorite place to shop in the city.  Even if it’s worse than O’Hare’s security lines on a Saturday.

Most of all, enjoy the conference and your visit to our wonderful city!

Tags: blogher, Chicago, sightseeing, blogher conference 2007
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Cross-posted at Chicago Moms Blog where you can meet my fine Chicago mom blog friends!

Mother’s Day is less than two weeks away, and if you’re like me - a little bit bossy and love getting gifts - you’re all over the internet searching for the perfect gift for yourself.  I soak up the glory of Mother’s Day.  The day created to celebrate the fact that I suffered through the aches and pains of pregnancy and labor to produce just about the cutest thing that ever was (according to my MIL.) I’ve only had one Mother’s Day so far, but I already know I like to celebrate the holiday my way- no surprises. It’s the one holiday that I can control what I want to do and of course, what I want to receive.  Save the surprises for my birthday or Hannukah or something.  On Mother’s Day I live by the motto: “Requests are best.”  To make it easier for you to request the perfect gift, I’ve created a list of Mother’s Day gift ideas. All you have to do now is send the link to your husband and poke and nag him about it later tonight. Or maybe it’s just me that will do that.

Mother’s Day the Gadget Way: 
If you’re a gadget guru, here are some gift ideas for you (Techmamas inspired me, what can I say?):

• A bluetooth headset - a safe mama is a happy mama so get a headset for when you drive, or push your stroller around town, or if you just want to look really cool and important on a play date. I’m partial to the Motorola H700 because it comes in pink.
• A new digital camera - cameras are faster and smaller now than ever, and that’s why you need a new one. The Canon Exilim EX-S600 is small, and fast. And it has a special setting for “kids” so you won’t miss junior shoving birthday cake in his mouth.
• Video baby monitors - the perfect gift for a Type-A mom. Want to see what junior is up to in bed? View him on your fancy video monitor. I’m partial to the Summer brand because it’s portable so I can take it with me. Everywhere.
• A new watch - if your kid’s anything like mine, he eats everything you own. So don’t worry about him wrecking your jewelry and ask for a Casio Baby G watch. It won’t break and it has like 52 settings and alarms and time zones and makes jingles that will send your little one into a laughing fit. Plus it comes in pink so it can match your headset.

Mother’s Day the Cool Mom Way:
I may be controlling, but I never said I was “cool.” If you want to be a hip mama, request a gift from the Cool Mom Picks Mother’s Day Gift Guide. They’ve got great gift ideas over there for all kinds of mamas that support many mom-run businesses.  So go on, shoo. Remember, I’m not that cool, but they are.

Mother’s Day the Self-Made Mom Way:
I’ve got one Mother’s Day under my belt so I don’t have a lot of personal experience, but here’s what I requested and received last year:

• Helen Ficalora Alpha Charm Necklace - I’m a huge fan of these uber-light and fun necklaces. I ordered one with the initial of my son on it, so he’s close to me whether I’m with him or not. They also have really cute mom charms and sayings, so if you’re not feeling it for junior, you can feel it for yourself. That’s what this day’s all about, right?

And here’s what I’m getting this year. My $5 Target diaper bag has had it’s day. Do you like?

The Storksak Emily Diaper Bag

P.S. If you like to give rather than receive, then go over to Work It, Mom! and submit a tribute to a working mom that you admire. I was feeling a bit giving myself after writing this post so I published a tribute to one of my working mom BFFs.  Best part? Work It, Mom is partnering with MomsRising.org in this endeavour and they’re going to be making a donation in honor of all the Tributes they receive. The more Tributes they get, the more that gets donated. Sometimes even I give a little

Tags: mothers day, mothers day gift ideas, Cool Mom Picks, Techmamas, Storksak, Helen Ficalora, Summer Video Monitors, Work It, Mom!

If you’ve even paid half-attention to my blog in the past two days, you’d know that I was at Google Chicago today to sit on a “tech savvy mom panel” at event called “Mothers Know Tech.”  By the end of the very well-coordinated afternoon, I felt like I knew everything there was to know about mommy online behavior.  The trade off?  I think Google and the rest of the consumer package good free-world probably knows a little more than they ever cared to about me. 

Google Chicago office sign. If you can tell me what “Eng” means, I’ll give you a lava lamp.

It all dates back to the moment I was even asked to this event in the first place.  Someone from Google actually found my blog, probably thought I had a huge following and possibly liked some of the things I wrote about.  Maybe they even thought I was a “blogebrity.”  I didn’t realize it at the time, but the event invite was just a start to the pseudo-celeb-status.  From the moment I walked into the glass-doored lobby of Google’s Chicago branch, I was treated like the ultimate VIP.  Coat hung for me, a “green room” to sit with the other mom bloggers, free lunch, a “swag” bag.  It was cool. I mean, the event organizer and moderator had even read my blog.  (I don’t have much contact with folks who’ve read my blog in advance of me meeting them so I get excited about things like this.) Our gracious hosts at Google even told us how happy they were to have us moms there.  (Who, meee?)  Speaking of which, in attendance for the panel were some of my very esteemed local mommy bloggers including Stephanie from Adventures in Babywearing (how does she wear the baby all the time? Love it!), MJ from the awesome I Want Sugar (she had a baby 8 weeks ago, hello??), Amy from LadyBug Picnic (adorable daughter), Madeline, who doesn’t have a blog, but is my neighbor and is cool, and Jessica who has like a zillion computers and is hilarious so I’m left wondering, why doesn’t she blog?

The Google swag bag. Celebrities, back off.

While chowing down on some great Chicago deep dish pizza we went over the agenda and questions for the mom panel. All resulting conversation, however, was lost on me because on the sheet of notes I was handed read the ALL CAPS instructions that the panel questions were staring with ME. (My trip to Los Angeles came flashing back to me in a blur. Why do I always have to go first? Is it because I wore the same suit?)  After I got over the initial shock of trying to come up with something witty to say when they started off the panel with ME, I got back to gabbing with the ladies about fun things like Steph’s cute Crocs flats and Madeline’s insights into Chicago public schooling. (Madeline- I’ll be calling you in a few years. Or, as it goes here, tomorrow.)

Jealous?

Unfortunately, all good things come to an end, and as such, we made our way to the main event. This is where I attempted to “live blog” the data we learned from the marketing experts. And I got a huge giggle from the fact that the dude from Buzz Metrics put the mastheads from three of my favorite mommy blogger friends on his “Mom Bloggers are cool” slide. (Liz, I’m trying to get it for you.)  Luckilly though, there was a good handout at one of the booths during the “showcase” portion of the event that profiled the “Ten Mommy Blogs Worth Bookmarking.”  They all made the list and I got a copy. Yay!

A list of women who should have been on the panel in place of me.

After my giggling (and e-mailing) fit, we got a break.  Or as I would have labeled it on the agenda: Gorge-fest.  Too bad I was too busy gabbing to enjoy the spread. Wow, I missed out.

Google Gorge-fest. Yum.

Then, the break ended and it was my turn to shine.  Unfortunately, my mouth (which was not full of good food) got in the way again.  While I’m pretty sure I said that I have a blog and and I’m a blogger and I’m a mom blogger (I realize this is repetitive, but at least it’s benign) I’m fairly confident I also said the following:

• “I’m really selfish” (when asked how much time I spend online researching things for myself)
• “I ran an errand at work and got caught by my boss” (when asked about the things I blogged about)
• “I’m online all the time and my husband’s ready to kill me” (sorry honey that I dragged you into this)
• “I like to shop a lot” (when asked what websites I visit)
• *nothing* (when asked what advice I had to marketers about tech savvy moms)

So clearly the people in attendance had to think I was one of the following: a moron, severely narcissistic or a very bad wife. Or worse, all of the above.  Truth is, I may display some of these traits at times, but when I’m speaking to random to a crowd of 100 people it appears that I must highlight and underline it for effect.  Unfortunately for the attendees, they really didn’t need to know all of this. My blogebrity status had been eroded.  I’m pretty sure somewhere, behind a nifty cube, somebody was whispering, why did they invite her?

 

I see whispering people.

But then as soon as it started, the panel was over. I could breathe again and try to regain my composure.  But, as luck would have it, I got positioned next to the “blogging” booth during the cocktail hour where I very quickly realized that, yes, I’m a blogger, but I don’t use Blogger as my platform. Whoops. Great call using WordPress, Sara.  But the baby saved my butt.  I looked at my watch and realized that I should be halfway home by now. It was way past my worktime.  So I grabbed my free parking voucher (thank you Jen!) and hightailed it back to the real world.  Back to bathtime and bedtime.  My day as a blogebrity was over, and we were all a little more knowledgeable as a result. For better or for worse.  But I’m trying to stay positive here.

Tags: Google, blogging, mommy bloggers, marketing, marketing to bloggers, blog celebrities, Chicago

Update: Here is a link to some of the information we learned today…  

Are you all bored to tears yet? I’m not, but I’m sitting here live. Anyway, we just had a break with some fabulous food (no stale coffee and donuts here!) and we’re back to more fun stats about marketing to moms, and then, drumroll… the mom panel that I’ll be on. Yikes!! Ok, here we go.

(3:40 pm Central) Kevin Kells, Consumer Product Goods Director is going to talk to us about marketing tools that appeal to moms that Google offers. I didn’t realize how big of a reach Google has and all the products they offer and all that they do, wow! Some really neat case studies that I won’t bore you with by writing about, but again, I’ll link to the presentations, if you’re interested.

(4:10 pm Central) Ok, it’s time for the mom panel- wish me luck!! I have to go FIRST, AGAIN! (The horrors of my L.A. trip are coming back to me.) And hopefully, if you’re not totally “Google evented” out you’ll read MY take of the event later tonight. Meaning, I’m going to blog about nothing having to do with business or marketing and everything having to do with being gossipy.

By the way- all the stuff I blog about and the presentations I reference will be available via a link after the conference.  I also have no clue if I’m doing this “live blogging” thing correctly, so sorry if this is really long and boring. And finally, I’m a crazy notetaker… I’ll try to edit. But I have a bad history of overdoing it (high school ruined me). 

(2:20 central) Jim Lecinski, Central Region Director, Google is speaking now about how this discussion will help marketers understand how “moms use tech.”  Do the Google offices look like what you would expect the Google offices to look like? Answer is “yes.” The bad news is that I forgot my camera. Whoops.

Three themes about how marketing to moms is consistent over the past 10-15 years so the principles still exist but how they’ve changed over the years.

1) tools moms use- appliances are different, access to different kinds of communication tools (phone book vs. internet, etc)

2) what moms use for sense of community

3) where moms get help or assistance along the way- support network, sense of help

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Pop Quiz!! (I hate tests)

What’s your Digital Life Quotient (DLQ)? (Prize is a lava lamp?? Oh, that’s a brand icon of Google that will be shared with audience winnners.)

Digital Life Quotient are 25 simple questions about your tech behavior (like do you own an ipod, have you retouched a digital photo, do you have a blog, etc.)- I have to write now, so *pause.* Ok, I answered “yes” to 17 of the questions. 17 x 4 is 68 out of 100. (wow, math is NOT my strong suit.) Some people scored 96/100. They are very plugged in.

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Denise Chudy, runs Consumer Product Division of Google Midwest. Ran the same DLQ 25 questions to 100 moms using media screen. How does technology change their life and become the CFO of their family (for the record, I’m the CEO of the home.)

FOR ALL THE STATS I’LL POST THE LINK TO THE PRESENTATION!

• Average score of 40%. Out of 25 questions, mom answered yes to a full 10 of those. 10 most popular- text, watching videos, going online more than 2 hours a day, use online payment service, download music, etc.
• Gen Y Moms using digital technology more than older moms (higher DLQ the younger the mom). Number of children and age of child affects use of tech. Difference between mom who works and stays at home. HH income also affects use of tech. Moms with teens are the most digitally savvy according to this survey.
• Online video use and IM use is higher with Gen Y moms 18-24
• DLQ is higher with moms who have younger kids (0-2) and older kids (15-17)
• Moms with babies- score highest with retouching photos, buy and sell on eBay, have a social networking profile, placed a VOIP call.
• If a mom has a teenager, their DLQ really resembles patterns of a teenager. There’s a link between moms following their kids behavior and as a result becoming more tech savvy.
• Working moms are more digitally savvy!!! Score one for me!
• Tech savviness increases with income.

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(2:45 pm Central) Max Kalehoff, Buzz Metrics, NY- “Moms and Buzz” - Moms and their usage of the Internet and social media

(Agenda for his talk: Intro, Mindset of a Mom, Moms, CGM and the web, Why Moms Do It, Why Mom Buzz Matters, What Moms Talk About, Applications and Action, Q&A)

Mindset of a Mom: (video of Max’s wife, brave woman. Interesting tidbit - when pregnant spent a lot more time online than after she had a baby.  We can all agree with that)

• Pre-mom
• New mom
• Experienced mom
• Wise mom (grandma): being a mom doesn’t stop when your kid goes to college. (DAMN! Just kidding)

Landscape and Trends- blogging, broadband, video engagement, consumers more in control, defensive branding. Community and social network are appealing factors.

New Format and Forms to content: myspace, you tube, etc.

CPG category: lots of discussion around peanut butter, diapers, pet food (obviously) which result in new and exciting metrics and marketing models.

Speakers and Seekers model: over a quarter of top search results for world’s twenty largest brands are user-generated. Grass roots, advocacy. Results in the “moment of truth.”

Why does “buzz” matter?

• recos from consumers are the most trusted messaging
• consumer generated media links to purchasing behavior
• consumer expression explains brands. it triggers conversations.

What do moms “buzz” about? (this was a case study of 100,000 posts over a period of time in special interest group mom communities updated: these are mom communities online)

• Moms are concerned about nutrition 
• health and wellness and food and extended family rank high on what’s being talked about
• school lunches raise health and cost concerns

Practicalities for marketers:

• you can tap buzz throughout the product cycle from perception and awareness to launch and to determining key loyalty drivers and customer satisfaction
• get consumer insights
• search engine optimization
• new product launch tracking- how effective are your communications and can mommy buzz be a barometer or tracking device for mar comms
• media negotiation
• message optimization
• influencer management
• website, blog CRM optimization
• organizational change/ motivating management (hmmm maybe I did learn something for work today!)

Listening-centered marketing:

• consumer-generated media
• call centers are now profit centers
• advocacy is everything
• conversations are fluid
• customer advocacy is everything!!!

Ok, break time now…