05.16.2007

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Alpha Moms: Hype Or Opportunity?

Moms have always been known to wear multiple hats. They are queens of the domestic domain and targets for many marketing efforts. Despite marketing attempts to reach them, most moms don't believe companies truly understand them or the challenges they face. To them, marketers seem to rely on stereotypes of a bygone era or a mythological notion of motherhood. Take a moment to ask moms how they feel and most will tell you they are living extremely different lives than those that have gone before them. Only 17% of today's mom's feel their challenges and experiences match closely with their mothers' (Source: Hartman Interactive, March 2006 n=1,451).

A recent Salary.com report stated the typical mother puts in a 92-hour work week, working 40 hours at base pay and 52 hours overtime. Of course, mothers are not paid for this work; instead they are given an annual "named" holiday, a derisive set of nicknames, and only recognized for their contribution when something goes wrong. However, when mothers decide to act like what they're doing is important - a profession - instead of a hobby or natural skill they inherited, they are reborn as phenomena: Alpha Moms.

Who Is an Alpha Mom?

Women who are used to taking themselves and their work seriously may indeed apply a similar approach to raising children. Women continue to defy expectations and say they'll apply all of their skills (whether bookkeeping, technological, managerial, sales) to parenting, as in, "I will succeed at being the best mom I can be and employ all the necessary tools, measured indicators and products to accomplish this." Constance Van Flandern, a graphic designer and mom from Eugene, Oregon recognized this and is credited with coining the term "Alpha Mom."

An Alpha Mom is a Type A personality who continually strives to be ahead of the curve and "in the know" on the newest parenting innovations, hippest trends, research breakthroughs, most age-appropriate toys, Blackberry in her pocket and the most high-tech stroller in front of her.

And these mothers are not to be ignored. Today, marketers must understand the potential clout this group wields, reaching out to in the form of Internet networking sites, TV channels and targeted campaigns. An example of the intent to capitalize on the marketing opportunities this "new" group of moms represents: a 24/7 cable channel, Alpha Mom TV, was launched in 2005. Distribution deals now have it in 11.5 million homes.

Yet, marketing to moms is not a new concept; moms have always been a prime marketing target. When moms begin to act on something other than intuition, to do such things as research on how to "mother," it can make some marketers uncomfortable.

So what to make of this? Is the Alpha Mom hype or real opportunity?

Understanding the New Realities of Moms

Alpha Moms have always been around; we've all known them when we were growing up. They were the moms that others came to for advice on potty-training, dealing with picky eaters - the moms who drove everyone everywhere and coordinated everything. The emergence of an even more high-achieving mom seems the natural result of heaping so much pressure upon families in general.

Take kids' success in school as an example: Many schools now require parent involvement in everyday homework, fundraising and fieldtrips. The burgeoning demands of extra-curricular activity (sports, music, dance, etc.) are seen as crucial to building a child's resume for college admission. At the same time, the cost of living virtually requires dual incomes - good incomes that come only when both wife and husband are employed. How is all of this supposed to occur simultaneously? Only with the skills of a hyper-organized, completely market-savvy, take-no-prisoners-style manager coordinating everything.

There are also a huge number of single moms who have long been forced by necessity to successfully multitask. These are super-women in spades: juggling full-time jobs with the responsibilities of managing their child's schedule, grocery shopping, cooking, household managing and transporting, but doing it alone. They have always been out there; de facto role models to other moms in their "Alpha" abilities, ferreting out the best deals on play equipment, the most helpful ways to get babies to sleep, the most convenient locations for swimming lessons, the most effective strategies for homework.

Another factor may have less to do with these moms, and more to do with the higher profile of parenting. As increasing numbers of men get involved in being primary caretakers as stay-at-home dads, active step-dads or committed co-parents, the work of parenting is more widely exposed...for view and for respect. Historically, as men become involved in what had been traditionally female activities, they add to the stature of the roles.

Parents consider each other valuable information sources: 62% say they often consult each other for advice on parenting questions and problems (Source: Hartman Interactive, March 2006 n=1,451).. Research continues to show that increasing numbers of dual-income parents are identifying themselves as equally committed to both career and to family - and they demand that employers build these priorities into their schedules as well. As a result, the "job" of parenting is now more carefully examined and professionalized in ways that it hasn't in the past.

The Opportunity

Mothers, as a group, do indeed face everyday challenges that can be addressed effectively by recognizing and respecting these women as full and complex people involved in a big job. In honor of Mother's Day, a group called MomsRising has produced a Motherhood Manifesto documentary for PBS to explain the challenges mothers face. Mothers are not just moms. Finding interesting and effective ways to "target" mothers that acknowledge their complexity as individuals, the significance of their contributions, and the larger strategies that may support their work is more than trend-setting: it could start a revolution.

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