Can being green be sassy, sexy and fun? The website, Green and Clean Mom, seems to think so.
I was sent this site the other day by our creative director, Luis Medina. He made some great points about engaging with moms when trying to grow your green cause.
Mom bloggers have a fast-growing influence in the blogosphere and among consumers. And it’s easy to understand why, because moms are:
- Very opinionated
- Passionate about creating a better world for their children, which benefits us all
- Fond of telling everybody what they should do
- Eager to empower themselves and channel their inner mom-goddess
- Controllers of household finances
- Influencers of daily, home-based habits with far-reaching effects (what to eat, how to clean, how to live efficiently, how to save money etc.)
Unquestionably, green marketers have a lot to gain by reaching out to mom bloggers and leveraging their influence. But it’s important to remember: building these relationships requires smarts, sensitivity and lots of respect.
Unfortunately, lots of marketers get this last part wrong. To avoid being put in time out, always be transparent, avoid the pitch, and make sure you are providing the author with information you think is newsworthy to her audience. She’ll appreciate that.
As an example of the power and diversity found in blogging moms, I pulled this list from 10 Links a Day. They list 10 popular blogs each day in a variety of categories. This one happened to be on green mom bloggers.
Click on the image to visit the site.
- Enviromom
Raising green kids - OrganicMania
Your guide to making sense of healthy green living - The Green Mom Review
For eco-fabulous living - Green & Clean Mom
How being green can be sassy, sexy and fun - EcoStoreUSA
Healthy body, healthy mind…and then some - The Smart Mama
Simple steps to non-toxic kids - Mom Go Green
Musings of a mom on a quest for a healthy family and planet - Healthy Tot
Healthy ideas, product info and comments about babies, tots and little ones - Green Mamas Pad
- Greeen Sheeep
Just another lost sheep wandering this planet, trying to find my way back to a more eco-friendly, simple, sustainable way of life.
Do you know of a blogging green mom that didn’t make the list? Please let us know below.
Tags: green and clean mom, Green Marketing, Green mom bloggers, green social media
Posted in: Consuming Green Stuff, Green Marketing, Sustainable Marketing
Hi Park,
I enjoyed your post – you made some very good points in an entertaining way. Thanks for including OrganicMania in your list.
I hope you don’t mind me adding a few points and related links to expand on this discussion:
1. Not all Mom bloggers do reviews, nor are they obligated to do so. It was more than a year before I put my email contact on OrganicMania, and sometimes I wonder if that was a mistake as now I’m inundated with irrelevant, pushy pitches from both PR people and business owners.
2. The role of Mom bloggers as product reviewers and influencers is under intense scrutiny by the FTC and the press. Much of the early, genuine “word of mouth” generated by Mom bloggers has been replaced by paid placements that are not obvious to consumers. (For more on this, you can check out a report I co-authored with another “Mom blogger” who is also a classically trained marketer: http://www.thebuzzfromblogher.com)
3. Marketers need to respect the fact that some Moms blog simply for the purest of reasons – to tell a story, to connect, to write…
4. Some “Mom bloggers” (myself included) are actually marketers themselves. Their blogs may serve as creative outlets, or their own way of keeping tabs on the blogosphere. My business, 4GreenPs, specializes in strategic marketing for green, and I work primarily with greentech/cleantech, local & organic food, and other sustainable businesses. (I work out of one of the nation’s first Green Business Incubators in Bethesda, Maryland).
5. Some of the best green women bloggers out there are NOT Moms, yet they are huge influencers of consumer perceptions.
Best,
Lynn
Good morning, Lynn, and thanks for taking the time to comment. You make some great points. Marketers that truly don’t understand the power and working WOM often attempt to veil their sales efforts as genuine conversation. They only hurt themselves, their clients, and generally give WOM a black eye. We agree that the only true way to engage green moms, or any potential voice for your product, service or cause, is to be authentic. I certainly don’t recommend engaging bloggers as shills, rather, as true evangelists, providing the ubiquitous “you” is living up to your promises. After all, isn’t it the the lack of performance that kills all products?
Thanks for the reminder, Park! Mom bloggers as a segment is one force in the blogosphere that has been garnering influence on consumers’ buying habit. But as Lynn has pointed out, increasingly many of them are doing paid reviews that can undermine their credibility in the long-term. And some may not even be Moms, though I don’t see this as much of a problem so long as the posts and reviews are well thought-out.
Now time to go churn out posts that address the water concerns of mummies
Hi Park, thanks for including me. I have to tell you, PR and companies are making a genuine effort to recognize what you have put on your list and over the last year I have seen some positive changes. I still get bad PR pitches but now most companies are getting personal and forming relationships with me before asking me to review a product or consult with them.
You make some very valid points.
Hi Sommer. I’m glad you’re seeing some positive changes out there. The big companies and product pushers are still having a hard time adjusting to social media and how to build that conversation and relationship BEFORE the pitch. However, it does offer you some unique opportunities to “say it like it is” for a product, good or bad. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Thank you for including The Green Mom Review. While we don’t do reviews, per se, we do strive to feature products we feel are great alternatives to their mainstream counterparts and if we are in any way influencing anyone (and their families) to live a greener, healthier lifestyle, we’re very happy!
Janet, you have a noble mission indeed, and one that highlights the power of social media. Thank you for commenting.
Park,
Thank you for a great resourceful post. I’ve been sharing through my Twitter network.
Thanks Michael. I’m glad you found it helpful.
[...] in Phoenix, AZ, provides an excellent example of an agency’s blog post written the right way: 6 Reasons Why Green Marketers Should Listen to their Mothers. I would encourage you to go ahead and read this post and I’ll give you some observations and [...]
Hi Park, thanks for including me. I have to tell you, PR and companies are making a genuine effort to recognize what you have put on your list and over the last year I have seen some positive changes. I still get bad PR pitches but now most companies are getting personal and forming relationships with me before asking me to review a product or consult with them.
You make some very valid points.
This is a fabulous list of blogs!
Thanks LJ. I’m glad you found it, and them, useful.
SL, it sounds like these companies are taking the time to learn how to reach out through social media, and that’s a very good thing. It’s difficult, especially in this economy when we all want revenue recovery to happen fast, to have the patience SM takes. Thanks for your note.