Not so very long ago, when Mother’s Day rolled around, we’d see families scheduling dinners to celebrate and most local flower shops left in short supply. This still happens today, of course, but there is also a definite shift away from these generic ideas and toward more personalized experiences. Let’s see how it looks!
Mother’s Day Through the Ages
Celebrated all over the world in various ways, Mother’s Day in the U.S. started in 1908 “when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother . . . a peace activist who cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the American Civil War, and created Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health issues. Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mother by continuing the work she started and to set aside a day to honor all mothers because she believed a mother is ‘the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world.’”
And today’s moms continue to set the bar, accomplishing some pretty amazing tasks as they manage increasingly complicated schedules requiring them to wear multiple hats in the course of a day.
This year, “moms” as a profession earned a raise for all they do! It’s what moms would be paid, rather, if they had a salary – and it’s up 3.5%:
Today’s moms are tired.
And although a bauble made by tiny hands, and flowers, are always appreciated and cherished, going a little over the top for the lady who gave you/your child life seems appropriate.
So, what did these tired moms want for their special day
Mostly, they wanted a break from it all, a day to rest and relax. And also, some comic relief, considering all the work they do for free! We’ll get to each in a second.
Moms Just Wanna Have Fun
Moms may be tired – and certainly need a break – but a Mom “break” may not involve taking a nap (that’s usually a Dad break). Kraft is offering to reimburse $100 to moms for sitters (till they hit $50k, that is) so they can leave the house and do their thang. Something to break up the day-to-day and remind everyone (including themselves) that they’re an individual with an identity. And for moms, that thing is typically an “experience:”
Moms no longer want the traditional dinners out at a crowded restaurant (assuming they ever did, honestly), though they may want a jazz brunch where the singer mentions them by name (if they love jazz) or a signed copy of that book by the author they’ve been talking about, along with time alone at a reserved, quiet place outside of the home for them to read it! And maybe some wine is involved.
Mostly, moms crave an experience that’s personalized and demonstrates humor and a lovingly deep understanding of who mom is as a person before she was “mom” – who she still is underneath it all. And KFC helped kick things off with a creative, interactive digital greeting for the best moms, with the best sense of humor:
After watching that, it’s the perfect opportunity to hand mom tickets to see her favorite comedian (who you can’t stand, and she knows it) or whatever personalized experience you’ve sorted out in her name. There’s always next year, if this isn’t what happened.
But we’re not done yet, because this day it isn’t just about your mom, it’s your mom’s mom’s day as well, and your mother-in-law, sister-in-law, great niece twice removed . . . you get the idea. Lots o’ ladies to consider.
Generations of Moms
There may be multiple moms in a family, like this one with five generations of women celebrating the special day and creating something that celebrates all of them in one fell swoop is an option, of course. Day Spas are a huge draw, mostly due to mom squads descending on them en masse. Going along with our overarching theme of personalization, planning ahead to make the experience amazing for each lovely lady is a good thing.
One of the top trending posts about Mother’s Day spoke to just that – a new mom taking her mom to a spa as a surprise:
Commercialized Chatter to Ignore
The chatter around Mother’s Day commercialization has been around nearly as long as the day itself. The complaints about it mirror what’s heard regarding Christmas – that the focus has shifted from one of gratitude to a contest of wallets, with an embarrassing display of meaningless trinkets taking center stage.
But retailers have realized this model is not sustainable, with savvy brands focused on what potential consumers really want, which is personalization-at-scale. They’re using Next Generation AI-powered analytics to better understand segments, and it’s working.
These efforts are not only financially beneficial to brands, but are also slowly replacing that “meaningless” norm and putting the love back into these holidays.
A quick scan on social proves this out. The love was strong in the days leading up to Mother’s Day, with Net Sentiment reaching 99%, and currently hovering around 90, which is on a scale that goes to 100:
And the conversation focused on capturing the perfect gift to make mom happy:
There are always the naysayers and a few downright haters, but those folks should be viewed as a tougher nut to crack on the personalization scale – and offer opportunities for new markets to capture. Note to retailers: Your mom would be so proud if you did!
Reach out and we’ll help you sort out what is being said about your brand, and important days that you could be owning online – and in ways that are entirely relevant to your target audience!
