Online Moms and Travel Booking Online

On my way to a meeting in New York yesterday for a client in the travel industry, I started to consider the convergence of research reports that I have seen recently on both moms and travel booking online.  A Disney-commissioned audience segmentation I read some time ago noted the following key segments of moms:

• "Tech Nesters" (32%) – Web-saavy stay at home moms who feel the Internet has brought their family closer together, and visit websites with their kids (though they are also protective of what their kids do online).
• "Mrs. Net Skeptic" (31%) – Stay at home mom who is skeptical of the Internet and very protective of her kids going online and does not allow a lot of freedom.  Likely to focus on family activities and feels rules and disciple are important.
• "The Yes Mom" (15%) – Married or divorced moms that are also working, particularly in executive or managerial roles.  Likely to grant kids a lot of freedom when it comes to the Internet and does not know what she would do without the Internet. 
• "Passive Under Pressure Mom" (22%) – Likely to be divorced or single and stretched far too thin regarding responsibilities at home and at work.  Protective of kids use of the Internet, but more likely to be preoccupied with other things to be too concerned about the Internet all together.

Further conclusions drawn from this analysis can be read in the transcript of an Ad-Tech interview with Ken Goldstein, EVP and Managing Director of Disney Online.

For our clients in the travel and other industries looking to target moms, we have already started to take the next step beyond this segmentation of moms by attitudes to the Internet and focus more on Moms as influencers.  Word of mouth marketing has huge applications for this audience … a fact that companies like BuzzAgent can attest to based on the composition of their members (BuzzAgent is more than 70% female and more than 50% are married with kids). 

The recent phenomenon of targeting these "Alpha Moms" even has support through a new TV network that focuses on providing content for moms that are described on the site as "mavens of mommyhood."  Coupled with the strong growth of online use among moms, as well as the recent reports about email’s potency as a way to reach moms … identifying the right influencers in online communities could be the strongest single tactic for connecting with moms that are in the midst of making their families travel plans for the next big vacation.