Myth and the Mommy Blogger

January 21, 2009

Mommy bloggers have become so celebrated that a multitude of myths are wafting up around them. On Friday, Jessica Smith posted a great piece called the Top 10 Misconceptions About Mommy Bloggers on Mashable. From my own experience both as a marketer and a blogger, I couldn’t resist commenting below on some of the misconceptions she addresses:

· Mommy Bloggers just write to get free stuff

· Mommy Bloggers are uneducated, lack creativity, and don’t take writing seriously

Some mommy bloggers do just write to get free stuff—and why not, especially in this economy? But in return, they’re putting a lot of time and energy into letting their readers know exactly what they think about those products. Others at this stage are probably getting, from their point of view, too much free stuff, and it’s clearly not the reason they’re blogging. Their goal is to offer support and advice to other moms, build a reputation for themselves as influencers, and, increasingly to develop that positive visibility into professional opportunities. At Child’s Play Communications, where we specialize in marketing to moms, we rely on mom bloggers for educated feedback on everything from new products to the effective use of social media for our clients. We know from our relationships with them that many mommy bloggers come from PR, marketing, advertising and other fields where creativity and writing skills are key.

· Blogging is considered a hobby by most Mommy Bloggers

Not any of the ones I’ve met – which would explain why we’re working with them on a regular basis. Hobby? Everyone I know seems to be running blogging empires or to be on their way to doing so.

· Mommy Bloggers only write about baby-related topics of conversation

Some do – lots do. But they also write about politics, sex, fitness, illnesses, business and the state of the world. I’m a mom and I blog about social and marketing trends that affect moms. Does that make me a mommy blogger?

· Mommy Bloggers make tons of cash

· Mommy Bloggers don’t make any money at all

Exceptionally innovative, dedicated and marketing-savvy mommy bloggers become advisors for corporations, write books, serve as spokespeople, attract major advertising – and make tons of cash. Others make a little bit of cash. And still more aren’t in it for the bucks, will never make money from it anyway and don’t really care because that’s not why they’re blogging in the first place.

For the full list of Top 10 Myths about Mommy Bloggers, visit http://mashable.com/author/jessica-smith/.

Posted by Stephanie Azzarone on January 21, 2009 | Comments (4)

June 4, 2009

In response to: Myth and the Mommy Blogger
VickyH commented:

@jamie: Well I think your seriously comparing apples to oranges here. First, how much do you think it costs for them to return products? Second, there credibility with their readers would be shot if they blog about it they should keep it. Through use of the product they can really see what it's like and this often takes time would you really want a 'used' sippy cup, swing, or car seat back? WTH is a company going to do with a 'used' product, I hope not resell it to consumers. The newspapers, tv shows, and magazines you mentioned would give their stuff back, because they don't use it! They just show the perty picture and that's that. Plus they get mucho money from advertisers. What would they need with a $1 - $100 product. It's painfully obvious that you are clueless, sorry.

February 27, 2009

In response to: Myth and the Mommy Blogger
Stephanie Azzarone commented:

Jamie: While, yes, Dooce is the biggie in terms of bucks, there are other mommy blogs that have also been successful. Celebrity Baby Blog, e.g., was purchased by People magazine. And other mom bloggers make money by acting as spokespersons for companies, turning their blogs into books, and so on. In terms of their "demanding" free stuff -- as much as we'd all love them to do reviews without it costing companies/clients anything, how can moms do a review with any authenticity unless they have actually tried out the product? And it's authenticity that makes these moms influential.

February 3, 2009

In response to: Myth and the Mommy Blogger
TPal commented:

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January 22, 2009

In response to: Myth and the Mommy Blogger
Jamie R Lentzner commented:

Actually I would have to say that most Mommy bloggers (even the top ones) don't make much money, if any at all. It is not a myth - I met most of them at Blogher last year. There is only one top Mommmy Blogger (Dooce) and she does make that kind of money. Also, I as a business owner have participated in reviews and give aways and I don't think the problem is that they want free stuff - they all demand it. And, they get to "pick" what they want - any other TV Show, Magazine or Newspaper that wrote about me or my products never insisted on which item. They also always sent it back and they always paid for shipping. Mommy Bloggers all state they will not return products.

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