When Myspace launched in 2003, Millennial Moms were solidly in their teenage years and looking to expand their social networks digitally. As social media platform options exploded through the early aughts and into the 2010s, so did the time Millennial Moms spent checking their notifications. In fact, a recent study found that Millennial Moms spend over 17 hours per week on social media, stretched across 3.4 social media accounts, on average.
If you want to connect with Millennial Moms, start with social media. Because social media is foundational to connecting with your target audience, especially if that audience is Millennial Moms, we made sure we included an entire social media section in our 2021 annual Millennial Moms research. That’s in addition to our exploration of financial decision making, online purchasing, and content consumption. Here’s what we found:
1. The Number One Millennial Mom Social Media Platform
Millennial Moms grew up with social media and were the first generation to conduct much of their social life online before everybody else joined the crowd. It should come as no surprise that they’re loyal to the platform that saw them through middle school, high school, and into college and beyond: Facebook. As we note in our annual report:
These moms were early adopters when it was first available to anybody with an email account. They still use it, and you should too if you want to connect with them.
So if your target audience includes Millennial Moms, prioritize Facebook to build your brand as 85% of them have a Facebook account. As over 63% of Millennial Moms have an Instagram account, and 57% opt for Youtube, you’ll want to add photography and video to your content repetoir. In 2021, 96% of consumers increased their online video consumption. Translation: video is here to stay, and you can increase your chance of connecting with Millennial Moms by incorporating video content creation on social media platforms.
Don’t worry about looking polished. Remember, the younger folks in the room look for relatability over production value; use features on Instagram like reels and stories to create high-impact content without hiring a videographer.
2. When to Post, When to Connect
If you want to connect with Millennial Moms, you need to know when to post in order to optimize your chance for connection, otherwise you’re just ships passing in the bay. Millennial Moms spend time on social media when they’re in-between activities and responsibilities for their children. Here’s what you need to know:
About 1 in 3 Millennial Moms check their social media around lunchtime and morning from 8:00-10:00 a.m., after the kids are off to school.
Our data showed small, but not insignificant peaks from 8:00-10:00 a.m. and 12:00-2:00 pm, but the most popular time for Millennial Mom feed scrolling is in the evening. When you’re designing campaigns for this target audience, post when they’re most likely to see your content, prioritizing the evening hours first and foremost as 48% of Millennial Moms check their accounts from 8:00-10:00 p.m., once the kids are off to bed.
Now, are you ready to take a left turn?
3. Focus on Stress Reduction
Millennial Moms have a love/hate relationship with social media. When we asked them whether social media causes stress, 43% said yes, and 55% said no. While a slim majority of Millennial Moms said they didn’t feel stressed out by social media, a large proportion of our sample does feel stressed out by endless scrolling. And their concerns center around their role as a mother. Here are the details:
[Millennial Moms] reflected on how it’s difficult to disconnect, how they see [social media] as a tool, but also find it overwhelming sometimes, how they feel pressure to be a “Pinterest Mom,” and even how they sometimes wonder whether it would be better if social media didn’t exist.
Additionally, respondents reflected on how they worry about the impact social media will have on their children, as they can relate to the experience of growing up with social media and see the effect of early social media usage on themselves.
Brands can do right by Millennial Moms by bringing a stress-free approach to their content. Avoid fear-increasing, pressure-increasing tactics and focus instead on what Millennial Moms look to gain from their social media use.
4. Social Media Motivation: Entertainment
To produce top-notch content for your target audience, it’s essential to understand what types of content they look for on social media. When it comes to Millennial Moms, they seek a respite from their busy lives. Our results showed 73% of Millennial Moms want to be entertained, 15 percentage points higher than the next most popular response: to stay connected with family and friends. So let’s take a closer look:
While 1 in 4 Millennial Moms use social media to follow influencers, it’s not front and center. Our least selected reason for using these popular platforms? Promotion.
While a small portion of Millennial Moms may be on social media to promote or influence, most are not.
Millennial Moms are not motivated by the influencer life or enamored with it: They log in for self-satisfaction, and they seek content that engages and delights them first and foremost.
5. Social Media Engagement: Make Them Laugh
Step One: Establish a presence on the social media platforms Millennial Moms flock to.
Step Two: Create content they engage with.
We’ve already talked about how Millennials aren’t superfans of influencer culture. Let’s also make it clear they don’t respond to traditional advertising and marketing tactics; they see right through it. So what’s a brand to post?
The top reason for Millennial Moms to share, repost, or save a social media post is because they found it interesting. Simple as that. But the second reason? About 55% of Millennial Moms surveyed share, repost, or save because it makes them laugh.
Before we talk about the second half of that quote (it’s a big deal), the third reason these moms engage with social media is that they learned something from the content. Big on education and big on laughs, Millennial Moms want your content to cater to their values. Their lives have been pretty heavy so far, and they seek levity on social media. So if you can educate, entertain, and make them laugh, you’ll be more likely to be in their good graces.
Take Action With Your Social Media Content Strategy
The insights in this blog lay the foundation for connecting with Millennial Moms on social media. You can continue the Millennial Mom exploration by downloading our 2021 Quick Guide to Millennial Moms. Get access to data-backed insights and actionable steps you can start taking today. All you have to do is click and enter your email.
While our Millennial Mom research is available for free to you today, we can help you connect with the people you serve through our TLC Audience Research & Content Strategy. In a few weeks, we’ll deliver a deeper understanding of your market, opportunities to differentiate your brand from your competitors, audience research with insights into the people you interface with, and content strategy to put the data into action. To connect with somebody directly, email us at [email protected].
DOWNLOAD THE MILLENNIAL MOM QUICK GUIDE
The post Where to Find Millennial Moms: 5 Social Media Insights appeared first on Brainchild Studios®.
