A new study says that a majority of moms (52%) like to see humor in businesses’ tweets. Further, what moms want most from businesses’ tweets are links to interesting articles/news (71%) followed by links to sales or special offers on their websites (67%) and links to downloadable coupons/discounts (63%).
Analyzing data collected from 533 moms in April 2010, Lucid Marketing and Lisa Finn find 52% of moms use Twitter to keep up with businesses they like or find out about new products. In open-ended responses describing what they like about the businesses they follow, moms say they like tweets with personality and companies that interact with them on Twitter.
“Twitter is often thought of as a broadcast medium for the latest news, but for many people it is a very personal experience,” said Kevin Burke, President of Lucid Marketing.
Retweeting harnesses the power of moms’ word-of-mouth and may be considered a measure of interest in a tweet. Links to articles of interest to moms is the top reason (76%) for moms to retweet something a business has posted. Tweets containing coupon codes or links to online coupons are also popular subjects for retweeting (67%), followed by funny tweets (60%) and links to sales on the companies’ websites (54%).
Twitter versus Facebook
When compared with the results from the authors’ previous study of moms on Facebook, moms appear to be more open to a range of interactions with companies on Twitter. Moms on Facebook use it primarily to keep in touch with friends and family, while moms on Twitter use it to network with a wider array of contacts. While moms are receptive to marketing on both sites, they’re a bit more protective of their personal space on Facebook, and a bit more focused on getting coupons and special offers there. On Twitter they’re looking for good deals, too, but they also want to be kept informed about news and articles that are relevant to their lives.
“Marketers are looking for ways to forge personal, authentic connections with consumers, and I was struck by how much moms appreciate getting a sense that there’s a real person behind the company. Not only are they open to companies showing some personality in tweets; they actively want that,” said Lisa Finn, coauthor of the report.
The full report includes findings on moms’ motivations for using Twitter, how they use the platform in their daily lives and other topics of interest to marketers.
