Moms Are The Ultimate Marketers

Motherhood hit like a ton of bricks.

Nearly 10 years of experience in marketing, media, and startup business management, meant nothing being thrown into a trade with no training. I’d be lost if not for the strong network of women I had built in the field of motherhood.

I think marketing professionals face similar challenges. The rules and applications are always changing, with new responsibilities added daily.

After returning to work post-maternity leave, I realized that my new life at home wasn’t all that different from my life as a marketing consultant.

I’ve learned that nothing is one-size-fits-all for any client, mom or child. That’s why individuals need to take a strategic approach to their careers, lives, and personal brands, no matter how their job description reads today.

The Parenting Parallels

So what other parallels run between motherhood and the modern marketer?

• We’re always on the clock, working on a 24/7 media cycle, with a schedule built around deadlines.

• We choose our vendors wisely.
• We practice the 4 Ps. Yes, product, price, promotion and place, but also patience, principles, perseverance and potty.
• We’re masters of the SWOT analysis through our research and decision-making: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and toys. Yes, toys on its own, because you can basically throw out any logical thought when it comes to the amount acquired, the bells and whistles (and lights) involved, or the leverage they offer in crisis situations.
• We’re socially networked and organize the big events.
• We deliver a combination of practical solutions we need, and crafty, creative projects we want.
• We demonstrate transparency with our willingness to share our stories from the field.
• We maximize budgets and are master negotiators.
• We’re obsessed with the competition and constantly analyze our performance.
• We foresee PR crises and proactively plan for them.
• The client is always right in our eyes, but we know when to say no.
• It can be a thankless job, in an endless cycle of success and failures, but we do it for the love, and frankly it’s what we are destined to do.

It’s a new day for marketers, and moms and dads alike can take advantage of the same tools companies are using to build their brands, to achieve a greater return on the investment in future generations.

What do you find common in your marketing job and parenting? I can only speak from the female perspective but would love to hear from dads too!

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Christina Schmitz is vice president of PR 20/20, and founder of TheOnMom.com, a new blog and community dedicated to helping moms execute strategic parenting plans, market themselves for success, and connect with others “in the field.” Connect on Twitter @christinacs and @theonmom, and LinkedIn