Have a Happy Pistol Packin’ Mothers Day

While watching the Today Show this week it was announced that Mothers Day is officially 100 years young. In honor of this blessed event, Matt Lauer along with Donny and Marie Osmond shared that the newest reality search involved the hunt for “Americas Favorite Mother”. They explained that there were many categories to be won including: Single Mom, Military Mom, Working Mom, etc.—you get the drift. They were narrowing it down by communities and common characteristics. I was impressed at the categories they came up with. I started thinking just how many types of moms there are out there. While the whole effort was a little saccharin sweet for me initially, I warmed up when I realized that NBC was recognizing different communities of Moms and praising their unique qualities.

My essential disappointment with most communications aimed at Mothers is that we are lumped together in spite of our cultural, personal, educational and financial differences. “Mother” just casts too broad of a net. The act of giving birth defines us all, but once the pod has separated from the Mother-ship our differences begin. We have various and sometimes opposing opinions on feeding, care and nurturing of our offspring; we have diverse interests in hobbies, books, sports and life in general. And like other communities we tend to flock together by our common interests, characteristics and beliefs.

Check out CafeMom if you really want to see the blended complexion of our community. In the 33 pages of sub communities on CaféMom, there was something for everyone! There are groups based on demographics, psychographics, social activism, body type, job-related concerns, media preferences and of course, sexual interests.

Some of my personal creative and slightly strange favorites are: Anarchy Moms, Mothers Against Pedophiles (is there a group that was defined as Mothers FOR Pedophiles?), Nestlé Free Zone Moms (they don’t like Quik?), Poetic activist Moms, and my personal favorite, Pistol Packin’ Mommas. And these moms are ready and able to share tips, insights, secrets, fears and accomplishments as they related to their own sorority. Whether it was pro-breast feeding, tackling teenage depression or fitness fiends over fifty, these women communicated with each other eagerly and often. There is camaraderie among the women whose husbands don’t pay their child support. There is empathy for parents with autistic children. The social networking is fun but also therapeutic and often liberating.

Of course CaféMom is only one of thousands of sites designed for moms to meet and mingle; and it just happens to be one of my favorites. It’s the micro-networks and communities within the bigger picture that makes it rich. It’s not just a place for Moms, which it is. It’s that there is a home for all types of Moms. It’s about the specific content delivered to the participant who is passionate about a topic. The compelling mix of targeted community and content is the reason that CaféMom has experienced 507% growth from January to June of 2007. The customized experience builds affinity with the site so the average session time is almost 22 minutes. The net result is an ideal environment for targeted marketing messages.

So Pistol Packin’ Mommas rejoice! It’s Mothers Day and there is something out there for all of you! I hope that all your Hallmark wishes are NRA compliant and that you get the ammo of your dreams. For me, I am going back to the “Steals and Deals” - for Mommas who love to shop. I may not be America’s Most Favorite Mom, but I am a retailer’s perfect dream!