Moms are 20% more likely than the general population to use social media, and 91% now use social media regularly—a 20% increase since 2010—according to a study of moms' online social habits by BabyCenter and comScore.
Moreover, moms expect others to be social as well... so much so, that 22% of moms say if friends or family don't participate in social media, those friends and family members are not as much a part of those moms' lives.
Moms are also more likely than the general population to own smartphones and to shop online.
Below, more findings from the 2013 Social Mom Report.
Moms are more social
- Moms have greater reach across all major social media platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Google+.
- 61% of moms say they have used Pinterest in the previous six months, nearly double its 30% usage among the general population.
Moms are mobile
- Compared with the general population, 49% more moms have smartphones (81% vs. 54%).
- In a year-over-year comparison, smartphone ownership by moms is up 25% and tablet ownership is up 79%.
- 89% of moms with smartphones access Facebook on those phones, and moms are four times more likely to prefer to check social media on their smartphones.
- 45% of moms say they are emailing less and communicating more through social media.
Moms are online shoppers
- Moms were responsible for 32% of total online spending in the last quarter, despite making up only 18% of the total Internet audience.
- 78% of moms follow a brand for coupons and discounts, compared with only 55% of the general population.
- To learn about which brands and products to buy, 73% of moms rely on recommendations from parenting-related social media.
- Moms report that posts from a friend are 16% more influential than posts from a brand, and that posts from another mom are 55% more influential than posts from a brand.
About the research: The findings of the 2013 Social Mom Report (PDF) were based on an in-depth survey of 1,480 moms and other online adults, social media diaries from 14 new and expectant moms, and behavioral and secondary analysis by comScore of e-commerce habits and social analytics.
