There’s An Evolution In The Blogosphere

This is a blog post I’ve wanted to write for some time and now I do so with a bit of lingering hesitation. I’ve delayed putting my observations into writing because I didn’t want to seem like I was generalizing or calling out any one blogger’s personal situation. However, enough time and events have gone by that it will reflect a picture of a sliver of the mom blogosphere. There is an evolution going on within the homes of mom bloggers. As an observer of human behavior, I have watched it with interest for the past 12 months.

As the popularity and success of the social media mom influencers grow, so do the challenges within her marriage. I watch it on Facebook, I read it in tweets and I can see it within images on Instagram. I will outline the progression for you. Mom begins blogging because she wants to meet other moms. Companies and brands begin showing her attention, sometimes inviting her on trips that  exceed her wildest dreams. She begins to develop a sense of independence and confidence. She is earning her own money.

Some moms change their eating habits, begin to exercise and eventually transform their bodies. She also spends a lot of time working on her laptop and traveling to keep up with her new life. This is where the challenge begins. Her spouse married the “pre-blogging” woman — the one that was available to him, the one whose focus was solely the family, the one who perhaps didn’t out-earn his salary. In other cases, mom enjoys her new-found confidence as she experiences the world beyond her kitchen and the spouse, who often ignores her needs over the needs of his children. It’s a challenge that exists in any marriage but in a marriage of social media influencers, it involves 20,000 followers on Twitter, secret Facebook groups and the ongoing attention of others.

For some couples, it’s a new and welcomed life and personal identity. Each family handles the transition differently. There have been increasingly more husbands and children traveling with moms on brand trips. The whole family gets into the fun and prosperity of social media. Today, there are some bloggers who have expanded their businesses to include their spouses like @MommyNiri and Jendi of Jendi Vlogs. In these two examples, the spouses are as well-known among the mom set as the mom herself.

For couples who don’t grow together, they grow apart quickly.  After all, that’s how it happens in social media — fast. Opportunities abound for the frustrated homemaker online, and the world becomes an oyster of blogger conferences and brand-sponsored vacations. Her new-found confidence takes her to places where praise and acceptance are plentiful. Her love for her family continues, but so does her love for herself. However, if she decides to end her marriage, she does it very quietly in order to preserve the public reputation she has created as a mom, wife, business owner and representative of the mom world.

What does this mean for companies marketing to moms? I document this trend in order to help you understand your market better. How it applies to your business, you will have to decide. Certainly, if your target is single moms, it’s good to know. I believe it’s important to recognize that the moms who blog about your products and upload videos praising your brands are humans, too.

They face the same challenges of others but in an amplified, fast-forward manner that is very public and at times fueled by the public. Most importantly in the business of maintaining relationships with these women, it’s necessary to follow their blogs, tweets and Facebook statuses in order to keep the relationship genuine. Just because you read her blog two years ago doesn’t mean that the same blogger exists in the same state or form today.