Comments on: Mothers of Invention?

By: irene

irene — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:04:00 +0000

late to the story but they are ALL OVER msn/mainstream media sites and it is ANNOYING.

By: Jen

Jen — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 04:59:37 +0000

I was getting ads like that on facebook. Then I took my gender off my facebook profile and it blew facebook’s little world. My friends wouldn’t be able to identify me, they’d be confused, oh no! The ads stopped.

But, other women friends have told me that they get ads about engagements, wedding planning, diet, HPV, etc.

So glad I don’t have to deal with that. I really hate facebook.

By: Kari

Kari — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:53:55 +0000

I thought that it was an appeal to SAHMs, sort of a sisterhood thing. Most of the SAHMs I know are online a fair amount. I figured this is some kind of “it was invented by someone just like you!” hook, appealing to familiarity as much as frugality or folksiness.

By: Maritsa

Maritsa — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:32:14 +0000

I just assumed I was seeing these ads because I talk about babies in Gmail and that FB had somehow divined that I have one. I’m going to have to ask my husband if he sees them too, or if it’s just the ladies that are presumed to want products invented by someone whose only credential is that she has successfully reproduced or adopted.

It reminds me of Airborn, that anti-cold stuff that touts “Invented by a teacher!” Um, no thanks. I prefer my cold remedies to be invented by a scientist – and frankly, I know that those don’t even work!

I’ve had this discussion with a like-minded friend before, and it’s frightening what anti-expert backlash there is among mothers. I think there is a general distrust of doctors and big pharma – see that stupid book “The Cures THEY Don’t Want You to Know About” – but it seems even more prevalent among young mothers.

A big part of that, IMO, is the anti-vaccination people, and it’s spread to other areas. Intution is great, but I’ve seen and heard a lot of moms say “I know my kid” when they don’t know basic facts about babies. Like, you don’t switch a three month old from formula to cow’s milk.

Um, I digressed. But I think it has something to do with the anti-expert thing, targeting women who would conceivably want stuff supported by someone like them, and the general inanity of Gmail/FB ads.

By: magpie_seven

magpie_seven — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:33:38 +0000

I think there’s an aspect of “moms are frugal and find things that really work, dammit” to the whole thing as well- there’s a sort of recession-theme to advertising at the moment, and there’s a hook there for “what if we used people trying to save money JUST LIKE THE CONSUMERS to sell them useless shit? Well who tries to save money the most? A LOVING MOTHER OF THREE, CLEARLY.”

By: vegkitty

vegkitty — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:08:57 +0000

I’m quite tired, so I’ll just say that I think the SAHM label is an emotional catch-all word. There’s something nostalgic and innocent about a person being a SAHM, which works in the spammers’/advertisers’ favors.

Also, Adblock is the stuff that dreams are made of. Anyone with Firefox should get the add-on ASAP. I haven’t seen one of those “One rule: Obey” ads in weeks.
Sorry… forgot to say great post – can’t wait to read your next one!

By: vegkitty

vegkitty — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 05:17:21 +0000

Also, Adblock is the stuff that dreams are made of. Anyone with Firefox should get the add-on ASAP. I haven’t seen one of those “One rule: Obey” ads in weeks.

By: elibard

elibard — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 23:24:26 +0000

I think you’re all right on target here – “a mom like me must be trustworthy!” However, because you asked the question, I realized that I’ve also been assuming that the SAHM hook also indicates that it’s cheap. And in the vein of being thrifty and ingenious that’s so popular now, the idea that a SAHM invents something also indicates that it’s a “good value” economically. I.e., an industry didn’t spend thousands of dollars to develop (and test!) it, so it’s more affordable. (Personally, I like products I use regularly to be thoroughly tested, thank you – I’ll pay extra for R&D – but it’s also got a bad name these days.) SAHM’s are ingenious and save money, right? So the products they “invent” should also be cheap/cost-effective. Again, I have no basis for this, it was just an impression I got from all these ads. (And thank you for questioning this trend, PhDork!)

By: tallgirl-in-heels

tallgirl-in-heels — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 20:37:16 +0000

I think it’s similar to how commercials on day time t.v. are often aimed at stay at home moms. It’s been publicized a lot lately how SAHMs are increasingly turning to the internet for information, entertainment, and community (via blogs, etc.) Accordingly, ads trying to tap into this growing demographic by playing the SAHM card are becoming more common.

By: funnyface

funnyface — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 20:06:28 +0000

Also, how come it’s never “WORKING MOM OF 2 DOGS CURES BAD HAIR DAYS?” Can’t we working pet parents get a break?