Moms, Marketers, and Free Food

Posted by: Margaret Johnson, Co-Founder and President Nov 23, 2009 0 Comments

I recently read a story in the LA Times about food companies expanding their marketing efforts by wooing mommy bloggers with everything from free samples to lavish trips to company-sponsored events.

The marketer in me realizes that this is a valid method by which to reach the market—it’s a savvy way for food companies to get in front of their target audiences. After all, companies realize that moms like me are likely in charge of the family budget, the grocery shopping, the product selection, and food preparation, so reaching out to a few influential bloggers whose posts have a large number of mommy readers represents an attractive opportunity.

The mom in me, however, feels a bit uneasy. I read and actively participate in a local DC mom blog and have grown, over time, to trust these online people like I would trust other friends, an attitude that many people share. I place a high value on the responses that they give, the opinions they espouse, and the advice they dispense, and I’m much more likely to believe them when they tell me that ABC company’s frozen pasta dish is delicious versus believing the “Great New Taste!” labeling emblazoned on the package. I wouldn’t want to feel that I was being manipulated by virtue of a food company “bribing” one of these online participants.

Quite honestly, I don’t hold it against the food companies that they send free samples. Sampling is nothing new, and it has been shown to get results, so I think that’s just smart marketing. But I think that these trips are a bit over the top—especially in this economy when trimming excess costs may allow food companies to pass the savings onto consumers.

Think about this, too: Moms, by their very nature, tend to be caring, empathetic women who consider others’ feelings. Is it really likely that a mommy blogger who’s been wined and dined isn’t going to feel some sense of obligation to “thank” or “repay” the company that provided her the opportunity or stocked her freezer with steaks?

What it comes down to is a matter of transparency, something that the new FTC blogging disclosure law mandates. If you’re blogging about a product because the company sent you a free sample or paid your way to a corporate event, put it out there front and center and then let me decide how to interpret your post. Don’t make me read it in the fine print at the bottom of the blog or, even worse, read about it somewhere else.

Marketer or mom, gaining trust is one of the most important steps in building a relationship with me. But it’s also one that has the highest potential for long-term benefits. As marketers and online citizens, that’s something we should keep in mind, lest we do anything that jeopardizes that valuable bond.

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Margaret Johnson

Co-Founder and President

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