Note to Marketers: Not All Moms Are Happy on Mother's Day
In my final week of pregnancy, on the brink of becoming a first-time mom, I was already getting a big dose of motherly reality. I'll be "celebrating" my first Mother's Day with a one-week-old baby, dealing with the lingering agonies of childbirth while wondering if I'll ever sleep again. The hard truth I've been scared to say out loud is that I don't think I'm going to want to celebrate this Mother's Day-I'll just want to nap.
This got me thinking about the fact that there's a Mother's Day marketing norm in our industry, and we rarely veer from this script. Most marketers treat Mother's Day as a one-dimensional holiday that translates to trite: brunch specials, Tiffany boxes, Spring Fling bouquets, and chocolate. According to National Retail Federation, Mother's Day marketing in the U.S. is currently dominated by jewelry, flowers, and housewares brands.
But does this strategy reflect the reality of all moms? Definitely not. Motherhood isn't all rainbows and butterflies-it's one of the most emotionally complex experiences a woman can face. It can be as stressful as it is wonderful, as punishing as it is rewarding. And since being a mom is so multifaceted, then marketing to mothers on their special day should be just as nuanced.
Here are three Mother's Day marketing strategies that can help marketers effectively pivot their approach.
Our industry has flattened Mother's Day into a uni-emotional "happiness" holiday. But the truth is, motherhood lends itself to many emotional schisms, and not all moms are happy-especially on Mother's Day.
Whether it's because they once lost a pregnancy or feel trapped home alone with a screaming toddler, the holiday can feel more like a curse than a blessing to moms at every age and stage. A 2023 Pew Research Center report found that moms are more likely than dads to feel parenting is stressful, to feel judged, and to worry about the challenges their kids might face.
If you're looking to break through with this audience, start by questioning the traditional ways our industry has marketed to them, and don't assume every mom wants flowers and brunch. Since all emotions a mother may have-including regret, rage, or remorse-count, move away from one-note messaging. Try giving her options to self-select a content path that aligns with what she feels in the moment; while one path can lean into joyful celebration, another route can point her toward customized care and emotional validation.
Check out Calm's ultra-tailored "Not Calm Moms Club," which offers up a Mom Moods Menu to help mothers target the type of support they need. The menu idea encourages moms to "savor it" when they're feeling good and to return to the menu of choices that includes guilty, enraged, and unsure whenever they need a boost.
To avoid oversentimentality, take a page from Calm's playbook and inject emotional realism into creative: Reimagine Mother's Day content to include this wider emotional range. When in doubt, try shifting the tone of voice from sentimental to radically honest, and it might actually land.
This repositioning may feel risky, but there's been a gradual shift in our industry acknowledging certain holidays can summon a broad range of emotions. Occasions like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine's Day make people feel both delighted and depressed, loved and lonely. Brands like Etsy and Tesco PLC approach emotionally charged holidays including Mother's Day with more distinctiveness and depth, giving people agency over their experience; their mute or opt-out features during seasonal marketing pushes is a subtle way to show empathy to those who may be struggling or simply not in the mood.
Mother's Day marketing has always been overly focused on positive feelings. But if a mother is dealing with more problems than pleasures, then a schlocky Hallmark ad with unrealistic images of perfect, smiling maternal models isn't going to make her feel seen-and will likely do the opposite.
I'm not suggesting we do a full 180 and turn Mother's Day into a trauma dump, but let's make room for moms' troubles and tears, too. There's no doubt some moms will feel amazing and will want and deserve to celebrate when they do. But it's reductionist of marketers to focus only on what's right when many moms need support for what's wrong.
Rethink your product pairings. Replace default gift sets with options that acknowledge that some moms crave recovery from real-life exhaustion. Calm's Mother Day offerings-which include the opportunity to release stress in a free "rage room" and send free "real-talk" Mother's Day cards via Moonpig-do "honest" particularly well.
Marketers don't have to choose between champagne toasts and free Talkspace trials-Mother's Day can hold both possibilities. The key, though, is to create space for beleaguered moms not just to be merry, but to also be supported.
A celebratory brunch with a group of 10 may cause mom more stress than relief, when what she might actually crave is her own pepperoni pie she can eat on the couch and not have to share with her kids. A targeting like Uber Eats for a solo Mother's Day meal might be more welcome to some moms than a family luncheon.
Let's shift our focus to incorporate not just symbolic gifts, but practical offerings that reflect what moms actually need. DoorDash's "DoorDad" campaign for Mother's Day nails this by not only acknowledging how overburdened moms are, but also presenting them with multiple options for a tangible break.
It might feel strange leaning into the messy, complicated emotions that marketing usually avoids on Mother's Day. But I have a hunch being a brave marketer is a lot like being a mom-equal parts scary and rewarding. That's why recognizing and appreciating the mess-especially when mom feels like a hot mess-is exactly what our industry needs to do.
By this time next year, with luck and hard work, I'll have survived the first 12 months of motherhood's round-the-clock diaper changes and 4 a.m. feedings, and I'll be looking down at an adorable, sleep-trained baby girl. Then, I'll probably smile at the ad saying the light of motherhood deserves a locket that shines just as bright. But this year, if you want to reach me and many of my mom peers, just sell us the rage room, please.
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