Back in January, we reported on a study by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association (RAMA) indicating the best way for retailers to reach moms is through social media.

While moms are busy, the study indicated that they rely on the connections they make through social networking to share experiences and information and to seek product advice. The opportunity for retailers to engage moms through social media is huge - if done correctly.

Earlier this month, Burst Media, a leading provider of advertising representation, services and technology to independent web publishers, introduced Burst Moms Spotlight Sites. Touting the advantage of long tail web publishing, Burst Media is providing advertisers with exclusive access to a select group of content rich websites that deliver information and resorces to “CEO Moms” and key household decision makers.

While Burst Media gives no definition of a "CEO Mom" I can only assume it means an educated, mid-30s plus woman who makes an above average income (but I could be wrong). The creation of these sites is an indication of the online worth these moms have to brands and Burst Media is positioning itself as the service provider that can help brands reach them.

As stated in Burst Media's press release:

"With a kickoff roster of 23 sites, including MomsWhoThink.com, ParentPreviews.com and CropMom.com, Burst Moms Spotlight not only provides a [brand] advertiser access to a valuable audience, but also offers guaranteed premium ad placements and custom integrated creative executions."

A key point that needs to be stated is the value being delivered, both to the target user audience (those busy moms) and to the advertisers looking to reach them. This means attracting busy moms to these sites in high enough numbers to appeal to advertisers. The resources and advertising delivered also needs to appeal to the interest of these moms and be delivered in a way that is compatible to how they use social media.

According to the RAMA survey, advertisers should:

"...focus on free items, promotions and discounts, the survey said. For instance, it found that women with children at home are more likely to use Facebook (60.3%), MySpace (42.4%) and Twitter (16.5%) than average adults (50.2%, 34.4%, 15.0%, respectively). Also, 15.3% maintain their own blog."
To truly become an engagement vehicle, the Burst Moms Spotlight sites need to be linked to those social networks moms use on a daily basis. It has to be easy for moms to share the resources and promote the discounts and promotions delivered via those sites to their contacts. This capability helps brands extend their reach (via that long tail) while providing moms the status of being one of the first people to know about a deal or promotion.

As a final step, the brands looking to reach moms through these sites need to make it easy for moms to complete the purchase, whether online or in-store. This means taking advantage of social commerce strategies to create a seamless shopping experience centered around the needs, interests and shopping patterns of busy moms.