Blog Mom's the word: Tips and tricks for the ...

Mom's the word: Tips and tricks for the Mother’s Day marketing motherload

Last year, we identified a noticeable uplift in e-commerce app installs, sessions, and in-app revenue (IAR) in the month of May. With this in mind, this year we took a magnifying glass to our data across app verticals to pinpoint which subverticals should launch seasonal campaigns around Mother’s Day in North America. Our findings just might surprise you. Let’s dig in!

Last-minute gift-giving

Installs of travel discovery apps were 49% above May’s daily average on Mother’s Day, and delivery app installs were 33% above average, indicating last-minute shopping for gifts.

This trend is also reflected in the installs of marketplace & classifieds apps, which were an astonishing 81% above the month’s daily average on the Thursday before Mother’s Day, 180% up on the Friday before Mother’s Day, and 48% higher than average the day before Mother’s Day.

From child care to self-care

However, more than gifts, a recent study found that 58% of moms simply want free time on Mother’s Day. This switch from super mom to self-care was reflected in our findings. While the kids were occupied with educational gaming apps, mothers focused on sleep over their special weekend. Installs of sleep apps increased 35% from May 7th (the day before Mother’s Day) to May 9th (the day following).

Moms also took advantage of free time on Mother’s Day to find health apps that worked for them. Health and fitness app installs were 17% above the month’s average on May 8th.

On Mother’s Day, installs of restaurant booking apps were an astonishing 91% above May’s daily average.

Moms take the time to indulge in their hobbies

Mothers also enjoyed the time to relax and engage in their favorite hobbies. Compared to May’s daily average, Mother’s Day saw a:

  • 16% rise in video streaming app installs
  • 17% increase in content curation app installs
  • 25% lift in video editor app installs
  • 58% elevation in comic app installs

In fact, these verticals saw heightened installs the day before Mother’s Day as well at 9%, 17%, 12%, and 42% above average respectively.

We can see a similar trend in mothers spending time enjoying their hobbies on the 8th compared to the daily average in May with a(n):

  • 18% increase in coloring app sessions
  • 29% lift in music creation app sessions
  • 35% rise in drinks and beverages app sessions
  • 21% uptick in photography filter and editor app sessions
  • 12% elevation in hyper casual gaming app sessions

Again, these verticals saw heightened sessions the day before Mother’s Day as well at 13%, 27%, 34%, 6%, and 49% above average respectively.

A day off from home-cooked meals

It comes as no surprise that moms want a day off from cooking on their big day. Similar to install trends, sessions of restaurant booking apps were 51% above the month’s daily average on Mother’s Day, 67% above average the day prior, and 38% above average on the Friday preceding Mother’s Day (May 6th). Food delivery apps, however, were only 14% above the month’s daily average installs and 12% above in sessions.

Tip: Mother’s Day is the only Sunday in May when installs and sessions of shopping list apps do not spike. Consider pausing ads and in-app messaging over this weekend, and anticipate this trend to reflect in your app’s data.

3 tips for marketing on Mother’s Day

Ready to launch your Mother’s Day campaign? Here are a few suggestions for mobile marketers.

  1. Consider launching an influencer marketing campaign in the week prior to Mother’s Day, where influential mothers can share your app with their followers.
  2. Offer exclusive deals or promotions for Mother's Day to encourage installs and increase brand awareness.
  3. If your app falls into one of these subverticals, target partners and adult children, not just the mothers. Promote your app as a gift of relaxation on Mother’s Day.

There’s certainly plenty of opportunity to market your app to both mothers looking for a day of rest and relaxation, and families who are spoiling the moms in their life with gifts and a meal out. Learn how to measure your campaign’s performance with Adjust’s cutting-edge mobile attribution and analytics suite.

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