Sessions

2019 Session Descriptions Coming Soon!

What Matters to Mom:
Identifying Micro-Insights that Inspire Her Preferences & Behavior

Amy Henry
President
Flashlight Insights

In a world in which data and information are easily accessed, it’s easy to feel like we know our moms and their families more than ever. But increasingly, brands are recognizing that they lack the kind of intimate, nuanced insights that come from observing life as it happens. In this presentation, Amy will share why getting close to your consumer is more important than ever, and how you can make more of your customer intelligence by identifying the micro-insights that inspire behaviors and preferences. We’ll reverse engineer our favorite micro-insights from the field to provide you with a new view on the moms you serve.  Expect specific examples from brands who seem particularly mom-intuitive in this best-in-class session with proven strategist and award-winning M2Moms® speaker, Amy Henry.

Solo:
A Celebration of Women on Their Own Widows, Never Married and Divorced

Kathleen Fitzgerald
Photographer & Author
Kathleen Fitzgerald Portraits

Portrait photographer & author, Kathleen Fitzgerald, introduces us to her new work – a collection of women living on their own. Some have never married; others are divorced or widowed. Their stories might remind you of women you know. Collectively, these women represent resiliency, creativity and courage. In 2016 the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 53.2% of women 18 and older were single. Plus, in our society, single moms are the new norm.

Kathleen’s book reveals the “single” phenomenon from the artist’s perspective …sharing their compelling photographic portraits and unique stories. They range in age from their 30’s to 90’s and come from across the country. As diverse as they are in ethnicity, culture, education, spiritual beliefs and socio-economic standing, one common trait is the women’s ability to tackle unforeseen situations with tenacity, strength, and resilience. Kathleen reminds brands that ‘single file’ is a dominant choice for many of today’s women and this session will remind you to keep them in your marketing lens.

Who Do Moms Trust?

Linette Attai
Founder & President
PlayWell, LLC

What does it take for a mom to trust you with their child and feel comfortable knowing that the child will be safe with your product, experience or service? Navigating the complexities of marketing effectively and ethically to children, while keeping their and their parents’ data safe is not for the faint of heart. However, these days, this work is second only to protecting the physical safety of the child. Being able to strike the right balance and to communicate your practices clearly is critical to the success of your brand.

There’s no shortage of companies making costly missteps in this arena. With over 25 years of experience helping companies get it right, Linnette Attai will show you what it takes to stand above the fray and build and maintain the vital trust with parents that is essential for the staying power of your brand.

The Mother of All Opportunities

Katrina McCarter
Founder/CEO
Marketing To Mums

Mothers are the powerhouse of the global economy.  They’re responsible for 80 percent of consumer spending. However, there are key mum segments that are being overlooked and it’s costing brands valuable sales and profit. Plus, new technology and multiple cultural forces are changing the marketing-to-mums landscape. How do we prepare to take our brands forward!

In this presentation, Katrina McCarter gives an overview of those critical mum segments and then shares 7 key marketing to mums success factors to build brands over the next ten years – Rise of the Sharing Economy, Importance of Understanding Mums Moments, Growth of Femtech, Micro Niching, Role of Voice, Experiential Marketing, and Purpose. Brands who are able to tap into these 7 areas will win over the coming decade.

Fast track your brand and gain a competitive advantage in your category by gaining critical insights in these overlooked, and in some cases new and frequently untapped market opportunities.

Katrina, a conference favorite, was voted 2018 winner of the “Take the Cake” best speaker award. This year she launches her new book, The Mother of All Opportunities, on the 2019 M2Moms® stage.

Speaking with her – Finding your lingua branda!

Dawn Lerman, Ph.D.

Professor and Executive Director, Center for Positive Marketing

Gabelli School of Business
Fordham University

Conventional wisdom says that women have their own unique style of communication that affects everything from word choice and intonation to sentence length and structure.  However, marketers who seek to align their message copy with this “female style” in order to connect with women can easily be misled.  In this session, drawing on the latest research, Professor Dawn Lerman will separate myth from reality about gender differences in language and communication and provide marketers with tangible tips for developing a language for your brand—a lingua branda—that will connect with today’s women.

The Making of a Fearless Girl

Lizzie Wilson

Associate Creative Director
MCCANN NY

Lizzie Wilson, one of the visionary creatives behind the “Fearless Girl” campaign, will dive into how the idea was conceptualized and highlight some of the considerations that went into producing what has become a cultural icon for women and girls around the world.

The Fearless Girl, since her first appearance on Wall Street on 2017 International Women’s Day, continues to spread a message of positivity to inspire the next generation of women leaders on behalf of State Street Global Advisors. It has won 4 Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, and top awards at D&AD, D&AD Impact, Clio, Cresta, London International, One Show, New York Festivals, AICP Next and Effie Awards. Together, State Street and Fearless Girl have made board diversity a key focus of their corporate governance policies, motivating over 150 companies within their “SHE” Fund to add women to their previously all-male boards.

Branditude:
The Heartbeat of a Brand and the Part You Play in its Love Affair with Women!

Emily Spensieri

Co-Founder & Strategic Brand Architect
www.theinciteteam.com

The key to creating a strong connection with your female audience hinges on you and your team. Because if you don’t believe in Her, your audience won’t either. No belief equals no relevance. No passion. No purchase. No love. In this session, Emily Spensieri will explain how The Incite Team’s unique Branditude workshops are helping to bring brands to life and sparking new energy into brand team beliefs and dynamics across many categories. They challenge assumptions and get to the real Her. Asking questions like, what’s Her favourite song? What are Her friends like? Forget the mood boards, this is about you and your team living the experience with Her. Referencing various case studies, Emily will demonstrate how these workshops are provocative with purpose. They might have you and your colleagues arguing vehemently as to why She would most definitely listen to Justin Bieber. (Yes, Despacito!). Or, if She wants kids. But, whether you’re launching a new product, transforming an existing brand into a more current iteration, or if you want your team to fall in love with their brand all over again, this session will illustrate how you can achieve your objectives and greater success with today’s female consumer. And, why some Branditude should definitely be in your future!

Hacking Happiness: Understanding what drives well-being in women across the lifespan

Alison Bryant, Ph.D.

SVP, Research
AARP

Girls born today are as likely to live to be 100 as not, and women see their increasing lifespans as filled with both opportunities and complexities. In this opening session of the 2018 M2W® Conference, AARP will unveil new analysis from their “Hacking Longevity” project that looks at the critical factors for women when it comes to their happiness and well-being, and how that changes over time. With these insights, we can better reach, address, and provide solutions to women of all ages, while making a positive impact in their lives.

“Women@” – Smart Companies Harness the Business Power of Women

Jen Shap
Agency Business Development Lead
Google

Moderator

Suzanne Rumsey
Head of Global Talent Management
TiVo

Panelist

Mita Mallick
Head of Diversity & Cross-Cultural Marketing
Unilever North America

Panelist

Renée Rauchut
Creative Content & Media Director
Cadillac

Panelist

Another M2W® first! This year we feature a segment that focuses on the trend of women organizing empowerment groups right in their own companies. Frequently called, “Women@”, these groups instantly expand networking and collaboration opportunities. They discover new ways to help create a better working environment, cross-pollinate departmental expertise, identify the talent and qualities of rising star females, help attract outstanding women to their companies, open new channels of communication and community among female employees, and develop leadership confidence.

Why? Because more women in leadership absolutely leads to better products, better customer value and satisfaction, better corporate earnings and long-term growth. A survey conducted in part by The Conference Board reported that in the companies that have the top 20% of financial performance, 27% of the leaders are female. When women thrive, businesses thrive too. How can this concept impact your marketing to women efforts? We’re about to find out!

The #BeHealthiher Movement: Making Her Health Your Priority

Wendy Lund

CEO
GCI Health

Not only do most women put their own health on the back burner, many say they don’t even have time to listen to health-related messages. That’s according to a recent survey from GCI Health, HealthyWomen and REDBOOK magazine. The research also found that only half of respondents were willing or able to make time for their own health check-ups and screenings, with almost 80% indicating their job schedule prevents them from doing so. With these new insights, this session will focus on how to address and inspire women holistically, offering tools to help them simplify and prioritize the health of their entire family unit (including themselves), so marketers can effectively communicate, educate and drive action with this influential demographic. In addition, we will explore ways in which companies across various business sectors can create workplaces that encourage wellbeing and empower women to take care of themselves.