According to Tots100, the UK’s largest community of parent blogs, 50% of women have made a purchase based on a blog recommendation and 93% use social media to research new products before buying.
Tots100 published the largest ever survey of parent bloggers, the 2012 Parent Blogger Benchmark Survey, which asked 850 members of Tots100.
Parent blogging is gathering momentum in the UK, with over 4000 active blogs listed in the Tots100 directory. Mums, who say that blogging is a way to explore their creativity, capture precious family moments and focus their energy upon, write 97% of these sites.
The recently increased popularity in these Mummy blogs have also identified that closer, more trusting relationships need to be built between bloggers and brands. One third of bloggers surveyed have been asked to not disclose a paid relationship with a brand on their blog. In addition, 70% of bloggers say most information they receive from brands is simply not relevant to their blog.
Commenting on the survey, Sally Whittle, founder of Tots100, said; “The results suggest that blogging is becoming an increasingly important source of income for many families, and it’s the perfect time for brands to build relationships with parent bloggers. However, brands and PR professional must invest time and effort in to these relationships to reap the many rewards available.”
Other findings within the survey include:
50% of bloggers have met up with other bloggers in the local area, while 45% have attended an event hosted by a brand or PR agency.
The number of bloggers accepting paid links has fallen from 47% in 2011 to less than 20% in 2012.