• by Abby Auerbach , November 30, 2011

Moms are on the go, go, go…carpooling kids, working out of the home and shopping for their families and the holidays. In their roles as breadwinners and caregivers, it is estimated that moms will spend approximately $2.1 trillion in 2011, up 24% since 1999. Add their “purchase influence” to that and it is easy to see that moms impact virtually every advertising category, from retail to pharmaceutical to automotive to entertainment.

At that spend rate, moms are a marketer’s dream target but, alas, an on-the-go, hard-to-hit, moving target!

There’s no slowing down moms so broadcasters are mobilizing and joining their on-the-go movement. In an unprecedented initiative, local TV broadcasters are banding together to provide a free, over-the-air mobile signal to moms (and other viewers) across the country. TV stations are rolling out Mobile Digital Television (MDTV) and in doing so, are putting their live, broadcast TV programming in motion and in the hands of busy moms.

The technology is complicated, but the result is simple. With MDTV, mobile devices, including laptops, DVD players, tablets and smartphones, become portable TV sets. So, when moms get up and go, go, go, their TVs and favorite shows will be right there with them.

The broadcaster-led Open Mobile Video Coalition recently conducted a live showcase of Mobile DTV in Washington, D.C. Nine television stations broadcast mobile signals to several hundred viewers equipped with MDTV-enabled laptops, DVD players and smartphones. According to viewing data and user insights collected by Rentrak and Harris, households with kids were among the heaviest viewing segments.

The showcase demonstrated that Mobile DTV appeals to busy moms and on-the-go families for several reasons: ease-of-use/simplicity; convenience; quick escape from the daily grind; entertainment; access to local and breaking news; keeping kids entertained while running errands; and keeping moms entertained and connected during idle time such as waiting at soccer practice or afterschool pick-up.

Today, nearly 6 in 10 moms report having a smartphone and 62% use the mobile Internet on a regular basis; that’s a 22% increase over two years ago, according to research reported by BabyCenter.com. As Mobile DTV rolls out, moms will have the added “at-your-fingertips” benefit of free, over-the-air television. In addition to having immediate access to broadcast news and programming, they’ll be able to save the cost of expensive data plans and the hassle of dropped calls due to cellular congestion, because the signal comes from the TV station and not the Internet.

As TV stations “light up” Mobile DTV in markets of every size across the country, advertisers benefit, too. Mobile DTV offers new opportunities to reach moms where they live, work and shop. Not only will advertisers be able to put 30- and 60-second spots literally in the hands of their dream-shoppers and purchase-influencers, but the built-in interactivity will provide creative and effective extensions to national, regional and local ad campaigns.

Moms are on the go. With Mobile Digital TV, broadcasters are joining their movement and inviting advertisers to get mobilized.