Whether parents cheer or jeer at the end of summer, the retailers who pay attention to these trends, offer money-saving deals and let Moms help their school will gain the business of the household CFO and build valuable brand and store loyalty in the process.

The importance of brand is starting to become more widely understood and appreciated in the blogosphere. You can see moms working hard towards building their brand identity. Many are building impressive media assets and there are many up-and-comers, too.

Moms will not be able to resist a vacation to their ideal destination at the right price. Having extra opportunities for entertainment (swimming with dolphins, an arcade or a character actor meet-and-greet) and kid-friendly amenities (bedtime stories or step-stools) will go a long way towards having a Mom choose your destination over another.

I know it's dangerous to pretend you have a crystal ball but I have a pretty good track record for spotting trends so I'm hoping that my intuition doesn't fail me this time.

Taking the time to understand this ever-important demographic and their preferences will make your email communications more effective and keep them coming back for more.

Twitter offers marketers a valuable opportunity to interact with moms in a fresh, informal way. The medium itself, with its 140-character limit, sets a friendly, casual tone, and moms are especially receptive to companies whose Twitter presence is personable and interactive.

As social media become more an integral part of marketing, and as bloggers play a greater role in that plan, developing and maintaining those databases become a greater part of the agency job -- an unexpected analytical addition to the PR toolbox.

Bottom line for marketers creating online content for kids: While Moms allow their children access to many popular social networking and gaming sites online, they retain tight control over their child's activities.

A great deal can be learned by looking back. Of course, there are many fashionable, parenting and philosophical changes that have occurred, but I have elected to focus on those that have impacted marketing. Consider this blog post a two-part series. I'll focus on the greatest changes I've seen in the past five years here and follow it up next month with part two, my predictions for the next five years.

Sampling is especially effective in a pinched economy. Mothers are looking to test products before investing in them. When brands offer sample trials, they are providing moms with the opportunity to feel more confident about a purchasing decision.