Women and the Web: Savvy Auntie Gets My Attention

Andy Sernovitz's new (not really 'so' new) blog, "Damn I Wish I'd Thought of That!" , says it best. I'm talking about the buzz around the net for Savvy Auntie.

Huffington Post is buzzing it; Toby Bloomberg is buzzing it; and a Google search already turns up 319,000 results if you're looking for news about this new social networking site for women.

Damn, I do wish I'd thought of that. After all, I tell people over and over that marketing to women -- oops, the new term is reaching your female customer -- that ALL women are Moms of a sort. Even women without kids. Because all of us are related, somehow, to other women with kids.

Savvy Auntie takes over where Kevin Burke (think Marketing to Moms) leaves off - the smart, talented  gals at Savvy Auntie are tapping into women who are involved in the lives of children but don't carry the moniker of Mom. The child doesn't have to be a biological, genetic match! In fact, the child doesn't have to be related to the woman at all! Hey, don't YOU have some kids who call you Auntie, that really belong to your neighbor, or are friends with kids you know...or otherwise are not biologically related, but don't want to call you Mom, so... Auntie is a fine substitute?

I know you do. We all do. As women, even if we've elected to remain childless, and even if we profess to be less than interested in children, there is no escaping the title of Auntie, at one time or another. Savvy Auntie has taken that concept and expanded it to embrace the world of "Auntie Mame" as Toby Bloomberg says. In a social networking site that has all the bells and whistles a woman would want, to help us connect to our inner kid - as an Aunt or a Mom, truth be told.

I'm in. I'm an Auntie many times over.

If you haven't figured it out yet, it's a woman's world on the web, as new (and existing) social networking sites and women's entrepreneurs blogs prove. Savvy Auntie is just one.

Anita Campbell over at Small Biz Trends writes on July 11th, "SCORE “Counselors to America’s Small Business” announces the new “SCORE Women’s Success Blog” at the SCORE Web site, www.score.org. Four women SCORE leaders offer their insights, advice and fresh takes on issues facing women entrepreneurs across America. This is the first blog from SCORE at the national level. Comments and questions from blog visitors are welcome."

This comes only a few weeks after Rochester's own Simon Graduate School of Business put its weight behind a Womens Entrepreneur's Blog at Simon, here in Rochester, NY. (we built the blog and help manage it). The idea for that blog came from Dennis Kessler, a Professor at the Simon School. The women contributing to it are entrepreneurs - with years of experience to share. The goal is to help women venturing into the world of entrepreneurship find answers and assistance - from other women who've been there, done that.

Of course, I could go on and on. But, these are the top sites I recommend to women, to men, to Moms, to Aunts, to Sisters, to the world at large. It's all about community for women on the web. Bringing our thoughts and ideas to a larger place - to start converstions and challenge each other to grow with the flow.

These are very fine places for YOU to get in front of your female customer. Become a member. Leave a comment. Join the conversation. Just stop trying to market to us, for pity's sake! Be bigger than that.

I know you can do it.

Comments

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Yes this is not good if someone do care of her children and do not see about her mother.This is all about the understanding of life.Many women just forgot their MOM.

[Melanie Notkin]

Yvonne,

I am humbled by you for this wonderful post. I've been reading your blog for a long time and have been inspired by it. So for you to blog about me is truly an honor.

You got it exactly right! Savvy Aunties are Aunts by Relation (ABR), Aunts by Choice (ABC), Godmothers, and all women who love the kids in their lives. There are tens of millions of us, and finally we have a community of our own. I do hope your devoted readers will join in the fun. It's truly my gift to them.

Auntie Melanie Notkin
Founder, Savvy Auntie

[Toby]

Yvonne - Melanie came up with a brilliant concept for an undiscovered niche. Not only did she do that one right but she used social media - blogs, twitter, to build buzz pre-launch. Remember in 2005, when BlogHer asked, "Where are the women bloggers?" We've come along way in 3 short years - with you, as our dear friend Paul Chaney said, as one of the pioneers!