Activate Parents & Kids Within Categories

Part of understanding parents and kids is appreciating how decisions are made in specific categories. Explore usage, drivers, and channels for specific categories that are top of mind for parents and kids, as well as additional insights brands need to fully understand parents and how they differ across diverse segments. 

Reading Time: 3 minutes

May 20, 2022
Natalie Griffith – Director, Product & Content

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Collage Group’s Parents and Kids Category research explores dynamics of parents and kids by ethnicity within key categories: food, beverage and QSR, personal care and beauty, infant care, media, toys and games, and travel.

Read on and fill out the form for an excerpt from our 
Activate Parents & Kids Within Categories presentation.

Part of understanding parents and kids is appreciating how and who makes decisions in specific categories. It’s also crucial to understand how parenting styles vary based on key characteristics such as race, ethnicity, generation, and gender. In this presentation, we explore usage, drivers, and channels for specific categories that are top of mind for parents and kids, including:

    • Food, beverage and QSR
    • Personal care and beauty
    • Infant care
    • Media
    • Toys and games
    • Travel

Key Finding #1: Consider the multiple factors impacting parenting style and values

Parents today are overwhelmed with information and influence – from competing information sources, to competing  parenting styles, it can be hard to make decisions in any category.

Many Factors Impact Parenting Style and Values, but Generation and Race and Ethnicity Have an Oversized Impact

    • Race and Ethnicity transmit and proxy for religious and country of origin elements that impact parenting style and values
    • Generation transmits the powerful social norms the parent grew up in
Parenting style factors

Action Step:

 Understand the specific factors that drive purchases in your category, as well as how they differ by ethnic segment.

Key Finding #2: Mealtime is an opportunity for familial and cultural connection

Mealtime is an important connection point for families, especially for multicultural parents who seek to introduce their culture to their children through native cuisine.

Multicultural Parents, Especially Hispanic and Asian American Parents, Want Their Children to Enjoy Cultural Foods

% of parents that think it’s very or extremely important their children eat food from their family’s cultural background

Hispanic
53%
Black
46%
Asian
59%
White
30%

Action Step:

Message not just around the importance of mealtime, but around the cultural connection it enables. Also consider providing parents with accessible ways to introduce native foods to their children.

​Key Finding #3: Today’s parents give let kids share in family decision making

From mealtime and personal care to travel, parents today are involving their kids in decision making processes, big and small.

Most Parents Have Handed off Decision Making about Personal Care Products by the Time Their Kids Become Teenagers

I let my teenager(s) choose their own personal care products like shampoo, soap, lotion, etc.

Hispanic
71%
Black
68%
Asian
73%
White
76%

Travel Decisions Are a Collaborative Process Between Kids and Parents – Older Parents Who Are More Likely to Have Older Kids Over-Index Seeking Their Children’s Input

How much influence does your child(ren) have on where you go for family vacations? 

Hispanic Black Asian White
A lot - I plan vacations on where my child(ren) says they want to go
28%
27%
22%
24%
Some - I provide my child(ren) with options for where we can go and get their input
56%
56%
63%
58%
None - I plan where we go for vacations without my child(ren)'s input
15%
17%
16%
18%

Action Step:

Recognize that there are two key decision makers when messaging to the families of today, and make sure you are communicating benefits that appeal to both parents and kids.

Contact us at the form below to learn more about how you can gain access to these diverse consumer insights and much more in our Cultural Intelligence Platform.

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Other Recent Parents Research Articles & Insights from Collage Group

Natalie Griffith

Natalie Griffith

Natalie has over 10 years of experience in consumer insights and brand strategy, including 3+ years as lead researcher in Gartner Iconoculture’s Gen Z practice. Natalie has managed research projects across industries, including extensive work in financial services, media, technology, and food and beverage. Natalie holds a B.S. in Psychology from Tulane University.

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