ImaginativePRO Blog

STOKKE STEPPS, AN ERGONOMIC CHAIR THAT GROWS WITH YOUR KIDS -- 6-MONTH OLD BABIES TO 7-YEAR OLD KIDS

Parenthood -- it means you have to buy a lot of stuff. (Click Image To Enlarge)

NORWEGIAN DESIGN GROUP PERMAFROST HAS BUILT THE TRANSFORMERS OF BABY PRODUCTS FOR STOKKE.

They say parenthood changes you. It most certainly means you have to buy a lot of stuff--just leaving the hospital with the new bundle of joy requires having already purchased a car seat. Then there’s the bouncer for the living room, the highchair for eating meals, and so on and so forth.

In 1972 a Norwegian company called Stokke built a streamlined children's seating system that could accommodate babies as young as six months, up to kids around six or seven years old. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Now, Stokke has tapped Oslo-based design group Permafrost to add a baby bouncer to the adjustable seating system.   (Click Image To Enlarge)

In 1972 a Norwegian company called Stokke rightly ascertained that parents could use a more streamlined system for plopping down their kids. They released the Tripp Trapp, an adjustable highchair seating system designed to grow up with kids, accommodating them from six months old to seven or so years old. Now, Stokke has tapped Oslo-based design group Permafrost with expanding the chairs utility yet again. It's called Stokke Steps, and it's an all-in-one bouncer seat and high chair.

The modular system allows for regular seating, napping, and a highchair for eating. (Click Image To Enlarge)

The original chair was meant for tots who had reached six months of age, but the new model can seat even a newborn baby who can't yet hold up its own head. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Permafrost (who created these sweet wooden kid’s toys) added a baby bouncer to the Stokke chair. Whereas the original chair was meant for tots who had reached six months of age, the new model can seat even a newborn baby who can't yet hold up its own head. To make a seat that could gently cradle a newborn, the Permafrost designers had to rethink the physics of the bouncer.

To do that well, the Permafrost designers had to rethink the physics of the bouncer. (Click Image To Enlarge)

They added two hinged legs to the seat, in addition to the traditional coil, to make the bouncer's motion gentler.              (Click Image To Enlarge)

A standard bouncer has a spring in the front, near the baby's feet. That metal coil creates the swinging effect that can soothe a fussy kid, but because of its position, the chair moves in one direction. Permafrost dispersed the movement by adding a set of double-hinged legs. "Instead of just hopping up and down there is also a horizontal movement in the bouncer, creating a swing that mimics the cradling movement of a parents arms," says designer Tore Vinje Brustad.

"Instead of just hopping up and down there is also a horizontal movement in the bouncer, creating a swing that mimics the cradling movement of a parents arms," says Permafrost designer Tore Vinje Brustad. (Click Image To Enlarge)

The modularity of Stokke Steps revolves around a series of knobs that slide and then lock into place. Those circular mechanisms are meant to form a design language that communicates hotspots for operating the chair, while still looking stylishly unobtrusive. (Click Image To Enlarge)

They also tinkered with the technology that allows each piece to easily attach and then unfasten to the primary structure. “There are several different components that are adjustable and removable, and making the handling of these functions easy and intuitive… has been an exercise in simplifying and clarifying the design,” Vinje Brustad tells Co.Design. The modularity of Stokke Steps revolves around a series of knobs that slide and then lock into place. Those circular mechanisms are meant to form a design language that communicates hotspots for operating the chair, while still looking stylishly unobtrusive.

The entire Stokke Steps bundle costs $450. Individual parts can be bought separately. (Click Image To Enlarge)

Because the team was committed to building the chair primarily in wood (“in order to differentiate ourselves from the usual highchairs that look more like hospital equipment,” says Vinje Brustad), they had to go through many iterations to ensure that the beech wood and thermoplastic materials could meet strength and safety requirements.

“In the end, the quality of the final product is often closely related to the number of iterations you make in the refinement phase,” Vinje Brustad says. “Whenever we think we’re done we force ourselves to make one more prototype, and usually there is room for one little adjustment and improvement.”

As for user testing? Vinje Brustad says the team did some gonzo research: “Three out of four Permafrost partners have had babies during the time that Stokke Steps has been developed, and they have all been put to work immediately.”

The entire Stokke Steps bundle costs $450. Individual parts can be bought separately.

Courtesy of an article dated February 6,  2014 appearing in Fast Company Design 

50% OF MOTHERS WOULD ENGAGE WITH BRANDS ON FACEBOOK IF REWARDED, 81% WOULD BUY MORE IF BRANDS REWARDED THEM

 

Some 81% of moms would buy more from a brand if rewarded, and over 50% are willing to engage with a brand on Facebook and other social media platforms if provided incentive, according to a recent report by PunchTab.

What type of rewards do moms want? 80% of those polled said they prefer financial rewards, such free products or gift cards, and 67% said they would be interested in receiving perks associated with elite status, such as free shipping or branded merchandise.

Below, key findings from the report, Scoring Points With Mom, which was based on an online survey of 647 moms.

Actions for Rewards

Actions moms said they would take when provided with an incentive: 

• 72% would take a survey or poll.
• 59% would sign up for regular email updates.
• 41% would share personal details and purchase behavior.
• 41% would post a review.
• 57% of would "like" a brand's page on Facebook.

Over 50% of Moms Would Engage With Brands on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest - Scoring Points With Moms - PointTab - 2013 (Click Image To Enlarge)

Financial Rewards

• 83% of moms polled said they would value free products and services from a brand.
• 82% would be interested in receiving gift cards from popular retailers.

% Of Moms Who Are Interested In Various Financial Rewards - Scoring Points With Moms - PointTab - 2013 (Click Image To Enlarge)

Non-Financial Rewards

• 39% of those polled would value incentives that offered them exclusive access to a brand, such as being able to buy new products ahead of the general public.
• Gamification strategies were less popular with moms. Only 6% percent would be interested in being rewarded with badges. 

% Of Moms Who Are Interested In Various Exclusive Access Or Experiences As Rewards - Scoring Points With Moms - PointTab - 2013 (Click Image To Enlarge)

About the research: The report was based on an online survey of 647 randomly sampled US moms age 18-44. It was conducted between April 18, 2013, and April 22, 2013.

COMMENTARY:   Mobile mothers in the US are an increasingly important demographic for marketers. According to BSM media, U.S. mums control $2.4 trillion in household purchases every year and wield greater influence over most everyday buying decisions. As avid users of digital media, mums are turning to smartphones to help organize their activities. Their ability to research purchases combined with their spending power gain marketers’ attention and provides a great opportunity for marketers to engage with mums in a personalised and highly interactive environment. 

These findings are from a report published by InMobi, the largest independent mobile advertising network - the research was developed in partnership with On Device Research. The report - U.S. Mobile Media Consumption Report for Q2 2012 reveals the unique trends on mobile media consumption among US Mobile mothers. 

Mobile Mothers Multi-Media Approach

Media consumption has evolved, along with smartphone adoption. On average, Mobile mothers are spending 10.1 hours daily with media. Mobile mothers spend 27% (2.7 hours) of daily media time with their mobile phone, which is on par with TV (28%), and outpaces other media like Internet (19%), Radio (14%), and Print (7%). Interestingly mums have started to embrace tablets and spend 6% of their media time there.

It is a known fact that mothers multi task across various activities between work, home and family. Research highlights that 77% of mobile mothers use mobile devices while watching TV. It’s no surprise that mums also multitask across a variety of media types including the smartphone, computer and tablet.

Marketing takeaway: Mums are connected 24/7 in the mobile media channel and marketers should be creating multiple mobile touch points to leverage the time taken by mums on the mobile media.

Mums Know Best

The demands of mobile mother’s fast-paced life have made her identify herself as an early adopter. Research shows that 48% of mom mobile web users in the US identify themselves as “Early Adopters”. She knows about the latest technologies and expects solutions that integrate apps, ads, and browser tools in smart and effective ways.

Marketing takeaway: Marketers will need to bring out value and convenience to impress the early adopters who seem to understand every bit of technology

Ease of Use & Availability Makes Mobile Mothers Addicted to Mobile Phones

Mobile mothers continue to contribute to the smartphone boom and are finding new ways to incorporate them into everyday life because of three convenience factors.  Findings shows that 67% of users prefer mobile because “it’s easy to use,” 66% say that they use mobile most because it’s constantly with them and 57% agree mobile device is a most private way to consume information and communicate. The report’s findings indicate that mobile mothers use their mobile device most in casual settings most often lying in bed (82%), watching TV (77%), or waiting for something (80%)

In short: Ease of use and availability rule the mobile mother’s media day

Marketing takeaway: Marketers should focus on rich media ads with highly interactive content available at the right time and easy to use

Mobile Mothers Love Their me-time

The mobile phone has become a constant companion to mobile mothers. It helps them indulge in small pleasures like music, entertainment, and gaming. The report’s findings indicate that mobile mothers spend 26% of their mobile media time on playing games, 19% interact with social media, 15% use it for entertainment purposes (videos, music) and 11% for general search. Further from the study it is found that E-mail, search and social media will continue to grow over the next year among mobile mothers

Marketing takeaway: For marketers, this is a real opportunity to engage with mums in brand conversations via games, social media and entertainment

Mobile Mothers Respond to Mobile Advertising

Mobile & TV ads have the largest impact on mobile mothers’ purchase process, with 62% of them saying their purchases are influenced by both these ads. Also, 58% of mobile mothers are comfortable with mobile ads. Mobile mothers reach to mobile at every stage of the purchase funnel. Right from research, purchases and making smart and informed shopping choices, mobile is always there as her shopping aid. Mobile tools impact her “moment of truth” choices at each stage. 

The survey showed that 56% of mobile mothers feel that mobile advertising have introduced them to something new; 42% feel that it had saved money and time. 18% of mobile mothers say mobile ads have influenced a purchase. The data also highlights the importance of location-based advertising, with 48% of respondents claiming that a mobile ad had helped them find something nearby while 27% said it had influenced a purchase decision in-store.

Marketing take away: Mobile Ads influences mobile mother’s decision process and marketers should engage mums across the purchase funnel mapping her media journey.

M-commerce Mobile Mother’s Popular Purchasing Platform in Coming Years

Mum is a more empowered shopper than ever. Mobile technologies give her tools to research, decide and buy seamlessly saving time, money and stress. Mobile mothers lead the pack in mobile spending, with 30% claiming to spend more than $50 via their mobile devices, compared to 27% of mobile Boomers and 23% of Generation M. InMobi’s research indicates that 80% of mobile mothers planned to conduct m-commerce activities within the next year.

Marketing take away: Mobile commerce has had a tremendous impact on driving mobile media consumption, and mums are no exception. Marketers should leverage the platform capabilities to serve context sensitive information and create immediate connections and trust

Conclusion

InMobi research claims that, with smartphones becoming indispensable entertainment tools and 88% of mobile mothers hooked on Facebook and other social media, it is clear that the current generation mums leverage technology for not only keeping in touch but also pay attention to how they interact with brands online. Marketers should consider campaigns extending across a variety of media platforms and engage mothers across channels and devices.

The boost in smartphones sales and the trust in using mobile content increasing every day directly relates to the growth in mobile content sales. Mums who are always connected, brand sensitive, have spending power, and are active on social media, are an important demographic who cannot be ignored. This gives a great opportunity for marketers to understand their needs, build trust and up the conversion rates.

The reality is mums have embraced mobile media in a big way. Are the marketers ready?

eMarketer concludes: “Reaching mum at the right time and place requires mobile. If you’re not there, you’re missing her.”

Is your brand reaching out to mums via mobile?

Note: * Mobile Mother Definition - Mobile Mother is defined as Women with children at home and is mobile data users

Courtesy of an article dated May 16, 2013 appearing in MarketingProfs and an article dated August 31, 2012 appearing in OnDevice Research

MORE SOCIAL NETWORKS FOR FAMILIES LAUNCH AS CONCERNS OVER PRIVACY AND PREDATORS INCREASES

 

With parental concerns about privacy and predators unlikely to go away anytime soon (and kids’ aversion to being seen with their parents an eternal truth), there is a lot to recommend private social networks intended just for families. Recently two more social networks for families launched: SocialParent and Save The Mom.

Click To Visit The SocialParent.com Homepage

As its name suggests, SocialParent is a social network app that allows parents to connect with each other to coordinate plans, make recommendations, and share various types of content including photos and video. The apps developers, Reza Raji and Gerry Gutt, emphasize the app’s simplified communication features, which allow users to avoid the clutter of group messaging on Facebook or email lists. These include permanent and temporary groups for close friends and more transient connections (e.g. a summer sports league) respectively. They hope to make money by offering local deals to users based on their activities and interests, and are also considering a “freemium” model, with extra features available to paying subscribers.

Click To Visit The SaveTheMom.com Homepage 

Save The Mom is an iPhone app, developed by an Italian startup, more tightly focused on the family unit itself, with tools including family to-do lists, personal and shared calendars for appointments and social commitments, photo sharing, and so on. Users can also poll family members (what do you want for dinner?) and send audio text notes to each other, allowing parents to communicate with kids who are still too young to read or write. The app is supported by advertising, with a Condé Nast partnership in Italy. While the name strikes me as a tad sexist -- are we throwing dad under the bus? -- maybe that can be forgiven as an endearing Mediterranean quirk. Or not.

Click Image To Visit eFamily.com homepage

Click Image To Visit The MyFamily.com Homepage

Click Image To Visit The FamilyCrossings.com homepage

Of course these aren’t the first social networks to target families: there’s also eFamily.com  (formerly Famiva), FamilyCrossings.com, and MyFamily.com, to name just a few examples. However not all these are free: MyFamily.com charges $29.95 per family group per year, and FamilyCrossings.com has a tiered “freemium” model, including basic free service and a $9.95 per month premium service.

COMMENTARY:   As an online privacy advocate, I have been very critical of social networks like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for violating our Constitutional rights of privacy time and time again.  BTW, all three of these social network giants have been fined, placed on 20-year probation, and now require annual privacy audits by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

Social networks are a "freemium" busness (they don't charge users) and they don't make anything, so YOU are the product.  You represent the target market or eyeballs for brand marketers selling products and services online.   

Users willingly giveup a lot of privacy from the moment they signup to become a member of a social network, and the volume of information about you increases exponentially over time as you post things about yourself (or others) on these social networks and click those ever popular "Like," "Retweet," and "+1" buttons.

Concerns over online privacy, child predators and bulling, have given parents food for thought, and given rise to social networks for parents.  So what exactly are the risks of posting in social networks.  Here is a very interesting infographics that identify most of those risks:  

 Click Image To Enlarge

Click Image To Enlarge

Courtesy of an article dated May 1, 2013 appearing in MediaPost Publications The Social Graf

 

4MOMS "ORIGAMI" STROLLER, A BABY STROLLER FOR TECHY MOMMIES

4Moms Origami Stroller (Click Image To Enlarge)

Strollers are all the same and haven't changed for decades. That's why 4moms developed the Origami power-folding stroller. At the touch of a button, it folds itself. It's also a cell phone-charging, mileage-counting, LCD-sporting stroller, with generators in the rear wheels that charge it as you walk. Plus, the Origami has daytime running lights, pathway lights for low-light conditions, and sensors that detect when a child's in the seat (so it'll never fold by accident).
From power folding to cell phone charging, the Origami is what strollers should be.

Click Image To Enlarge

 

COMMENTARY:  Now that's what I call an incredible baby stroller.  It's one cool looking stroller for today's modern parents. If you can afford a new iPhone or iPad, then you can afford an Origami stroller.  Besides, it's for your baby.    Origami strollers sells for $849.99.  Origami stroller seats or kits come in five colors (black, hot pink, blue, green and red) and sell for $99.99.  The Origami stroller comes with an optional Origami Graco SnugRide® Series Car Seat Adapter so you attach your baby's car seat to the Origami stroller.  All three can be ordered through the Shop 4Moms online store  Origami stroller's are very pricey, but they are not your ordinary stroller as you can see from the above video.  Reviews for the Origami stroller have been excellent.

Courtesy of an article December 14, 2012 appearing in Mashable

FACEBOOK HAS 5.6 MILLION CHILDREN WITH ACCOUNTS IN SPITE OF BAN, AND PARENTS' CONCERNS CONCERNING KIDS' SAFETY ON FACEBOOK

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) does have prohibitions and a tiered screening process in order to try to filter out children under the age of 13 from setting up accounts and accessing its social-networking site. However, the company has a secret that it hasn’t disclosed to investors in its SEC paperwork  and refused to acknowledge due to federal law – Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) has about 5.6 million accounts in the U.S. (about 3.5 percent of its U.S. total) that belong to children who are under age 13.

A 1998 federal law called the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) requires Web sites to give special treatment to Internet users under the age of 13. Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB), like many Web sites, prohibits younger Internet users  from using their sites or building accounts. However as the 5.6 million number indicates, despite Facebook’s tiered screening system, there are ways that children can work around the system and have access to Facebook and other sites. The goal of the law was to prevent online marketers from targeting children in their advertising. The Federal Trade Commission is due to finalize some new rules to further compel Web sites to restrict access to their sites by young children, though Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) claims that the new regulations wouldn’t apply to it because it has explicit warnings and prhibitios of younger users.

However, Reuters tested the Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) protocol, and while a fake child’s account registration was denied, an hour later that account was allowed with the same information (name, e-mail address,etc.) except for the birth year. The reason? Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) is not allowed by COPPA to save data from younger users or account registrants. A study revealed, though, that Facebook’s screening process does seem to eliminate about 800,000 child accounts on an annual basis, which is apparently progress from the company.

Filtering out children from the Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) account records might reduce its user numbers by nearly 4 percent, but it’s possible that investors in Facebook stock, like hedge-fund manager Chase Coleman of Tiger Global Management LLC, will appreciate the efforts that Facebook makes to cleans its Web site of the most vulnerable demographic.

COMMENTARY:    The new revelation that 5.6 million children under 13-years of age have been able to open accounts on Facebook shows just how poor Facebook's security has become.   If I were Facebook, and if it were possible, I would be contacting the parents about this immediately. Furthermore, I would establish a safe harbor for children by moving these 5.6 million under-13 accounts into a separate social network just for kids.  This would prevent children from otherwise interacting with children over 13 and adults.

MinorMonitor.com, a crusader for kids online safety, prepared this interesting infographic which analyzes the concerns of a sampling of 1,000 parents concerning kids' safety on Facebook: 

 Click Image To Enlarge

Courtesy of an article dated September 20, 2012 appearing in Insider Monkey and an article dated April 4, 2012 appearing in MinorMonitor.com

SWEDISH DESIGNERS ROSAN BOSCH DESIGNS THE VITTRA TELEFONPLAN SCHOOL, A "SCHOOL WITHOUT WALLS"

Vittra Telefonplan School is a school designed without walls by Swedish designer Rosan Bosch

Sweden loves its experimental education, but here’s a venture that’s far-fetched even by Swedish standards: It’s a school without walls.

That’s right. Vittra Telefonplan, in Stockholm, was designed according to the principles of the Swedish Free School Organization Vittra, an educational consortium that doesn’t believe in classrooms or classes. So instead of endless rows of desks, it’s got neon-green “sitting islands” and whimsical picnic tables, where students and teachers gather. Instead of study hall, it has “Lunch Club,” a smattering of cafeteria-style tables on a checkerboard floor for working or eating (or both). And instead of an auditorium, it has a faceted blue amphitheatre that rises up in the middle of the school like a giant floating iceberg. The place resembles a mini amusement park, only with laptops (yes, each student gets his or her own laptop).

Click Images To Enlarge

Sounds great for the kids, but yikes, I feel sorry for their teachers. There aren’t any walls for them to order naughty little boys to face.

Designer Rosan Bosch points out that Vittra Telefonplan isn’t totally wall-free.She tells Co.Design 

“There are both smaller and larger closed rooms for different purposes, such as the sound-isolated Dance Hall for dancing, singing, and exercising, the sound isolated Multimedia Lab for working with film, sound, and music, as well as administrative areas and group rooms.”

 There are also assorted interior decorations and fixtures that cleverly double as partitions, like the “conversation furniture,” a towering study nook that’s tall enough to pass for a wall.

Click Images To Enlarge

That was the trick of designing a “school without walls”: It had to be open enough to accommodate the free-wheeling aspects of Vittra’s approach to education (no set classes!). But it also had to include some spatial divisions that could promote different ways of learning--another key part of the Vittra method--such as group work, concentration work, show-and-tell, and so on.

Click Images To Enlarge

When planning the school, Bosch reached out to both teachers and students. “From the children we learned that there were different types of design that didn’t appeal to them,” she says. To wit: Because they work primarily on laptops not blackboards, they like seating arrangements that let them steal a peek at each other’s screens. Bosch says,  

“We therefore created special furniture that gave them more flexible ways of working side by side and together with their laptops.  For example: spread out on rugspots, sitting side by side on a sitting island or in the organic conversation furniture.”

Click Images To Enlarge

Now, the big question: Does any of this actually help kids get a better education? It’s impossible to know for sure. But as Bosch tells it,

“The differentiated spaces allow the children to learn on their own terms, creating different types of learning scenarios. In that way, the design lets the school unfold its potential.”

Click Images To Enlarge

COMMENTARY:  I don't know of any young children (or parents) that would not fall in love with the Vittra Telefonplan School. It's a wonderous environment for education and social development. Rosan Bosch is an incredible designer and this school interior design concept demonstrates how far ahead they are.  I love the open school interior design, the furniture, props, private and social gathering areas and limited walls. I wished that U.S. schools could adopt this type of school interior design for the children.  Learning becomes fun again.  The children can form groups and create enduring friendships and relationships without the constrictions of a traditional classroom. The school also uses the latest technology such as Apple laptops.  I am sure iPads will be next.  The next wave of Apple evangelists, no doubt.

Courtesy of an article dated January 24, 2012 appearing in Fast Company Design 

THE AIRLINES GET TOUGH WITH PARENTS WITH VERY YOUNG CHILDREN, AND SOME GREAT TIPS FOR PARENTS FLYING WITH THEIR KIDS

Babies on airplanes. It's enough to make parents—and all the passengers around them—cry.

Parents are complaining of airline seating policies that create "baby ghettos" in the back of planes. Even worse, families are increasingly split up, leaving small children in middle seats in the company of strangers unless passengers arrange seat swaps on board.

Michael Lyon booked seats together for his family for a trip from Washington, D.C., to Bangkok on United Airlines in July and checked his reservation frequently to make sure the seat assignments didn't change. But when he checked in, all three had been split up, and his 6-year-old son was moved to the back of the wide-body plane by himself for the 13-hour trip.

 

Most airlines are now seating parents with babies in the back of the plane. Quietly, airlines are blocking babies from bulkhead seats and in one case, first class. Leslie Yazel has details on Lunch Break.

A United gate agent told Mr. Lyon there were no seats and nothing could be done. He protested, ultimately getting a supervisor who found two seats together so he could sit with his son. Mr. Lyon said.

"Not only did the United gate staff not seem to understand the importance of having him next to us, they were hostile."

Even during peak holiday travel periods, adults, of course, outnumber children on planes, and airlines have to balance the needs of parents with other passengers whose nightmare is a long, crowded flight next to a noisy child.

The Parent Trap - Many airlines are changing rules that often requires parents with young children to sit in the rear of the plane, or even worse, separating the children from their parents, and having their children sit alone in the rear of the plan next to a total stranger. 

Several factors are at play.

• Many seats on flights are reserved for elite-level frequent fliers or full-fare business travelers. Routinely full flights have less seat-assignment flexibility. 
• Airlines are increasingly selling choice seat assignments for extra fees, an expensive option for families. 
• Bulkhead rows at the front of coach cabins that used to be ideal for traveling with infants, offering more privacy for diaper changes and more space for restless toddlers, now have to be reserved for passengers with disabilities. 

As a result, families often end up separated or at the back of the plane.

In Mr. Lyon's case, United says its systems are set up to keep groups together, but his seat assignments may have been altered because of a change in aircraft for his trip. After he complained, including sending United the names of passengers who witnessed the confrontation, the airline said it conducted an investigation and apologized to him.

Baltimore mom Teresa Toth-Fejel flies AirTran occasionally and has been told by airline agents that if she wants seats together with her kids—ages 1, 2 and 6—she should pay extra for reserved seat assignments. She sets alarms for 24 hours before departure to check-in online.  She said.

"I'm so freakishly worried about it." 

When that doesn't work, she has been able to take the free seat assignments in different rows and trade with willing fellow passengers—who likely don't want to be caring for a toddler on their own.

She said.  

"I feel like it's discrimination against families. For us, it is not an option to not be by my 2-year-old."

Summer Smith Hull, who blogs about frequent-flier miles for families, checks over and over for seat assignments if she doesn't get them right away, grabbing seats that open up when travelers cancel or get upgraded to first class. She said.  

"The No. 1 way you set yourself up for trouble is if you go to the airport without seat assignments."

A recent flight didn't have seat assignments, so she kept calling the airline until she finally got seats.

 

Traveling with kids can be a challenge especially when you're flying to your destination! Parents TV Host Juli Auclair shares some of her packing and traveling secrets as she heads out on a family vacation.

Adding to the complexity: Several airlines, including American and United, don't let travelers add children flying free on a parent's lap to reservations online. Instead, they must call the airline or get an airport agent to add a lap child to their reservation. Southwest Airlines requires taking a lap child to a ticket counter with a birth certificate on the day of travel to verify the child is younger than 2 years old.

KLM Airlines offers baby bassinets for parents flying with their babies

The plane's configuration can also affect placement. On smaller regional jets, for example, some rows don't have an extra oxygen mask to be used on an infant traveling on an adult's lap. That means someone who reserved a seat and has a lap child must be relocated, splitting up a family. (SeatGuru.com has information about location of oxygen masks.)

For their part, airlines say they try to keep families seated together, encourage gate agents to rearrange seating to accommodate families and still provide some kid-friendly amenities. While microwave ovens have been removed from many planes since airlines no longer serve hot food, carriers say flight attendants still warm bottles with hot water. Wide-body jets still have diaper-changing areas.

American recently installed new software that attempts to seat together families with children 12 years and younger who don't have seat assignments 72 hours before departure, significantly ahead of most other customers.

Other carriers suggest families should pay for seat assignments to make sure they stay together since it's harder to get seat assignments in advance, free of charge. US Airways has no restrictions on families reserving seats in advance, but a spokesman said.  

"We do encourage families to take advantage of Choice seats to ensure seating together."

Overall increased stress of travel due to luggage charges and security procedures has made travelers less tolerant of kids, some parents say.

"Sometimes other passengers are willing to help you out. But others look at you like you are the devil for bringing a child on an airplane," said Alecia Hoobing, who works for a technology company from her home in Boise, Idaho. The evil eyes are more acute when families upgrade to first class, she and Ms. Hull agree. Malaysia Airlines decided this year to ban babies from first-class cabins of its Boeing 747 jets and next year in its new Airbus A380 super-jumbos because of passenger complaints of crying children in the expensive seats.

Ms. Hoobing thinks the hardest part of travel with kids is boarding. Airlines typically no longer let families with small children board first on flights. Instead, they often come after first class and top-tier frequent fliers. Kids and parents—lugging car seats, diaper bags, videogames and toys—clog the aisles and delay general boarding. Though airlines provide leniency, such as exempting diaper bags for carry-on bag limits and waiving checked-baggage fees for car seats and strollers, they have tightened restrictions.

On June 1, for example, American stopped letting parents check jogging strollers, non-collapsible strollers or strollers heavier than 20 pounds at the gate. United already bans gate-checking strollers that don't collapse.

COMMENTARY:    My greatest fear has always been long distance flights and sitting next to a family with very young children.  Babies cry all the time, and if you sit near the aisle, you have to move all the time, so the parents can take their children to the restroom for diaper changing.  I don't mind it as much on very short airline flights.  Don't get me wrong, I went through the parenting phase myself, but as parents we decided not to fly with our young children.  Parents need to understand and take into account the needs of fellow passengers.  We guard our privacy and look forward to an enjoyable and comfortable flight.  

Some airlines have a lower tolerance for parents with babies and toddlers.  So, if you are a parent with very small children, and plan on taking with you onboard a plane, check these websites: 

• MomAboard.com may provide invaluable information before making your airline reservations.
• HOW TO: Fly Cross-Country With Small Children (Without Benadryl).
• TakingTheKids.com provides all kinds of information for parents traveling with their children.
• KidsFlySafe.com offers the Child Aviation Restraint System, the only harness type child aviation safety restraint  ever certified for airplane travel by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
• BabyOnBoard explains Southwest Airlines special rules for parents flying with infants and toddlers.
• Flying With Kids - Best Flying Tips For Parents is a blog that offers a wealth of information help to parents flying with very young children.
• Toddler Bassinets can be arranged if you are flying onboard British Airlines.
• BestFamilyTravelAdvice.com offers excellent advice if you are flying with a baby or young toddlers, especiallhy on international flights.
• TheMomCrowd.com offers an excellent article titled "Flying With A Baby," which may prove very helpful.

I hope the above links prove helpful for parents with babies and young children traveling with their children on airlines.

Courtesy of an article dated November 17, 2011 appearing in The Wall Street Journal

MORE MOMS USE FACEBOOK, SOCIAL NETWORKS THAN AVERAGE INTERNET USERS

Have you Facebook-friended your mom yet? Even if you haven’t, you probably have more than a few connections on the social network with little ones of their own, using the site as a way to communicate, stay in touch with families and exchange information about parenting, among other things.

eMarketer estimates 23 million US moms are on Facebook this year—a figure that counts women with children under 18 in the household who use the site at least once each month. That represents well over two-thirds of all online moms in the country. Overall, eMarketer estimates that just 57.1% of internet users (including children) use Facebook monthly.

Facebook, of course, is not the only social networking site moms use. Overall, 26.5 million mothers with kids in the home use social networks at least once per month, or 79.2% of online moms. This compares to 63.7% of internet users overall.

These estimates mean that as of 2011, moms will make up 17.9% of all US social network users and 17.4% of Facebook users. But the high rates of penetration reached in this group mean growth will be relatively slow, and moms will actually lose share on the sites over time. By 2013, eMarketer estimates, 16.1% of US Facebook users will be moms with children in the home, while 17.1% of all US social network users will be mothers.

COMMENTARY:   Facebook is the place to go if you want to target moms.

Courtesy of an article dated October 19, 2011 appearing in eMarketer

FUNGOPLAY, A NEW ONLINE GAME SITE FOR KIDS, REWARDS THEM FOR PLAYING OUTSIDE BY PLAYING THEIR FAVORITE SPORT ONLINE

Charged with teaching a dozen 7-year-old little league players the finer points of baseball, David Jacobs and Steven Lerner decided to start with a simple warm-up. They explained that they would yell out the name of a base, and the kids would run to it. When they started with “second base,” however, children scattered to four different bases.

Several little league practices and bus-stop discussions later, Jacobs and Lerner decided to fill the need they had discovered for a compelling way to teach kids about sports.

What they came up with, FunGoPlay, combines an online sports game world with physical sporting equipment that registers physical play and rewards it with special access codes. The “online sports theme park” will launch this Spring.

The model hits a sweet spot on several levels. Almost 20% of children in the United States are obese, and video games — an increasingly favored activity — have long been blamed for increasing this percentage. Paradoxically, at the same time, childhood participation in sports is at an all-time high.

If FunGoPlay catches on, it will be both a video game that effectively encourages outdoor, active play and a way to teach sports basics that is compelling to young children — both factors that are likely to entice parents to open their wallets.

A World of Sports That Speaks to Kids

When Jacobs and Lerner first had the idea, they took a trip to the sports section of Barnes and Noble to check out their competition for teaching kids between 6 and 11 years old about sports. They didn’t really find any competition.

“It’s a huge business to teach coaches how to coach, but there was nothing that really spoke to kids,” Lerner says.

In order to create that appeal, the team went to work on a “sports theme park.” The park has multiple games involving soccer, basketball, baseball, and extreme sports that are populated by a cast of 15 characters.

One of the co-founders, Fabian Nicieza, has a rich background in comic books that includes writing every major character in the Marvel Universe. Presumably, his storytelling capability will help build a narrative that runs through the games. The games will also be tied together by a unified reward system, and a customizable locker or club house.

 

Virtual worlds for children have long been identified as a ripe business opportunity. Disney’s Club Penguin (a $700 million purchase), Mattel’s BarbieGirls.com, and SecretBuilders are among the most successful. What distinguishes FunGoPlay’s game from these sites is its physical component.

When parents buy a subscription to the online sports theme park, they’ll be able to pick out the physical sporting equipment to accompany it. When kids play with it, a screen on the ball or Frisbee will give them access codes that they can use to unlock special features in the game.

But what counts as “play” depends on the sports equipment. FunGoPlay has researched the way that kids use different sports equipment and will measure activity according to their findings.

“Frisbee turns into ‘let’s all go and catch the Frisbee – once it drops on the ground’ because nobody can catch the Frisbee,” Chief Technology Officer Chris Romero says. “What we’ve done is build a map of that into to code that basically says, ‘OK if this Frisbee is activated over such and such a time period, kids are playing with it.’”

Co-Founders Fabian Nicieza, Steve Lerner and David Jacobs

If you were to put together a dream team for digital children’s entertainment, it would look a lot like FunGoPlay. Huge players like Nickelodeon, Disney, Sesame Workshop, and Marvel are all well represented in team members’ resumes. But will the dream team make a dream product?

The company isn’t the first to run with the idea of merging online and offline play. Anyone who knows a child under the age of 12 has likely heard of Webkinz — stuffed animals with avatar components that live on the company’s website. Ganz Corporation, which manufactures the stuffed animals, is privately held and doesn’t release sales data. But the site had about six million unique visitors per month at its peak in 2007. Post-craze, however, compete.com now puts Webkinz.com traffic at about 3 million unique visitors every month — still an impressive amount, but a line that goes in the wrong direction.

In order to become an integral component of children’s sports education, FunGoPlay will need to prove that its smart soccer balls and frisbees are more than just gimmicks. The plan is to market the physical components as sporting equipment rather than toys, and this plan is reflected in the company’s choice of manufacturer and distributor, EB Brands, which has a reputation for the former.

But no matter how FunGoPlay is marketed, kids — needless to say an unpredictable group (remember Tickle Me Elmo?) — will eventually decide how seriously to take both FunGoPlay’s physical equipment and online world.

COMMENTARY:   I have coached Little League teams kids under 12, and I can't describe just how frustrating it is to teach kids between 6 to 11 years of age, the basics of that sport.   I assume that the problem exists for all sports, and the fact that the folks at FunGoPlay found a market need, should help the kids learn the proper way to play each sport.   

Don't get me wrong, the parents do the best they can, making it a fun activity for the kids, but only have time to do this on weekends.  Sometimes parents can get carried away.  I ran into this sort of thing myself, with many parents becoming too emotionally involved with winning, rather than focusing on teaching their kids, proper social development skills, teamwork and respect for others. It's not always about winning.      

I cam remember after a big loss, many parents hissed because we lost by huge scores, sometimes the opposing team scored too many runs in one inning.  I can understand the disappointment of the parents, yet the kids, in spite of the losses, looked at it as fun, and forgot that loss five minutes after the game ended. It's incredible what a post-game pizza party can do for tween kids.

I have a feeling that FunGoPlay, a catchy name if there ever was, is going to be successful, but the parents need to become involved and supervise their kids, and become involved with them as they play their sport in the real world.  I do love FunGoPlay's comic book characters.  The managment team has the experience and this is a big plus.  

FunGoPlay definitely fills a void in the marketplace, and playing the online games gets the parents involved with their kids, and away from that TV for a change, which is one of the reasons why kids are so overweight.  And the overweight problem continues right through high school.

Some of the problems that I see with FunGoPlay is that not all families have the time, and many households do not own a computer or have access to broadband.  This is especially true of some minorities like Afro-Americans and Hispanics.     

This article was passed on to me by a VC friend of mine.   Just as soon as I have the time, I will go online and see how well kids actually learn the sports they play online.

Courtesy of an article dated  February 8, 2011 appearing in Mashable

CREEPY PRODUCT OF THE DAY: THE SMART BABY CASE, A POD FOR BABIES

Like so many design competitions, it's not the winners but the weirdoes that emerged from Samsonite's second-annual open call that have us fascinated. Samsonite's Baby Travel Design Competition yielded 1,700 entries from 78 countries and the company recently crowned eight winners, including (yawn) a baby air seat and bassinette.

But look at this entry, which takes the cake for creepiness. The Smart Baby Case, by Iranian designer Pouyan Mokhtarani, is intended to keep your infant protected in the event of disasters, such as chemical warfare. We're talking an LED screen that monitors air quality inside the pod, an auto-rocking unit that can soothe babies sans adult humans, and even an auto-diaper that can flush away waste via tubes (gross). Liquid-filled padding around the head and a soft, flexible interior keeps your tot intact in case of a drop-kick or bomb attack.

"There is a bit of a misunderstanding in that this is not a device for growing children during their whole life," Mokhtarani clarifies on Yanko Design. "It is just a device which can provide a safe and healthy condition during 2 or 3 hours while you can't change your baby or staying in some poor facilities or places during a trip or airport."

Of course, if we saw someone rolling a baby through the airport in what looks like a nanny pod from the Matrix, we'd call security.

COMMENTARY:  I have heard about carry-on luggage, but carry-on baby may become the next new trend?  NOT.  This protective baby pod is indeed a creepy new product.  The Smart Baby Case's ability to protect an infant in the event of disasters, such as a chemical attack, by monitoring and filtering the air, that is going over the top, or what? 

I consult for a lot of inventor's, and I always ask inventor's what is the real need your are filling or problem you are solving in the marketplace. Do parent's really need this kind of product? 

One plus, is the encapsulated baby, that muffles those terrible crying sounds every time they need a diaper change.  Maybe that's it, the problem this product solves. The sound muffling baby carrier.  That's the ticket.   Just joking, of course.

I have a problem visualizing how that diaper poop cleaner works, and what happens to all that poop. Nothing like the tried and proven personal touch of a parent changing the baby's diaper.  I don't see that changing.

I don't know what The Smart Baby Case costs, but I bet it is a bit pricey with all those high-tech features. But, I am willing to bet you a case of bananas, that some parents with the financial means, will buy this product.  

Courtesy of an article dated December 7, 2009 appearing in Fast Company