Instagram vs. Reality
For today’s parents, the dichotomy that exists between a curated family life and a real family life on social media is a by-product of a larger phenomenon happening among today’s parents, defined by the ideals of a highly aspirational lifestyle, the conflicting realities of daily life, and the huge gap between the two.
The Millennial generation, many of whom are parents, have set a very high bar when it comes to their value system. They are more health conscious, more eco-conscious and more globally conscious than any other adult generation. Why? Because they’ve had more access to information than any generation prior, which in turn, has shaped their world view.
As a result, Millennial parents:
Don’t stop at cutting out highly processed foods; they strive to eat whole and organic foods.
Aren’t satisfied with only recycling; they aspire to reduce or eliminate their use of plastics.
Aren’t stopping at taking their kids to the beach; they want their kids to see the world.
Would rather spend time with their kids at events, in organized activities, and on special days out than being at home.
Millennials’ high bar for living their “best life” has created a hard-to-meet standard, perpetuated on social media – a place for showing off best-life moments and staying quiet when life is less than ideal or extraordinary.
In reality, ordinary life looks like this:
Eco-conscious Millennials are also convenience-driven consumers, using services and accepting deliveries from companies that rely on eco-unfriendly practices.
Millennial parents are even busier than parents before them, and they eat out with their families multiple times a week and consume convenience-driven foods now more than ever.
Kids of Millennial parents are still spending hours a day on screens.
What remains is a cohort of parents who are struggling to reconcile how their real lives measure up against the ideals they strive toward.
The pressure to be perfect and the fear of being judged has always weighed on parents, no matter what day and age. But for today’s parents, the pressure has been amplified, and social media creates an environment for the pressure and feelings of inadequacy to breed. What does this mean for brands? To connect with parents, brands should tap into their aspirational desires while giving them the freedom to fall short.