06 Feb Consumer Insights Blog 1: Personas

A good filmmaker is one who knows how to establish a connection with an audience through a story. These stories are driven by the characters, “personas,” that we create. In order to create a believable or relatable character, I often have to recreate an entire character’s life cycle, habits, dreams, goals, even if these characteristics are not portrayed directly in a story, in order to understand how a character would naturally react to the events that happen in his or her life.

My latest project involved making a spec commercial that targets Texas moms who would be interested in shopping at H-E-B. In order to be able to create an effective commercial I had to understand and create a “Texas Mom” persona. Let me know whether I hit the dot or not with these commercials!

Texas Mom Persona:

What does she think and feel?

The stereotypical stay at home Texas mom values family. She loves having home cooked meals that bring together all her family members together. She is most concerned that everyone in her family is happy and safe. As a result, she spends most of her time worrying about everyone else, whether her kids make it to their practices on time, whether her family is well fed and safe, and whether her husband is tired from work. Mom can be overwhelmed a lot because everyone looks to her for emotional support and all of the responsibilities of keeping the house clean and orderly.

What does she see?

Mom usually sees her house a lot because she spends 40% of her time caring for it. The other 20% is spent looking at the interior of her car, which she uses to cart her children to every single extra curricular event they want to attend. 20% of her time is spent at the various activities that her children participate in, whether this means school plays, sporting events, or school meetings. 5% is at a store buying things her family needs. Another 5% she spends chatting with other parents about her kids. And perhaps 5% is talking to her friends on the phone, or having them over for a once a month girls night in event. And the remaining 5% is spent on everything else that has to do with taking care of herself.

What does she do?

She is kind to others because she knows that what other people perceive about her can directly affect how people perceive her family and children. She tries to be well-groomed, however, since she has to do so many things, she prefers to wear clothing that is comfortable and stretchy, shoes that allow her to move at fast paces for long periods of time, and a watch or cell phone to keep track of her crazy schedule. The only time she has to dress up is during special occasions, otherwise, comfort comes first.

What does she hear?

Because no one really has the complete manual on how to properly raise kids, Moms rely on each other for advice. She is always wondering how her friend’s kids are doing or asking whether she is handling a difficult situation correctly by looking at examples from her friends in similar situations. What does her bosses say? She does not have any bosses. She is the boss at the house. If her husband wants to do anything or buy anything, he has to ask for her permission. She is queen of the household because she is the glue that keeps the family together.

She pays particular attention to any news article that could help her take care of her family in a more effective way. As a result, any articles about ways to prevent cancer, eat healthier are constantly forwarded to her family’s email accounts. Because her home is her kingdom, she spends copious amounts of time trying to make it pretty. She enjoys reading furniture magazines, Martha Stewart magazines, and other design magazines that could help her make her home a beautiful place.

What are her pain points?

Her biggest fear is that someone in her family is hurt. She hates when her family fights because she wants everyone to be happy. As a result, she often has to be a mediator.  She fears that her children will grow apart from her and not need her anymore. She is frustrated when they don’t have time to call her or don’t tell her where they are or that they will be late coming home. Mom is always scrutinizing the news for the next sex offender or possible natural disaster that would hurt her family because knowledge is power and she wants to be prepared to defend her family. She is frustrated sometimes because she spends so much time worrying about everyone else, she has not been able to take care of herself well. She is worried about getting old, not looking pretty, and gaining weight.

What does she hope to gain? 

She wants to see her children succeed. Mom wants to see her children graduate, get married, and have grand children of their own. She wants her husband to love her and grow old with her. She is successful if she has a happy family who loves her just as much as she loves them.

Make sure to check out the making of the video as well!