CafeMom
 | |
| Type of business | Private |
|---|---|
Type of site | English |
| Founded | New York, New York |
| Headquarters | New York, New York |
| Key people | Michael Sanchez, co-founder and CEO Andrew Shue, Co-founder |
| Employees | 120 (April 2013) |
| URL | Cafemom.com |
| Registration | Optional |
| Launched | December 2006 |
| Current status | Active |
CafeMom is an ad-supported social networking site which is targeted at mothers and mothers-to-be. It was founded in 2006 by Andrew Shue and Michael Sanchez.
Within one year of its launch, CafeMom became the most trafficked website for women (by page views) on the Internet, according to comScore.[2] CafeMom gets more than 8 million unique visitors a month, accounting for over 140 million page views.[3] According to their own website, as of 2009, CafeMom.com has turned profitable.[4]
On March 30, 2010, CafeMom announced the launch of The Stir,[5] a new blog for moms featuring topics such as celebrity gossip, parenting dilemmas (and solutions), current events, and home decorating.
Based in New York City, the company has about 120 employees. CafeMom is owned by privately held CMI Marketing.[6]
History
CafeMom was founded in 2006 by Michael Sanchez and Andrew Shue. In 1999, the childhood friends established CMI Marketing and subsequently ClubMom, the predecessor to CafeMom. ClubMom was a web site that provided parenting information in the form of blogs, articles and message boards. It also organized a shopping rewards program with sponsors.[3][7] ClubMom ran until 2007, when CMI Marketing ended the website in order to focus on their sister site by the name of CafeMom.[7]
The idea of CafeMom originated with Andrew Shue when he became a father and he saw how his wife counted on other mothers for support and information. Shue realized that there was a need for mothers to share and talk with other women and there was nothing out there that was bringing them together.[8][9]
CMI Marketing put together ideas of how the CafeMom website would look and function by looking at features of other social networking sites. The company then took these ideas and simplified them when creating CafeMom.[8]
CafeMom went live on November 15, 2006.[10] Many original ClubMom members were encouraged to join the newly formed social networking site CafeMom in order to help it succeed.[8]
Company
CafeMom is owned by CMI Marketing Inc., a New York-based company, founded in 1999, which offers Internet community services. The services typically involve online chatting and photo sharing. CMI Marketing Inc. primarily makes money via advertising revenue. They also have investors Highland Capital Partners and Draper Fisher Jurvetson invested some $5 million in the company.[11]
Since the end of 2008, CMI Marketing has been growing. CafeMom reaches 8.1 million unique visitors (ComScore, July 2011) and more than 20 million unique visitors to the CafeMom Plus Network.[12] CafeMom Plus is a network of mom-oriented websites who are in partnership with CafeMom, including: Birthday Partnership Ideas; Coupon Cabin; Education.com; and Families.com.
In the media
CafeMom has been featured in newspapers, magazines and television and radio programs. Articles have appeared in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Good Morning America along with programs on The Today Show and Webmaster Radio. In 2009, the marketing news and expert advice website, Clickz, published an article on CafeMom’s newly launched games section, and the impact it was making.[13][14][15][16][17][18]
In August 2010, it was reported that Yahoo! was seeking to acquire the profit making social networking site aimed at mothers. CMI Marketing and Yahoo negotiated over the price. Other interested companies included The Walt Disney Company.[19]
The Stir
CafeMom publishes an online journal called The Stir. It provides newspaper articles about parenting and issues surrounding children that members can comment upon and discuss. It also links to related stories on the site as well providing links to similar articles in the press, and gives links to Twitter and Facebook where members can continue the debate. Suburban Turmoil’s Lindsay Ferrier is a fashion columnist for the journal, after selling her style blog, She’s Still Got It, to CafeMom.[20]
The blog is interactive, allowing CafeMom followers to write in and ask questions, appeal for fashion advice and discuss trends. Ferrier became involved with CafeMom after following CafeMom bloggers on Twitter and getting in touch with them.[20]
References
- ^ a b "Cafemom.com Site Info". Alexa Internet. Retrieved 2014-04-01.
- ^ "Moms Are Hot: CafeMom Raises $12 Million". Mashable. March 18, 2008.
- ^ a b "Mothers' little helper". Crain’s New York Business. May 3, 2008.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "CafeMom Launches The Stir, the All-Day, Every Day Content Destination for Moms". PR Newswire. March 30, 2010.
- ^ "CMI Marketing's CafeMom Raises $5 Million". Silicon Alley Insider. March 22, 2007.
- ^ a b "How CafeMom Works". How Stuff Works A Discovery Company. July 15, 2009.
- ^ a b c "Actor Andrew Shue becomes internet mogul with CafeMom". New Jersey Online. March 24, 2009.
- ^ "Moms Come Together at CafeMom". ABC News/Good Morning America. June 16, 2009.
- ^ "CafeMom Interview With Paul Bannister and Matt Zarzecki". Center Networks. October 30, 2007.
- ^ "CafeMom Brews $5 Million in funding". Mediapost.com. August 23, 2007.
- ^ "CafeMom Launches Ad Network for Mom Sites". Centernetworks. November 20, 2008.
- ^ "Woman to Woman, Online". New York Times. 2008.
- ^ "Beyond Facebook: the Benefits of Deeper Friendships". The Wall Street Journal. 2010.
- ^ "The Today Show". NBC. 2011.
- ^ "Good Morning America". ABC. 2010.
- ^ "Webmaster Radio". Webmaster Radio. 2004–2011.
- ^ "CafeMom Caters to Growing Number of Gaming Mothers". Incisive Interactive Marketing LLC. 2011.
- ^ "Exclusive: Yahoo Eyes CafeMom for $100 Million Acquisition". The Wall Street Journal. August 17, 2010.
- ^ a b "She's Still Got It: Lindsay Ferrier's Style Blog Sold to CafeMom". BlogHer. May 21, 2010.