Carolyn Koesters
Mother’s Day Creative Trends Expert
Contact: Megan Ferington or Frank Cirillo, 216.252.4938
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Cleveland, Ohio (April 2007) - Who knew that a process similar to speed dating could be useful in the creation of Mother’s Day cards? Carolyn Koesters, a professional writer and editor in the American Greetings Editorial Studios, implemented this offbeat practice as one of many ideas she utilized to explore the diverse lifestyles, attitudes, traditions and cultural influences shaping modern moms. The research provided the company’s editorial team with inspiration and fresh, real-life insights to incorporate into new Mother’s Day cards.
To provide designers and fellow writers with fuel and inspiration as they created cards for Mother’s Day 2007, Koesters and her team used several non-traditional research techniques to understand family experiences and insights. One of the most interesting activities was a “momathon” that was organized in much the same fashion as a speed-dating session. Working from a list of prepared questions, writers rotated around a table of their own mothers, chatting briefly with each woman to gain different anecdotes and perspectives on motherhood.
“In addition to really getting to know moms, we also explored prevailing attitudes in pop culture and the media to get the pulse of what’s hot, what’s new and what’s on the minds of today’s moms, ” said Koesters. “We gained a real insight into the modern mom, and we worked to reflect the designs and language in our cards.”
While it may sound like a fun process, Koesters noted that it certainly is not easy to create messages that relate with so many different moms and communicate the diverse relationships we share with them.
“Crafting Mother’s Day messages that resonate with consumers is a far more complex process than most people realize,” Koesters said. “When someone selects a Mother’s Day card, they’re looking for words that sound true-to-life and relevant to their personal relationship with their mother. Basically, everyone just wants to find the card that sounds as if they wrote it themselves.”
In addition to more than seven years as a professional writer and editor for American Greetings, Koesters is a “certified applied poetry facilitator.” Working in developmental settings such as women’s shelters and grief support groups, a poetry facilitator helps people deal with personal loss and achieve healing through language with projects like journaling, scrap booking and poetry. She became a first-time mom herself in 2004 to daughter Calliope, now age 2-1/2.