TalkingWithTami: What made you start your very own online mom tv network?
A little over a year ago I joined the team at NewBaby.com to help the site grow. While working on programs for building the site, specifically helping moms use video to add to their blogging and sharing we started using Twitter to meet moms and share videos posting on NewBaby.com. One growing trend we started to see was that more moms were connecting using Twitter. Friendships were being built and conversations were happening and we wanted to take it a step further. What better way than to build a community where moms can share video on topics they care about and provide a forum for moms to chat LIVE. MomTV was born. We launched on May 7th this year along with the first National Mom’s Nite Out event with streaming live video from 10 cities where moms were celebrating motherhood. We carried over events from that night like fashion and saving money and they became shows and we recruited some moms to come and start shows based on the videos they were sharing on MomTV and NewBaby.com. We have grown the site to 50 shows today – in less than 3 months. The best part is watching moms engaging in live conversation from all points in the US – and we are starting 2 shows from the UK this month, so that will be awesome to go across the pond for mum’s to share their points of view.
TalkingWithTami: What kind of shows are you looking for? We want to have something for everyone. It is important for us to support a wife/mother and dad/father who has an idea and wants to launch a show. We have been trying to be diverse in the topics so we don’t have 10 coupon saving shows we have a few, one daytime, and maybe morning or afternoon. Either way, all LIVE shows are recorded for replay, so you won’t miss your favorite host.
TalkingWithTami: Before you started Momtv, what was your career and why did you make the transition? I have been in sales and marketing most of my adult life. I did start out to be a doctor, but after working in a clinic during college, I decided against it. I did get my real estate license and took a bunch of sales courses and before you knew it, I thought that would be my stay at home work job. However, after my son turned 2, I found myself working in a start up technology company in newspapers and have since launched over 40 products with worldwide responsibility for sales and marketing. I love the challenge of sales and love the networking and creative side of marketing. I started my own marketing and PR firm 7 years ago and NewBaby.com was a client who took me away from working with lots of different clients to one. My firm is still alive with my partners running it while I am working with MomTV as a co-founder and Chief Marketing and Ops exec.
TalkingWithTami: What is a typical day like for Mrs.Piche? I am fortunate to live in Los Angeles, and am 5 minutes from my sailboat and the beach (I don’t get to use it as much as I like). I have created an oasis in my backyard where I can escape for lunch and relax but during the growth of MomTV, I’ve been working about 12 hours a day and as a work at home mom… I have some interruptions from family and our dog who is an attention hound but I do have the support of my family and it beats spending time commuting to an office. Plus we can sneak away to go to a movie during the week for lunch and still have family adventures.
TalkingWithTami: Give me one reality tv show that you just have to watch or else! OH NO, I am busted! Believe it or not, I love to watch Wipe Out. The family loves to watch the silliness of the show and you forget about everything else (which is entertainment… when it takes you from the stress of the world).
