21st Century DadsTime to engage.

Most dads are pretty hands on nowadays, whether they stay-at-home or work full time.

However, a recent survey* reported that 80% of dads think that baby brands and retailers value mums far more in their marketing.

Here we provide the latest stats showing an upward trend of engaged dads and the platforms that are connecting to them.

*Hippychick, nursery trade distributor 2016

21st century dads are more engaged and equipped to contribute to a family's emotional, as well as financial needs. WGSN 2015

Dads spend 50% more time with their kids online, are 50% more likely to take the kids to movies, the theatre, sporting events or concerts. Yahoo (2012)

Dads now have complete or partial responsibility for…

55% more likely than previous generation to do household shop.52% take equal responsibility for what their baby will wear.31% bedtime.28% bathtime.20% healthcare.25% are their child’s primary care giver. Babycentre 2015

91% of dads feel under pressure to be ‘perfect’, attempting to find that elusive work/life balance. Babycentre 2015

Image source: theselfstyledlife.wordpress.com / Instagram

45% say it’s hard to meet their own expectations at work and at home.Babycentre 2015

The number of stay-at-home dads has more than doubled in 20 years, rising to 229,000 in 2014, from 111,000 in 1993. Office of National Statistics, 2014

The number of hours spent actively parenting by fathers has tripled since 1985. Pew Research Centre, 2013

Image source: Huffington Post

Stay-at-home dads are active advocates of co-parenting and shared responsibilities. WGSN 2015

And their online support networks and advocates are growing with them.

Image source: slowmama.com

Mumsnet’s established Dad bloggers are growing in influence and reach. Albeit still only 5% of the network, they are rising fast.

One British father of four opening up online about parenthood is Simon Hooper.

His Instagram account @father_of_daughters gained 22k followers in the first three months. He now has 31.6k.

Image source: Simon Hooper Instagram

Al Ferguson set up The Dad Network, combining a blogging website, membership group and YouTube channel to,

‘Offer dads an alternative to those who believe that being dad is more than just babysitting the kids to give mum a break.’

36,000 page views / month24,000 unique views30,000 social media reach5,100 mailing list2,000 Dad Network Group750 blogger networks

‘I feel passionately about The Dad Network offering dads a real, honest account of fatherhood, that isn’t in textbook speak but is gripping and shows how tough yet rewarding fatherhood can be. We want dads to be celebrated, to be cherished and to be supported.’ Al Ferguson

I absolutely love this page. To know that I am not

alone in some of my most silly, funny, as well as darkest thoughts of

parenthood is an indescribable comfort.

Steve Dadds Dad Network Member

‘I wanted a place to share my experiences of a being a dad and maybe one day my children will look back and read this blog with happy and fond memories of me.

One of the aims of this blog is to help people with their DIY needs. You can expect to find tutorials, tips and more.’

‘The core aim of this site is to enable you and your family to save money, increase your income and manage your finances with easy to digest, actionable information. If you are looking to save money, this site is for you. If you want to increase your income, this site is for you. If you want a better, more financially secure life for your family, this site is for you.’

This blog’s about my experiences as a father, my increasingly nostalgic reflections and other random stuff that interests me from time to time.

‘This stay-at-home dad blog is to share my experience of being a dad in a mums world and raising a girl outside the gender stereotypes of the pink aisle.’Stay-at-home dad blog, chronicling the fun and games of a geek father, his fan girl daughter, and their ongoing struggle against pinkification.

the⋅dad⋅ven⋅ture –noun.‘A journey taken by a father who loves his family and wants to share the experience of life with his family while seeking out new amazing things to try.’

‘I write and blog about parenting, fatherhood, family life, days out, travel, equalities, men's style and grooming, travel and a host of other lifestyle subjects.’

‘I started my blog because I wanted to start talking about fatherhood, family-life and my experiences. Joining in and starting conversations has helped me prepare and deal with parenting more than I ever imagined.’

‘I've been writing Diary of the Dad since 2010 and it's gone from a small hobby to my full-time job. I still have the same enthusiasm for this blog as I did when I wrote my first post and hope you enjoy reading my musings as much as I do writing them.’

‘I used to be a bit rubbish at blogging but since my entire office get massive doses of what the little'uns get up to, I thought it was time to blog. That was over 5 years ago...’

‘We’re not trying to be clever here, we do pretty much what it looks like – I (David), assisted by wife Suzanne, editor-at-small toddler George and even smaller editor Edith (ok, she doesn’t do much yet) find cool items for kids at Junior Hipster and we write about them! That’s all you really need to know about us.’

A place to share the highs and lows of family life from a single, stay at home dads perspective. The aim still remains the same: to document our life together and to show that education doesn't need to be 9 - 5 Monday to Friday. You will find posts on lifestyle and parenting, recipes and education tips and guides.’

‘A collation of my thoughts covering things that excite and frustrate, please and infuriate me, and anything else that I feel like sharing.  I’m not looking for sympathy because my life is pretty sweet.

Dad blogsA growing trend

Julie Michaelson, BabyCentre 2015.

“When Millennial men become dads, they want to know how to decorate a nursery, how to wear a baby. Brands need to help these dads feel like they’re doing a good job of parenting, supporting them in their desire to do-it-all.

Companies who do this well will not only earn dad’s engagement and loyalty; they stand a good chance of earning mum’s respect, too.”

Source: blog.hreonline.com

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