The Direct Marketing Assocation recently found that 84 percent of new mothers use Facebook, and 72 percent say they Like brands.

A new report from the Direct Marketing Association found that social media marketing is especially effective at targeting women who recently gave birth, the organization said in a release last week.

Eighty-four percent of new mothers report using Facebook. This may not be surprising as the service has been around since 2004, and many new mothers are at an age where they’ve been using social media for some time. Nonetheless, it demonstrates the value of the channel for businesses targeting women with baby clothes and child rearing tips or tools for those mommies who may want to “get back in shape.”

“Most new moms these days are millennials, who are not just internet native, but also have been on social networks from the get-go,” Mary Jo Romeo, president of Mom365, a division of Our365, said in the DMA release. “We wanted to see whether they relate to marketing and privacy issues differently than other groups.”

Seventy-two percent of new mothers using Facebook report Liking brands.

Email marketing is equally effective on the same demographic, with 77 percent reporting they use daily deal websites that contact them through email. However, unsolicited messages are more likely to dissuade new mothers from purchasing from a brand, even if they need whatever the sponsoring business is offering.

Brafton recently reported that social media has a growing influence on car buyers. With new parents often in the market for a new family-friendly automobile, social media could be an invaluable channel to reach these buyers.

Joe Meloni is Brafton's former Executive News and Content Writer. He studied journalism at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has written for a number of print and web-based publications.