The iconic Mickey Mouse Club is back – and while we wait patiently to see who from the new lineup will become the next breakout stars à la Britney and Justin (thank you to the original Mickey Mouse Club for giving us "Cry Me a River"), those of us working with a roster of family brands are no strangers to the important challenge of creating good content for kids. 

YouTube is undergoing a shift and more and more parents do not allow their children to watch it because of content that feels designed to keep kids hooked rather than engaged and educated, leaving them overstimulated instead of inspired.

And now, parents are adding Netflix to the banned list, as many of these YouTube shows are given their own spots on the streaming juggernaut.
Now when it comes to safe viewing for kids, we have faith that Mickey Mouse is the right guy for the job. But as PRs creating campaigns for family brands, we also share a responsibility to parents and young minds.

We spoke to a community built by and for Mums, The Mum Club, founded by Lauren Webber & Jessica Lawes who said “Brands have a real opportunity to support parents by creating content and experiences that inspire connection beyond the screen”. Having worked with Feld Entertainment for over 13 years and a whole host of other family brands targeting under 12s and families, this is what we’ve learned when it comes to creating content that will entertain in a way parents can feel comfortable with.

Our three golden rules from some of our recent campaigns:

Champion the champions – Utilise inspirational figures from the brand to inspire and educate - for the recent Disney On Ice tour, we brought the incredibly talented skaters together with some Gladiators on content that explores what it means to be a hero today. For the immersive space experience Starstruck, we brought a real-life astronaut into the room to chat with young guests – epic!

Understand and support parents – And help solve a problem or serve a need. We don't lock in dates or firm up a content plan before running it past our resident parents. Last summer, we created a podcast series with Fun Kids about the inner workings of Disney On Ice. Helping fight boredom on long car journeys for the whole family.

Make education exciting! – Blue Peter and Newsround were our after-school TV fix when we were kids, and there are still some brilliant platforms capturing children’s imaginations on screens in an educational way. Horrible Histories is the best example of these, and so our client Ramses and the Pharaohs' Gold collaborated with them to create special in person experiences for younger audiences, something Lauren and Jessica of The Mum Club say is what parents want more of: “most parents aren’t looking to eliminate screens altogether – they're looking for balance. The moments children remember most are often the ones spent together".

Work with those having a positive influence – some creators are doing a great job at positively influencing kids, getting them out playing sport or getting them excited about careers in STEM, so work with the good ones! Special shout out to The Wingrove Family who are most certainly to thank for extra hours of garden football clocked!