Writing about motherhood stretched my limits.
The work:
I know the team at Frida must have been skeptical at first. After all, what do I know about the struggles of motherhood? I’m a dude.
Did writing about motherhood stretch my limits? Absolutely. But after I learned about how much motherhood stretches moms (and I’m not just talking about the physical stuff like stretch marks) I quickly rose to the challenge—after, of course, a sh*t ton of internet research and puzzled looks from my girlfriends when I was suddenly interested in their stories about what they went through with their first kid.
Writing for Frida pushed my limits, but it also reaffirmed my belief that as a writer, you have to get real (as in the real world, real people) to get outside your head and write copy that truly resonates, instead of just marketing fluff. And of course I had to use my writing chops to turn clinical specs into engaging quips, leverage pop culture moments as product opportunities, and help change the conversations around motherhood—to way more than just “how’s the baby?”
The scope: Naming products. Writing quippy lines for packaging, web, and social to describe the product benefits in Frida’s edgy tone of voice. I also wrote product descriptions in the same TOV.
Notable lines I wrote, with a little backstory:
Layer on the relief.
There are layers to postpartum recovery—pads to catch clots, ice packs to chill sore spots, bandages, and more. All stuffed into whatever underwear is (fingers crossed) strong enough to hold it all together while you feel like you’re falling apart. All this DIY leads to a lot of WTF. Nothing holds, everything stings, it’s a mess. The line “Layer on the relief” speaks to this truth—that women take postpartum recovery into their own hands, literally—but with Frida, there’s a better way: a 5-step regimen that covers all the needs (cleaning, soothing, absorbing, healing, and support) including underwear to hold it all together. The line was used on the Frida site.
Because even celebs need to keep it all together.
Postpartum selfies are a thing. When Suki Waterhouse shared a selfie proudly sporting the Frida postpartum underwear, we needed a line that celebrated her postpartum recovery candor uniting all postpartum moms in the struggle and highlighting the benefits of Frida’s product. The line was used in email, social posts and stories.
Care for your pair.
At Frida, they’re always looking for lines that say the most with as few words as possible. I came up with the line “Care for your pair” to speak to Frida’s breast care line, acknowledging that caring for your breasts should be a part of the breastfeeding conversation, not just feeding baby. This line was used in emails and on the site.
Ace the stretch rehearsal.
When Frida needed a quippy product tagline for their new Perineal Massage Wand that helps reduce tears during birth, I jumped at the chance to write something catchy and that made good use of play on words. The line speaks to the use of the product—massaging the perineal area is “rehearsing” a stretch to support skin’s elasticity there—in a way that’s engaging and social-forward instead of clinical.
Pop your peri cherry.
The ask was for a line to introduce moms-to-be to perineal massage and its benefits in a friendly and social-forward way, and to reassure women that the wand and instructions are easy enough to use even if they’ve never done perineal massage before.
Because nursing does a number on nips.
All-of-the-above boob relief.
Embracing the breastfeeding struggles and the very real need for support from latching on to weaning time is always a topic of conversation at Frida. I came up with catchy, quippy lines to acknowledge every pain in the boob and solution to address it.
