Online media and youth marketing

Recent news, but not real news: the internet remains the favourite medium among teenagers. They roam the internet for three hours every day, almost as long as the TV is turned on. They only watch TV seriously for two hours. Online video shows a marked increase in popularity. Nearly 90% of teenagers watch videos via the internet, a third do it on a daily basis. That’s an increase of 20% over the last six months (www.newrulez.nl).

More than 75% of the teenagers regularly watches TV via the internet, nearly half of them occasionally download a movie, 25% put their homemade videos online. They watch each other’s movies, but are also open to ‘branded videocontent’- video that prominently features teenage brands in a relevant and entertaining fashion. This development greatly impacts the way youth marketing is being handled.

Generation Einstein
Today’s teenagers are ‘born digitally’; they grow up with online media. The behaviour of Generation Einstein (also GenY) is determined by technology. Yet at the same time, they take direction out of the hands of the marketeer. Young users create a world of their own around frequently used sites, videos and hyperlinks, where access is difficult. If you seek to communicate with this audience, you must use the very same means and media that they use. (www.zbc.nl)

Teenagers swarm like bees to social sites such as MSN, CU2, Hyves, Second Life etc.; all of them sites that belong to Web 2.0. A new generation of the internet which is all about sharing links, photo’s, contacts and experiences. Users find their counterparts and receive custom made suggestions. The online population looks at each other’s choices and preferences and uses them to make decisions about what to buy. At the music site www.last.fm they keep record of the soundtracks you play on your computer, give suggestions for other bands and show you who of your peers have the same taste in music.

Lessons for marketeers
Companies have to get used to the idea that their product information is less relevant to teenagers than the advice of friends. But the clever ones use this knowledge to their advantage. By setting up their own community or fanclub they manage to ‘infiltrate’ the target audience. A brand should aim at becoming part of the online sphere of Generation Einstein. If it succeeds, the brand is experienced as authentic and therefore accepted.

In this environment, viral marketing is an essential instrument. Give teenagers ‘sneak peeks’ at new products and they themselves will make sure the rumour spreads. Branded MP3-players are a fine example of coveted products that find their way around via ‘word of mouse’ (http://imediaconnection.com).

GenY wants control over it’s own world. A lesson for the marketeer: be authentic and transparent in your communication, give teenagers input and let them give input themselves. Let them contribute to your brand presentation. Mars did a great job with their M&M-campaign “There's an M&M in everyone. Create an Inner M character that looks just like you!”. On the special actionsite BecomeAnMM.com the user can create his own M&M, make photo’s or movies and more importantly, send the result to friends (www.ypulse.com/)

Games are another attractive medium to reach teenagers. McDonalds came up with a gaming-component for the campaign to promote their fishburger. On filetofish.com consumers can play a series of online games that promote McDonald’s products. And games producer Electronic Arts cooperates with oilcompany BP in the game SimCity Societies, which makes players more aware of climate changes. It remains to be seen if teenagers will accept this message…

Finally, here is a thought from a marketeer who is herself a member of Generation Einstein: ‘Remember that it’s vital to take teenagers seriously and acknowledge them as co-marketeers an co-ambassadors of your brand.’ (www.polle.net)