teen market

Appealing to the teen market

?Consumers in this age subculture have a number of needs, including experimentation, belonging, independence, responsibility and approval from others.

?Product usage is a significant medium to express these needs. Because they are so interested in many different products and have the resources to obtain them, the teen market is avidly courted by many marketers.

?Because today’s teenagers were raised on TV and they tend to be much more canny

than older generations, marketers must tread lightly when they try to reach them. This

gadget-loving, fashion-conscious generation is also considered the most materialistic

generation of youngsters in history.

?teenagers in Europe have increasingly complex media consumption

habits, and are acknowledged as being more advertising-literate. In particular, the

messages must be seen as authentic and not condescending. In spite of teenagers’ more

critical evaluation of television advertising, there is no doubt that TV adverts have a clear

influence on their purchases.

?Marketers view teenagers as ‘consumers-in-training’, since brand loyalty is developed

during this age. A teenager who is committed to a brand may continue to purchase it for

many years to come. Such loyalty creates a barrier to entry for other brands that were not chosen during these pivotal years. Thus, advertisers sometimes try to ‘lock in’ consumers to certain brands so that they will buy these brands in the future more or less automatically.

?Teenagers also exert a strong influence on the purchase decisions of their parents, In addition to providing ‘helpful’ advice to parents, teenagers are increasingly buying products on behalf of the family 

Researching the youth market

?Research firms are coming up with innovative ways to tap the desires of teens, many of whom don’t respond well to traditional survey techniques. Sometimes respondents are given a video camera and are asked to record a ‘typical’ day at school – along with play by-play commentary to help interpret what’s going on.

?A recent study asked young people in the United States and the Netherlands to write essays about what is ‘cool’ and ‘uncool’.

?The researchers found that being cool has several meanings, though there were a lot of similarities between the two cultures when kids use this term. Some of the common dimensions include having charisma, being in

control and being a bit aloof. And many of the respondents agreed that being cool is a

moving target: the harder you try to be cool, the more uncool you are!

Some of their actual responses are listed here:

● ‘Cool means being relaxed, to nonchalantly be the boss of every situation, and to radiate that’ (Dutch female).

● ‘Cool is the perception from others that you’ve got “something” which is macho,

trendy, hip, etc.’ (Dutch male).

● ‘Cool has something stand-offish, and at the same time, attractive’ (Dutch male).

● ‘Being different, but not too different. Doing your own thing, and standing out, without looking desperate while you’re doing it’ (American male)