Characteristics of Youth:
* They are elusive, brand conscious, media-savvy, optimistic and confident.
* They are hard to reach and must be met where they live, work and play.
* They are media-wise, sophisticated, influential and trendsetters.
* They are extremely brand loyal.
* They taken on adult responsibilities at an early age while simultaneously addressing normal teen issues.
* They spend 50% of their waking hours in school.
* They are willing to experiment with new products.
* They have disposable income.
* Their underlying need is a relationship with an adult, a trust-worthy and mutual relationship.
* They tend to dress, eat and drink the same due to global youth marketing.
* They experience adolescent revolt due to material affluence; break down in customs; prolonged childhood.
* The youth market is segmented into groups with different clothes and sub-cultural mores.
* They are fast adopters, street smart, do-it-yourselfers that get quality and quickly reject the inadequate.
* They are busy and brand-conscious.
* They are tech-savvy, trend-focused and free-spending.
* They are able to multitask.
* They are the Dot.com Generation - they were born into a computer-driven world.
* They grew up with a mouse in one hand and a CD-ROM in the other - they are a multimedia generation.
* They are the first generation for which technology is neither a new nor a foreign thing.
* They like the idea of feeling unique and the freedom to be different-like everybody else.
* They have built-in filters that block out just about anything that doesn't immediately pique their interest.
* Youth have built in radar that detects sales techniques.
* They are savvy and jaded; they are aware of a spin; but they celebrate a good ad.
* They are busier than older people, but there are reading.
* They are diverse in their interests.
* They are an attractive but elusive audience they move around and consume different types of media.
* They respond well to intelligent humour.
* They have a great bullshit meter - they are very critical of advertising.
* They are savvy consumers who sift through an offer and reject it if there's nothing in it for them.
* Their tastes and preferences range across the entire spectrum - you can't easily classify them.
* They don't fit into sweeping statements they are individuals, wildly diverse, not a homogeneous group.
* They have great imaginations and love the non-traditional.
* They want to make their own choices and be treated as intelligent - free choice is important to them.
* They need to express themselves as individuals.
* They thrive in environments where they have choices, and they seem to equate choice with power.
* They are demographically and attitudinally diverse.
* They do not accept hand-me-downs.
* They been inundated with strong visual stimuli from birth it is hard to hold their attention.
* They resent the 'establishment' trying to market to them as a generation.
* They harbour ideas about lifestyle very different from those of the generations before them.
* They are less likely than members of other generations to feel the need to fit in.
* They strive very hard to have control over their lives and they want everyone to know it.
* They don't want to be labelled - don't let them think you're pigeon-holing them.
* They are turned off by anything that seems clichιd or insincere - they appreciate authenticity.
* They have a strong skepticism to pushy salespeople.
* They are generally well-educated.
* They many have a substantial stash of cash.
* Many live with their parents into their late 20s and delay starting their own families until they're older.
* They are driven to shop they love to shop.
* They use mall-browsing as a stress-buster.
* They hunt for bargains.
* They invest hours in stores selecting products that express their personal style and visual expression.
* They try on personalities and choose products that help them define themselves.
* They do not have a single style.
* They use shopping as an opportunity to socialize with their friends.
* They are walking product directories they have opinions on everything and know what they don't like.
* They want an interactive and meaningful shopping experience that speaks directly to their individual needs.
* They have differences according to their sex: this is due to genetics and socialization.
* There is a host of similarities between boys and girls as well as differences.
* There is a growing popularity of the sports and fitness movement among kids.
* They value hedonistic consumption and self centered beliefs and goals.
* They are taught that they will be satisfied if they purchase products to fill their wants and desires.
* They have a consumption culture.
* They value companies that support causes they care about.
* They want fashion - something cool.
* They are not resistant to marketing, but they are resistant to sell jobs.
* They demand honest information.
* They do not want to shop where their parents shop.
* They have non-traditional lines of communication.
Guidelines for Marking to Youth:
* Cause related activities will influence not only their buying habits, but also gain their loyalty and trust.
* But hold off on claims of social responsibility, unless they are backed up by action.
* Create a bond with youth foster an interactive relationship between users and the brand.
* Develop a multi-pronged marketing campaign when marketing to them: special events, word of mouth, print and broadcast media to deliver key messages, Internet presence, promotions and product trials, launches.
* Younger viewers are less persuaded by advertising than older viewers - as they grow up surrounded by commercial messages they become better able to deconstruct and disregard those messages.
* Use various media: film, radio, television, Internet, pagers. Television is primary medium it is visual.
* Get key influencers of pop culture to deliver messages.
* The basic psychology of the marketing is to present fantasies that compensate for frustrations in the young person's life without increasing them or threatening the individual's value structure.
* Youth marketing consists of several interrelated components: movies, music, clothes, toys and food.
* Products achieve impact by modelling they create a prototype of the child.
* Products lend themselves to cross-promotion because they are transformable AND because they are intangible. Intellectual property is being distributed: abstract commodities like: computer programs, genetic codes, chemical formulas, the rights to best-selling books and merchandisable characters.
* Re-package characters, storylines, dream worlds, missions and quests; all the stuff of folklore, myth and fairy stories (giving images to children by which they can structure their daydreams and gain direction in life).
* Keep your eye on the consumer.
* Use lifestyle marketing - a mix of events, marketing services and the Internet.
* Emphasise online media: they are dynamic and two-way they have a participatory quality (real-time audio, real-time video, and virtual reality).
* Get youth involved with brands: characters, logos, jingles, and video.
* Use infomercialization - the blending of entertainment with advertising.
* Work on capturing a "share of play time" rather than a "share of market".
* Make products educational and fun.
* To be successful we need to go where the kids go: televisions, VCRs, radios, CD players, computers.
* Be wary of segmenting youth into tribes groups distinguished by a specific behaviour or lifestyle. If you market one tribe you are either over-identified with that group and it's difficult to gain any kind of market share beyond that group, or you end up doing too much preaching to that group and therefore defining them which will turn them off.
* Focus on the commonalities among young people rather than their differences.
* Focus on psychographic profiling: targeting on the basis of attitudes that span several lifestyles.
* Find simple, universal themes - based on universally shared emotions - not this week's big fad.
* Use creativity and do a lot of research into what makes youth tick - to design effective programs.
* There are two key elements to any effective youth-targeted promotion: a sense of control (they don't experience much control in their lives), and an element of fantasy (youth at the edge of puberty are beginning to think about what they'd like to be when they grow up).
* Be where they are, and think out of the box.
* Aim for something out of the ordinary when designing a promotion for youngsters for youth, reality is boring; they go for things that are unreal, unusual and exciting.
* Remember there are basic principles that apply when developing promotions no matter what the age of the target audience (ie. In order to really excite somebody, you have to give them something that's really meaningful to them).
* Be aware of the differences between children and adults (ie. youth are constantly changing).
* Youth are the most cynical advertising audience that you can find. Trying to shove a brand down their throats with traditional mass-media campaigns will get you nowhere. You must be ingenious.
* Consider going underground - build grassroots awareness by establishing a presence for the brand at dance clubs and raves. Go to their environment don't try to drag youth kicking and screaming into yours.
* Respect their culture - use the key influencers in their world like DJs.
* If you want to appear cool in the eyes of this audience don't try to appear cool. They hate being patronized.
* Come up with a fun, irreverent piece of advertising that your audience can relate to.
* Develop an integrated campaign that appeals to the audience on different levels: the music they listen to, people they admire and the sense of fashion and style that makes them feel special in their own environment
* The key to communicating to "moving target" youth audience is to stay in touch with them and know what's on their minds. The only way to do that is to talk and listen to youth all the time.
* Avoid making assumptions - assumptions based on our own youth - it's very different for kids today. We must get out there and have current dialogue with the kids so that you know what they're thinking.
* Use peer-to-peer messaging to talk to youth - it's not adults talking down to youth, or trying to lecture youth, it's youth talking to youth. When youth are the actual carrier of the message, the message is received with a credibility and authenticity that youth will respond to. The message must come from a peer and not a parent.
* Use humour but it must be "their" humour, and not adult humour.
* Involve youth in the creation of the message. Youth appreciate being involved and being heard and taken seriously. They want to feel that their opinion and input counts. It does, but sometimes in our marketing world we just sit at our desks and think we know what kids want, when really we're way off.
* Don't try to spell out everything explicitly letting youth fill in the blanks is really helpful. Don't give away 100% of the message - just put the thought out there and let them draw the conclusion.
* Don't lecture: kids over the age of 10 will automatically resist any message that has the air of a lecture. Provide them with information and encourage them to think about it and make their own decisions.
* Involve youth emotionally - hit them at a gut level to get an emotional response. Whether it's laughter, a lump in the throat, or a feeling of nausea - you've got to get them to feel something.
* Be creative - It has to be as good if not better than the creative product for any other audience, or it simply won't capture their attention at all.
* Give away free products do product sampling at events.
* Make the product entertaining.
* Given their media consumption habits, don't commit the entire budget to a single media vehicle. Incorporate several different layers of media into a youth-targeted plan.
* Use more unconventional media such as wild postings and washroom ads. Spread the message around.
* Word of mouth and trends matter greatly to the 18-24 age group - build awareness on a grassroots level.
* Because young adults are busy, they tend to be selective about their media consumption. They are more likely to turn to local alternative weeklies than to daily newspapers, and they spend a lot of time online.
* Youth need to be constantly stimulated. We must continually keep things fresh for them, and change things often to keep them relevant, because they do get bored easily.
* If you want to master the art of youth marketing, you have to step out of your grown-up shoes, erase the landscape of the world as you know it, and learn to see things from a fresh perspective.
* Buying behaviours and brand loyalties are formed very early in life so get them while they are young.
* Don't try to sound like youth when speaking to them. Try to be relevant to them.
* Talking to youth in more specific age segments will drive home the message far more efficiently.
* Each age segment contains many different subgroups - each characterized by a distinct choice of music, clothes and other badges. When targeting these age segments, marketers must craft messages and select media with a view to hitting as many of the subgroups as possible.
* Create something that teens will relate to.
* When marketing to youngsters, it's important to speak to them in their own language this may mean going for extreme imagery or gross-out humour.
* Associate the product with something real.
* When setting up a store for youth: offer espresso and access to the Internet; build flexibility into the design; use graphics and interactive activities; develop an energetic environment; provide more than a house for merchandise - provide a unique and interactive hangout for youth; project lifestyle graphics and images of popular bands and teen idols that adapt according to quickly changing trends; use bright, flashy graphics so that it looks like it's in motion even when it's not; use quick-hit images with video and lighting to attract the short attention span of this generation; create a comfortable, inviting atmosphere; use subtle approaches to attract youth; lay out the store so that customers are presented with many options and lots of product information; create a browsing atmosphere; make sure youth are taken seriously and offered value; let the store be zoned and influenced by the world of entertainment; use theatrical lighting; present the store as a social gathering place; use an open-sell set up where customers are able to serve themselves rather than wait for busy salespersons; create an upbeat, inviting atmosphere; focus on customer involvement; use trendy music, videos, bright lighting and colorful products to create an upbeat, youthful atmosphere; and consider the added value of the great environment, service and visual marketing.
* Train staff for the store to be hands-off with customers; to answer youth questions and not come across like they are trying to sell them something; to act as information resources for shoppers; to be on hand to provide answers, without hovering; to act like the perfect waiter - magically appearing when needed; to focus on serving as product experts for customers rather than on closing sales quickly to earn commissions.
* Develop and market products that successfully attract both girls and boys. It's also possible to speak to both girls and boys with the same marketing message. To attract girls and boys in one message offer games that have "light" competition, a challenge, and a test of skills -- manual, physical, strategic.
* Don't homogenize a product that you'd like both boys and girls to buy, but give youth different ways to approach the same item let them see how their distinct interests and needs can be fulfilled.
* Use a marketing strategy based on entertainment-driven merchandising, a collectors' market, and fashion.
* Provide interactivity.
* Cyberspace is important, they may not replace brick stores, but are a support medium for retailers.
* Branding is more important than ever - be able to communicate the brand in a 10 second attention span; and articulate the uniqueness of the brand experience.
* Beware of over-saturation have a special appeal don't allow uniqueness to be diluted.
* Be honest and genuine and relevant.
Read Part 1 of the Research