As the mobile web reaches maturity, major brands are scrambling to stake their claim on the new frontier. Targeting the teen audience is a logical step; they are the fastest to adopt new mobile technologies, and the immediacy of the mobile web is an intrinsic part of their culture. However, the marketer venturing into the mobile space to pursue this demographic must be careful. Success depends on an understanding of how teens want to be spoken to, as well as how they will perceive the message. Failure is often very costly, and controversy is quite public given the media attention focused on the topic. The time is right, the rewards are great, but the risk is real.
We'll explore the teen market and how their use of mobile technologies shapes a pragmatic approach to reaching them with a positive, resonant message.
Surly, savvy and sophisticated
The first thing to discuss is teenagers themselves. In some ways, they are a dream demographic; is there anything better than a group of potential buyers who are informed, bestowed and besotted with money from their parents and who consume technology and goods avidly? In other ways, however, reaching this group can be extremely difficult. It's not easy to reach people in the throes of anti-establishment, anti-adult and anti-corporate brand rebellion. Teenagers are a very tough audience, and a successful mobile campaign has to reach them in the right place, at the right time, in the right way.
They are connoisseurs of media consumption and have been raised in a world of rapid technological change. Accordingly, teenagers definitely have strong opinions that could impact how a mobile campaign is rolled out and adopted by end users. One challenge is how to speak to this audience by delivering a brand message on a screen the size of passport photo. Choosing the correct voice is essential, as teens will know when they are being pandered to, and they won't like it.
When coming up with terminology, such as navigation nomenclature, check in with Urban Dictionary to make sure that the word does not have alternative meanings.
Recently a major brand on the verge of releasing a mobile application had to rename key functionality because the terminology it had innocently selected was rife with lascivious connotations. It is best to make sure that the copy and content on the mobile application is consistent with the brand and does not try to use any teen-speak or lingo.
On-target brand messaging, thematically consistent with other channels, will be well received by the audience. In some recent usability testing for a mobile site, teenagers liked seeing a major consumer brand subtly placed on the screen.
Author note: Evan Gerber is a senior experience design consultant at Molecular. Read full bio.