If you want to communicate with teens and their pre-pubescent counterparts, otherwise known as tweens, you need an expert -- and that doesn't mean a parent. Teen and tween virtual worlds -- and the people who create, monitor and brand on them -- offer a direct, immersive channel for communicating with this unpredictable demographic.
Sites like Gaia Online, Habbo, Whyville, Zwinky and Stardoll have made a science of studying the habits and interests of 9- to 19-year-olds, and they report that their audience is adept at tuning out the old forms of media that don't speak directly to what they want. "Whether it's the tone or style or tastes, you have to be up to speed," says Matt Diamond, CEO of Alloy Media + Marketing, a partner of Meez and IAC-owned virtual worlds Zwinky. "You have to reflect what is going on out there."
Virtual worlds get constant feedback, Diamond adds, and their users insist on controlling their choices, whether it's watching a movie trailer or entering a branded boutique. Thus, brands have to work with what virtual worlds have to offer instead of dictating how they play on a site. On the other hand, virtual worlds have proliferated to the extent that brands can target any niche. Do you have artsy 12- to 17-year-olds in your sights? Want to connect with pop culture sophisticates too young to go to the movies by themselves? What about car enthusiasts who are more interested in fantastic extras than how many miles to the gallon they get? There's a good chance that a certain virtual world can help you connect.
"We spend a lot of time and money studying what our users are interested in, what do they watch, what music do they listen to," says Jeremy Monroe, director of marketing and business development for Habbo North America. "We use that research to approach brands proactively or filter brands that come through." Habbo, where users occupy a high-rise hotel, play games and obsessively collect furniture for their "rooms," describes itself as a site for creative self-expression. Like most virtual worlds for this age range, Habbo users design avatars from an almost endless menu of hairstyles and clothes and then "walk" around their world, talking to other users or participating in activities created by the site.
With 32 localized sites around the world and, as of this month, a mind-boggling 111 million registered users (MySpace claimed to have 110 million active users early this year), Habbo has run campaigns for Target, WWE, High School Musical 2 and Paramount. Late last year, Target threw a party there with BMX rider Mat Hoffman as the guest of honor. Limited edition virtual couches bearing the brand's bull's-eye mark were also sold on the site.
For Paramount's "The Spiderwick Chronicles," Habbo recreated furniture from the movie that users could collect. The site also created group pages that users could join as goblin or fairy fans. "If we're talking about someone bringing in their IP, and if users like it, there's a deep level of engagement," Monroe says.
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