By Nikki Baird, in cooperation with RetailWire
12/11/2007
Each business morning on RetailWire.com, retailing execs get plugged in to the latest industry news and issues with key insights from a "BrainTrust" of retail industry experts. Here are excerpts from one of these unique RetailWire online Discussions, along with results from the RetailWire Instant Poll.
Tweens Are Going Mobile
By George Anderson, Editor-in-Chief, RetailWire
A large number of tweens, kids between the ages of eight and 12, own mobile phones and make extensive use of them for social interactions, according to a new report released by The Nielsen Company.
The study, Kids on the Go: Mobile Usage by U.S. Teens and Tweens, reports that 35 percent of tweens now own a mobile phone and use them for a variety of activities such as text messaging, surfing the internet and downloading music and video in addition to making voice calls.
Nielsen found that tweens are using mobile phones at home to download ring tones, music, movies and games.
Fifty-eight percent of tweens who used their phones to download a movie did so at home. Sixty-four percent who downloaded music also did so while at home.
"Tweens use their mobile phones, and media in general, in very unique and important ways," said Jeff Herrmann, vp of mobile media for Nielsen Mobile, in a press release. "Marketers and media executives need to understand these 'digital natives' as they mature and reshape the way we all think about new and traditional media."
Discussion Question: Do you see tweens using mobile devices in unique ways when compared to other age segments of the population? How will these "digital natives" reshape retail marketing as they mature? How long do you think it will be before the impact is seen in terms of marketing media mix, types of messaging, etc.?
RetailWire Instant Poll Results:
RetailWire BrainTrust Comments:
OMG! My son is almost a tween! What a terrifying thought (he's 6).
He reminds me every day exactly how differently he views the world. He has a basic expectation that everything--EVERYTHING--is "on demand." Music, TV, movies, games, all of it. Just yesterday I had to explain to him that I couldn't make his new favorite song play on the radio just because he wanted to hear it, and then I had to explain about ads on the radio. He responded, "Oh, OK. Can I bring my iPod in the car?" As soon as he and his friends figure out messaging (whether text or IM) or better/worse yet, video chat or Skype or some alternative (since he can barely read, let alone type), his expectations for "on demand" will expand to include talking to anyone he wants to at any time.
The lesson for brands? Remember, he is only 6, yet already he completely rejects advertising. He is unwilling to have his content interrupted by ads, but he will tolerate "in line" advertising (like banner ads when he's playing a Diego game online). He expects instant gratification--and when they said generations X and Y had expectations for instant gratification, they had no idea what they were talking about. If you can't deliver what he expects right away, he'll drop you in a heartbeat.
For phones in particular, that means mobile advertising will have to tread very carefully--more in the realm of branded services (like P&G's Vicks brand SMS with health-related weather alerts) than in traditional advertising messages, which will be perceived as an interruption. Success in reaching this next gen consumer will come from helping them connect, and providing them useful services and entertainment.
I have the rare privilege to see this oh so digital generation grow up right before my eyes, and I can't stress enough, they won't be your mom's consumer in any way, shape, or form. This isn't about the next generation rebelling against the norms of the generation before. This is about new capabilities that are native to them in ways that will never be native to us, thanks to technology.
- Nikki Baird, Managing Partner, RSR Research
Verizon's recent announcement that it's moving to an "open software" business model looks like a response to Google's move into the business, and it has important implications for teens' and tweens' cell phone usage. The cell phone is evolving rapidly into a hand-held computer and you can expect to see ideas like the iPhone becoming more widespread and affordable.
As these changes in technology and business model occur, teens and tweens are the audiences with the greatest comfort level with new uses for their phones. They will also be responsive to new advertising media on their cell phones that will help keep the overall costs of usage (airtime and media minutes) affordable on their limited budgets (or their parents' willingness to pay). In five years, teens and tweens (and grownups) will look back at today's phone technology as something comparatively primitive.
- Richard Seesel, Principal , Retailing In Focus LLC
As Tweens age, their heavy mobile phone use will continue, and they'll remain open to a greater variety of uses. The key for marketers: reaching these folks without just adding to the spam, clutter, and useless low quality of most advertising. The great opportunity: give them free cell phones and free unlimited usage in return for owning the ad rights. Tweens have more time than money and if it's packaged right (with a prestige brand, such as Disney or another movie company or a sports team or a hip retailer such as Virgin or Aeropostale) they'll eagerly dump their Verizon, Sprint, AT+T, and T-Mobile subscriptions. The brand owner could sell the unused ad time profitably to noncompeting brands. There's no reason a Virgin phone subscription couldn't be free, with ads from Old Navy, McDonald's and Dell.
- Mark Lilien, Consultant, Retail Technology Group
Read the entire story and RetailWire discussion at:
http://www.retailwire.com/Discussions/Sngl_Discussion.cfm/12609
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