A closer look at our top six youth audiences – the ones to watch

A few weeks ago, we introduced you to six types of youth audiences we believe will be influencing products and brands more than ever. This week I want to go into more detail on our first two groups, TechnoTykes and New Libertarians… here’s the headline description and how we can engage with them.

TechnoTykes

Digital natives from early childhood, TechnoTykes are avid consumers of news and reviews and are early adopters of technology.  Ambitious, curious and stylish but not shallow, they prioritise quality, functionality and value over fashion and brands.  Their online status in their own communities matters and they are comfortable in their own company but they lead active social lives.  Privacy is a key concern, and they have a strong sense of self, seeking business, rather than celebrity success. They spend the most on computer games and save the least, are the most likely to use social media to learn and are the 2^nd most likely group to have an iPhone.

How we might engage them

• Invite them inside the product, show them how it works and give them VIP access to sneak previews and inside intelligence.
• Challenge them to improve it and enable their collaboration, through hackathons, writing reviews and road-testing beta versions.
• Create learning opportunities, formal and informal, to boost their guru credentials, and give them qualifications they can display.
• Make products (or marketing campaigns) ‘playable’.  Gamify them.
• Emphasise the innovation, not just technically but as a smart way to solve social problems.
• Don’t invade their privacy, let them engage alone as well as part of a group.

New Libertarians

Independent, open-minded and with strong views on the environment, ethics and business, New Libertarians love to socialise, learn, travel and have new experiences, taking control of their own lives from an early age.  Ambitious and self-motivated, with high self-esteem, they are secure, confident and comfortable applying a common-sense logic to their lives. They prioritise sexual freedom the highest of all the audiences and spend the most on going out, snacks and travel. They feel the safest giving their personal details online.

How we might engage them

• Show how the product will give them independence, freedom and self-sufficiency.  Dial up their personal responsibility and the benefits and risks to them individually.
• Show how the product will help them reach their goals and aspirations.  They have a plan.
• Don’t tell them what to think, or how to feel – ask their opinion and let them make up their own mind.
• Appeal to their cosmopolitan nature and wide horizons.  Show the product in other contexts and cultures.
• Emphasise the product’s mobility and flexibility to fit with their lifestyle.
• Dial up the common-sense, they are logical types and don’t like mind games.

Picture credit: ciokka via Flickr.