Web marketing: 4 things to know about teenagers

Marketing is all about finding the right way to connect with an audience and understanding them on every possible level; who they are, what they like, where they live and how they spend their time. Not only is it about understanding your audience, but it’s also about knowing how to connect with them. There are many channels to locate and connect with different groups of people, but what about the elusive cohort of teenagers?

Marketing to teenagers may seem like a challenge, as their modes and emotions changes like the tides with the wind. However, if you’re looking for ways to make your business relevant, dynamic and fresh, then learning how to reach teenagers is your best bet. We’re going to discuss what you need to know when targeting teenagers as well as the best methods to do so.

Web marketing: 4 things to know about teenagers

Some important facts about teenagers habits

When it comes to marketing to teenagers, you’ll need to start thinking about things in terms of demographics and this includes things such as gender, socioeconomic status, exact age, location and so forth. However, when it comes to online marketing, some of these attributes don’t play as much of a role as they used to in more traditional marketing practices. Instead of focusing on demographics alone, you might consider grouping teens based on behaviour insights instead, these could include the following:

• Teens are obsessed with sharing information, personal narratives and images via social media;
• Teens look for real-time content;
• Teens want to both share and uncover information;
• Teens are looking for ways to connect and be involved with others;
• Teens care about what people think of them, their behaviour and their belief. 

As compared with millennials or adults, teenagers need a lot of attention and affirmation. These are aspects you need to address when strategizing a marketing plan for targeting them. Adjust your efforts to address a few of the points mentioned above as well as finding ways to make your business or products seem as exciting and fresh.  

1- Keep up with trends

It’ll be impossible for you to engage with an audience of teenagers if you aren’t aware of what’s on-trend. As mentioned above, teenagers know what’s happening in the world and they’re engaging with it all the time, in real-time. In order to capitalize on the teenage target market, you need to stay on top of trends as well as what’s happening on a pop-cultural level.

Additionally, teenagers are most comfortable with things they’re familiar with, and so investing some time into understanding what’s happening in pop culture and channelling this into your marketing strategies offers a way to engage on the level of the teenager.

It’s worth mentioning that you shouldn’t try to employ current trends in your marketing strategy just for the sake of it. Incorporating slang or references that you think a teenager may use will come across as tacky and forced. Try to avoid over-saturating marketing content with obvious hashtags, images of popular celebrities or silly slang. This will appear as an obvious attempt to appeal to this market. It’s important to remember that teenagers aren’t stupid, in fact, quite the opposite.

2- Know what they’re using

When marketing to teenagers, it’s crucial to know what they’re up to online and this includes getting familiar with websites and apps that they’re using. Obviously, websites that are trending for teenagers will be much different from adults. Teenagers are obsessed with being in constant communication with their friends and this means that apps such as Facebook Messenger and Snapchat are still very popular.

YouTube is another favourite among teens, as they’re very interested in video content as well as music. Teenagers are not so much interested in apps or websites that simply communicate or offload information. Instead, they’re looking for an element of interactivity or communication ability.

With this knowledge about what teens are doing online, you could try and find ways to integrate interactivity into your website or app. Without this, they may lose interest.

3- Find ways for your content to resonate with teens

Now that you know a little bit more about how teenagers operate and where their interests lie, it’s important for you to find ways for your content to resonate with them. When starting to design a marketing campaign, find techniques that will resonate with teenagers. Some surefire ways to do this could be to create content that has some of the following criteria:

• Create content that asks for real-time feedback;
• Create content that is digestible and shareable;
• Create content that touches on important issues or is in line with current trends in pop culture;
• Create content that encourages independent thought;
• Create content that is honest.

Make sure once you’ve come up with an outline for a marketing campaign, that you use a platform like Facebook to engage with teens first. Facebook remains a favourite among teens and allows for free marketing opportunities. YouTube is another excellent channel to reach out to teenagers. Try creating a thoughtful video, in line with teen issues while also being trendy.

4- Take the teenager income into account

Let’s be real, most teens don’t have their own source of income. Even the savviest of teens likely won’t have the funds to support expensive products or services. Thus, since most teenagers don’t have a steady income, it’s important to price your products or services accordingly. Of course, it can’t be denied that some teenagers will have the ability to pull funds from their parent's wallet.

However, since independence is a definite sign of their existence, more often than not they’ll be using their own money to make purchases. Be mindful of your pricing strategies and offer incentives. If they see that you’re taking their budget into account, they’ll feel like you care about them and be more open to your business.

5- Engage through branding

Branding is essential when it comes to catching as well as keeping the attention of teenagers. Consumers pay attention to logos and branding in place of many aspects of a business. Consider how to use colour schemes, font, images and use these to connect with your target audience and in this case, teenagers.

Do your research and find brands in your market that are popular with teens. Of course, don’t copy design and branding from popular products or companies, but do take note of what they’re doing right to engage with teenagers.