Marketing to Teens: Should Twitter Be in the Mix?

Posted by: Margaret Johnson, Co-Founder and President Aug 12, 2009 0 Comments

As the mother of two teenagers, I pay close attention to who’s marketing to my teens, how they’re doing it, and how my teens are responding. And like any parent, I like to know what my kids are up to online.

One thing they’re not doing much of online is tweeting. This trend in my household is supported by new Neilsen figures that show that Twitter’s growth is not being fueled by teens; only 16% of Twitter users are under 25.

So why aren’t teens tweeting with the enthusiasm of, say, my husband Scott? The folks at Mashable have some thoughts on this. Teens aren’t tweeting because they care more about their social spheres than about the issues many Twitter users are writing about. I would agree; my kids are too busy posting Facebook updates and texting their friends to bother with Twitter. Although my daughter sporadically uses Twitter, it’s to connect with people she already knows as opposed to following people she doesn’t or gathering followers who don’t know her.

So what do teens need if they’re going to keep up with texting, Facebook, and MySpace? Cool (read: expensive) new phones. New research claims that 18% of young adults (ages 18 – 34) cite social media features as the most important factor when deciding what phone to buy. And while my kids aren’t in that age bracket just yet, they’re not immune to cell phone commercials. Both have LG phones for texting and an iPod touch for the Facebook application—and they want phones that can do both.

The lesson to be learned here? When marketing to teens, make sure you’re reaching them through cell phones and social networks. But for now, at least, put some serious thought into whether or not Twitter will yield results for you.

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Margaret Johnson

Co-Founder and President

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