are doing to make it better.
Young people want to have fun,
reflected in their YOLO (You
Only Live Once) attitude. Brands
can benefit from this by using
experiential marketing to project
a fun brand image and involve the
youth in new product development
and co-creation.
Social networking, today’s word
of mouth, is essential when you’re
selling to the youth. Social media
allows brands to become part of the
conversation and one of the best
ways to secure a long-term, ongoing
relationship with young people is to
start listening (rather than talking).
There isn’t huge loyalty to particular
social networks though. For them, a
social network is like clubbing - you
go there with your friends so long as
it’s cool.
The digital playground of the youth
like YouTube, Google, Skype and
Wikipedia, set a high benchmark in IT
for other brands, so don’t disappoint
them with the bad use of tech.
And don’t forget value! Young
Africans are becoming increasingly
brand conscious, but with a limited
budget, they want value! They look
for a balance between good quality
and affordability.
Loyalty programs, instant prizes
and promotions are big! But be
transparent and don’t make claims
and promises you can’t live up to.
There are no hard and fast rules
about youth marketing in Africa.
Teens are constantly shifting
in preference and attention, so
marketers need to stay relevant and
keep up with the trends.
Brands need to be exciting to
capture their short attention span;
because what is cool can change
overnight.
And they don’t want brands to
just sell, they want brands to
entertain and inspire them by being
interesting or funny or relevant or
cool or different.
Be predictable or boring and you
will lose their attention. The truly
successful brand will give them
things they don’t even know they
want yet!
And finally, although the internet
has changed the game of advertising,
the big idea is still key to great
advertising no matter the generation.
A great idea will always sell and
connect. Everything else is really
about the mechanics of ad delivery
and how to engage with the idea!
Soumya Saklani is the MD for
Millward Brown Sub Saharan Africa,
and is responsible for the Ghana,
Nigeria and Kenya offices. He began
his career in research in early 90’s
and was part of the original team
of researchers that started Millward
Brown in Asia in 1997. He has gained
significant exposure and experience in
supporting clients in emerging markets
to help them build stronger brands and
communications. You can commune
with him via mail at: Soumya.
[email protected]
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