teen tales

My closet friend David, who is such a good friend he not only read my blog but also posted a comment, asked what my observations about teens. So here you go...

I posted a comment on Facebook and Twitter a couple weeks ago. It said…

“watching my kids watching American Idol on DVR. They are loving it as I silently freak out as they fast forward through commercials”. I received a lot of comments. They were very sympathetic. They understood my anxiety, more importantly they knew it was justifiable. The media revolution is unavoidable.

My friend Jamie told me a story about her 15 year old daughter who when realizing she forgot to DVR “The Apprentice” wasn’t even slightly flustered. She grabbed her laptop, went to her room and logged on to Hulu. Problem solved.

I have spent the last week with my teenage nephew and nieces. They are gamers, bloggers, and web surfers. They are married to technology. They like brands but not commercials. My niece Jessica expressed concern for my future.

A few months back I drove a babysitter home. I asked if she DVR TV shows or watched live. She predominantly DVR’s. Too much homework. I followed up “Do you ever stop for the commercials?”.

She thought for a moment, being sure not to offend me “Sometimes, I guess”.

“Which ones?” I asked. Again, she paused. “The good ones”

I have a lot of these tales. It tells me kids are content junkies. They crave it from whatever source they can get it. They want it to be quality. They want it shareable. And mostly they want to immediate and uninterrupted. They respond to effective branding be it Shaquille O’Neal or Coca Cola. Effective branding to me is giving the viewer/consumer something of value in return for their time. Providing this fair value proposition will earn loyalties. As content providers and filmmakers we need persuade our clients to fund more relevant branding to remain relevant.