Where did all the teens go?

One of the most popular social media sites are asking themselves where did the teenage demographic go? They have seen a decrease in users from the second to third quarters of 2013. Facebook conducted research to determine and finalize why this has been happening. They dropped from the second to third quarter with participation and activity within the teen category.

They have determined that this target has moved onto other mobile apps such as: Vine, Instagram, Snapchat, Foursquare and more. Vine ownedby Twitter has grown 639% in the last quarter according to a research group. The application SnapChat has been proven more popular then LinkedIn and Vine among this target market.

Overall this demographic has switched over to a mobile device rather than a computer or laptop. Facebook messenger app has seen more growth then Facebook itself. What can Facebook do to regain the teen’s attention?

From my own experience, I have the majority of the apps mentioned above and the reason I choose to Snapchat someone or Instagram is because it is fast, efficient and simple. It has one aspect you can do, for example those who don’t know Instagram is a photosharing application. You can put filters or crop pictures with captions…that’s it. You scroll through your news feed to see what other people have been posting and may even comment or like on one. SnapChat is a photo sharing application as well but with a twist! You take a photo and send it to the contacts you wish to see it for a specific amount of designated time. Once the person you sent it to opens the “snap” the time counts down until it hits zero which is when the picture disappears for good. The contact can screen shot the picture which then would be saved to their phone but at that point you will be notified who screen shot it.

 Facebook embodies many types of communication. It not only allows you to share, like and comment on photos but incorporates Twitter with being able to update statuses and Foursquare by checking into current locations. It’s a hub to do everything. Facebook can use this to their advantage. Who wants to have multiple apps doing multiple things when you do it all in one place? Teens are starting to put Facebook on the backburner. Facebook needs to show the easiness of sharing information or come up with a new way to communicate that these other apps don’t have.

They Shoot They Score! Journal Entry

Every canadian knows that you should either be a super fan of hockey or pretend you are when asked. We are very passionate about this traditional sport (majority during the season). "Hockey is a source of personal or collective pride in Canada." What better way to engage a bunch of canadians then using this leverage of hockey?! If your demographic is males between the ages 19 to 35 and enjoys to watch or participate in sports within Canada, why not use hockey!

Using hockey to their advantage is exactly what Molson Coors Canada has done. The new campaign is themed "Anything for hockey." It all relates back to how far would a canadian go for the sport. It aired its first spot "The Hockey Sacrifice" during one of the most popular rivals in hockey, the Leafs vs. Montreal game. The call to action at the end "tell us what you would do for hockey" is what got the buzz going on social media mediums as well. Consumers were told to use the hashtag #anythingforhockey. They wanted to have digital and social channels more then they have had before. The goal is to create a constant conversation around hockey with Molson as the leader. "Hockey represents an extremely important pillar of our strategy for the brand."

Creating a conversation on social media will gain more attention for the brand. It will also increase its influencing status and twitter followers/participation. People will want to keep tabs on what is being said or what has happened with this campaign. They made this campaign based on a personal level with canadians. Its a brilliant way to reach that target market. This could also relate back to my previous blog about multi-channel use. Using multiple channels is what Molson Coors Canada is doing. They have realized the power and importance of social media and want to use it in a "bigger way then ever."

Appealing to the Generation

Link it all together!

Being in the mobile, technology savvy generation I can back up that while watching a show, I have my laptop open and my phone beside me. During boring parts of the show, I search my Twitter feed online or read threw the latest gossip on Miley Cyrus. In between explicit pictures of Miley and updating my status I am replying to a text or pinning something to my Pinterest account on my mobile. Having multiple screens at home is becoming more popular. People use each device for different things but they all can be used for one single purpose, to advertise.

"From smartphones and tablets to laptops and television, 90% of all media interactions today are screen-based"

Using multi-screen advertising links all devices together by having the same idea throughout different tech formats. A website would have a different layout then a mobile site, just like an ad on TV would be different then one on a website.

Some companies are now having the same interaction between all three components. Businesses such as Impact Engine, who claim to be the leading rich media platform, announced the completion of its HTML"Multi-Screen" ad conversion initiative. This allows companies to unify all the mediums at a valuable price. For example shows are now asking people to tweet to cast members or for their opinion on the show and what they want to see next. They may have a contest with a key word asking to go to the website and tweet it out for the chance for a prize.

This generation people are likely to have multiple devices at the ready, which creates opportunity for interaction. They also have been purchasing on different devices. The mobile phone is one of those devices that people are now using to shop directly while in store  “65 percent of online searches began on a smartphone”.

Because people using these devices may be on the go its important to have good content and easy navigation to where you want them to go. "You should check this out" or "Have you seen" are ways to lead consumers in the direction you want. Realizing whom your target is on each device then relating and designing your site to accommodate them will prove to higher results. Keeping your sites up to date and relevant will benefit you when your customer can quickly get to where they want to go. Using Search Optimization will keep you at the top of consumers list within search engines making you the first option to go too. Not only do you want to strive to be first but to take up the whole page.

   Click here to see five distinct profiles ofmulti-channel shoppers.