I got a couple of interesting comments via email earlier this week when I posted another blog's response to the BrandWeek article about teens and brand loyalty. Ypulse reader Atoosa wrote:

re: the importance of the brand. I mean…of course it's important - but the reason it's important is because of the product. So often, marketers think that what they do is the most important thing. But if the R&D people or content creators have it wrong a big brand will take a stumble or a brand with great marketing will never take off.

As a matter of fact, my friend Marc (from Reason) and his partner Tim just wrote this article for Forbes.com - thought you would find it interesting.

Ypulse reader Sean wrote:

Now of course I'm not a teen (by a long shot!), and I've consciously analyzed my behavior in regard to brands and marketing targeted to me… but this is an argument that I constantly have with my friends, so your post hit home. My friends accuse me of being an ultra-consumer, driven by brands that control me. But I consciously choose products and services because I think they are the best for my purposes…or simply because I LIKE them. If it so happens that those things are produced by a name brand, they give me no end of grief. I buy these things IN SPITE OF the fact that they are made by Apple, Audi, Nike, Whoever…

Ypulse reader Izzy just postedthis insightful comment in response to Chet's coverage of What Teens Want creating psychographics for different types of marketers trying to reach youth. I love that she turned the tables created personaes for the marketers instead of teens:

Ya know… this got me day-dream-pondering…

Perhaps marketing to youth is like an adult attending a high school dance. There seem to be four types of adults:

1. The Cool adult who stands around the edge, typically a teach who HAS to be there, but doesn't want to (think Mr. Coolson from "Never Been Kissed")– the type of marketing that doesn't try to be anything other than what it is, and just tries to exist with a chill demenor in a young world.

2. The Dad Dance Adult — the kind that comes in, busts out some weird/non-cool moves, thinks they're "hip" for jumping into the dance foray… but hasn't noticed the way the high schoolers are edging away from them and rolling their eyes.

3. The Alternative Geek Adult — like the dad-dance, this adult comes in, with the outdated hip vibe, but their dance is soooo hilarious/ ridiculous that it actually surpasses the "lame" into "so lame its awesome" mode– like a lot of the "not supposed to be funny but is" viral content (ie Britney Spear's various UGC campaigns, especially the Midnight Fantasy perfume one).

4. The "Make Room for the Holy Spirit" adult (think of the teacher in "Grease" that makes slow/dirty dancing couples back away) who is more or less making "responsible statement" ads or warnings or adults trying to lecture/market to/at high schoolers. This reminds me of the ads that are in-your-face about something responsible (payments, loans, responsible behavior) that are noticed then are forgotten almost the moment they go away.

Keep the comments and feedback coming!

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