Yesterday I stopped by the Kidscreen Summit (a conference that skews slightly younger than Ypulse events — since we cover ages 8-24, but has a handful of tween-centric sessions) here in New York and came away with a serious case of the warm fuzzies. Not just because the sessions I attended ("Don't Forget the 8-12s" "Hot on the Trail of Cool") had quite a few valuable nuggets that I'm looking forward to dropping into future posts, but also because all day long I kept hearing panelists and speakers marveling over the kids they'd been dealing with in their research– both for their savvy ways with technology (as you'd expect), as well as for their sensibilities (the word "wholesome" came up more than once), and aspirations (on both a personal and global level). And as each one backed up these claims with stats and anecdotal evidence, it was hard not to be touched by a general sense of awe..

Don't Forget the 8-12s
The Basics. A quick refresher course in the demo reminded us that an 8 year old and a 12 year old are developmentally (physically, emotionally, cognitively) worlds apart. This translates to a difference in the way they care for their appearance (fun colors, yummy smells vs. spa-type products for girls), relate to their parents (temper tantrums vs. door slamming) and most relevant to this conference play (starting card collections/Webkinz-type online activity vs. strategy games/social sites like MySpace and Facebook) and entertain themselves (superhero-based fantasy vs. real-world-hero-based fantasy).

Tween Trends. Recent studies show an increasingly strong bond between parents and their tweens (the rise of co-viewing televisions shows), kid activism (wanting to make the world a better place) and a less encouraging upswing in anxiety at a younger age with 11-12s worrying about doing well in school, going on their first date, etc. Not surprisingly, girls especially struggle with self-esteem).

Tween entertainment. According to this panel the future is high content, low emotional drama. One panelist firmly insisted that even older kids would generally "prefer wholesome to edgy," citing shows like Nickelodeon's "Zoey 101″ that have actually been coming in around #2 or #3 among 13 to 17 year olds (it's #1 with 6-11s). This reminded me of something I heard back at our Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup East where a panelist pointed out that shows like "Gossip Girl" are Gen X's conception of what Y wants. And while this doesn't mean they won't watch those edgier shows, it does beg the question of what else they'll watch.

Hot On the Trail of Cool
The Economy. Younger teens were not only acutely aware of the issues with the economy, but actively concerned with how their personal needs affected their parents' situation (many interviewed expressed the desire to "not be a burden"). While they weren't stopping spending altogether, they were being more selective. However, for items other than clothes this did not translate to the cheapest item, but rather the most innovative (i.e. Apple products, Wii console,etc.)

The Obama Effect. Thanks to Obama "activism is the new status symbol" and more high school and college students are expressing a short term desire to dabble in "voluntourism" and community service, and long term goals of careers that will help others and the world at large. They're also choosing products that they can "believe in" like American Apparel clothing (apparently the sleaze issue doesn't factor in).

The Open Source Mindset. As digital natives when tweens and teens seek out information online they pursue non-linear multi-linked paths (whereas digital immigrants look to consult one authoritative source). For younger teens , in particular, visual search is overtaking keywords (one 13 year old said, "YouTube is basically my Google now.") Entertainment-wise as we've covered extensively on Ypulse before, the viewing model for television shows has been revolutionized by the internet (see "Gossip Girl" on iTunes), as has the record industry (duh). The speaker pointed towards Lil' Wayne as a model for artists with his strategy of releasing tracks for free online and lending guest vocals to other more popular artists prior to his album's release.

Niche Markets To Watch. Skate culture (Vans Warped Tour, Bam Margera) has jumped significantly in popularity among teen boys with skaters like Paul Rodriguez climbing the ranks of favorite athletes. Street art (Banksy, Shepard Fairey) has become increasingly mainstream (Fairey's portrait of Obama is hanging in the National Gallery, teens learn about Banksy from his book at Urban Outfitters). Finally, it should come as no surprise that vampire fiction like "Twilight" has brought on a pronounced interest in that good ole goth, especially the subset of the steampunk aesthetic (Victorian culture with a futuristic twist) featuring goggles, vest and gear patterns.

Takeaways
In this clear time of crisis, it's a relief to hear that the next generation is both altruistic and self-aware. The flip side, however, to this consciousness is an increase in anxiety about everything from personal success, to their parents' economic security to the setting the entire world back on the right track. On the bright side their general attitude towards these challenges is an optimistic one (as if you didn't see that coming).

For more coverage of the tween space, check out the Ypulse Tweens Channel, sponsored by the Tween Tribune.

Categorized under: Tweens

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