Ypulse Sponsored Post: How iTunes Apps Are Revolutionizing The Way Brands Reach Teens
Posted by meredith on 05-26-2009
Today’s Ypulse Sponsored post is from Lauren Zaner (pictured below) of Fuse, anchor sponsor for this year’s Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup. This post is part of that sponsorship.
To learn more about Fuse Marketing and their unique approach to effectively reaching youth, be sure to catch Fuse founder Bill Carter and his session “Listen to Teens and Stop Wasting 50% of Your Marketing Budget” at the Mashup next week!
One App, Two App, Three App, Four: How iTunes Applications Are Revolutionizing The Way Brands Reach Teens
The one-billionth iTunes application was downloaded by a 13 year old. Although most likely a coincidence, it is very symbolic of the connection between teens, cell phones and mobile media players – particularly iPhones and the iPod Touch.
Now, I may be biased considering I call my iPhone “The Oracle,” but the numbers show that I’m not a lone ranger on this iPhone frontier. There are over 3 million iPhone users in the United States, 50% of which are under 30. That’s not counting the large population of iPod Touch users, which is estimated at over 10 million.
Let’s start from the top. Virtually all teenagers have cell phones, metaphorically surgically grafted to them, with email, internet, GPS, weather, games and music at their fingertips, not to mention the ability to actually make phone calls. They are listening to the latest tracks while playing some video-game-like app and waiting for a text back from their friends. This idea of an all-in-one device is a marketer’s dream! They are already spending a large majority of their free time on their phone, the most popular by far being the iPhone, why not incorporate branding and marketing into the mix?
The iTunes application store has become a hotbed of marketing potential, targeting the young generation who are no longer captivated by billboards and traditional media and advertising. They are too busy twittering and texting, and probably doing both from their phone. It’s like a one-stop shop, and as such, provides an endless realm of opportunity to get your brand or service in the face of this generation.
Companies are leveraging this hyperactivity in a multitude of apps – whether free or for sale; including Uniqlo’s Uniqlock, Chanel showcasing their latest fashion shows via a free app, Audi A4 Driving Challenge, North Face’s Snow Report and many more. The Lucky Magazine app allows users to not only browse shoes and bags from the most recent issue, but also check and see where the closest retailer is and even have the item put on hold. If I hadn’t already been a subscriber to the magazine, that would have certainly made me one. These companies have latched on to a branding opportunity connected to the most accessible and highly used piece of technology in every teenager’s hands.
Recent research conducted by Fuse has shown that teenagers rate the iTunes application store TV commercials as one of their favorites. It is becoming clear that iTunes apps, and the marketing approach behind the apps, are resonating with teens across all platforms. It is almost a guarantee, at some point, to hear a teenage conversation begin with “do you have ‘XYZ’ app?”
If you look at the variety of applications offered, it is somewhat surprising that more brands have yet to jump on the bandwagon. With the possibility of Apple creating a Verizon version of the iPhone in the future, it is clear that they are quickly taking over the cellular device world. And apps are no bench-warmer in that game. iPhones and iPod Touch go beyond functionality and increase a user’s ability to personalize and exercise creativity; be it through their homepage photo, the ability to blog and upload photos right from the phone, or even just the exterior casing.
The key with where iTunes applications, and iPhones and the iPod Touch, will win out among Gen Y is this all-encompassing approach. Beyond the ability to personalize and get creative, users can experience a brand without it feeling invasive or unnatural.
Applications allow a brand to do something a little more interactive, engaging, and fun – and in the end hooking consumers. Teens aren’t interested in the typical advertising rigmarole or in-your-face branding. Give them an experience with a brand, and you are far more likely to truly connect with them. Get them to play your video game or surf your products directly on their phone, and the brand is far more likely to stick with them once the phone is shut off (assuming it ever is).
Prior to the inception of the iPhone and iTunes apps, 45% of teens said that having a cell phone is the key to their social lives. Enter the iPhone and apps, and the sky’s the limit to what those numbers are reaching now. It’s no wonder brands are allocating budgets in an effort to jump on the apps train… in hopes of reaching teens via their “third arm.”
More on Fuse
Fuse is a leading youth marketing agency that connects brands with youth through sports, music, fashion and other relevant youth cultural interests. Fuse strives to help brands reach a mass audience while maintaining credibility with key influencers.
For more coverage of the latest trends and developments in mobile technology for youth, check out the Ypulse Mobile Channel.
Categorized under: 2009 Mashup, Mobile, Teens