Five Must-Know Facts About 12-24 Year Old Listeners

In what appears to be the largest rise in population since the baby boomers, the 12-24 year-old demographic is an alluring group of prosperous consumers. PBS Frontline has reported that the 33-million teenage market segment is worth over $150 billion per year, as opposed to $112.5 billion dollars in 2003. In 2006, American teens spent over $100 billion, and their parents spent $50 billion (mostly on electronics) due to the influence of their children. By 2011, the teen market is estimated to surpass $200 billion.

It's no surprise that marketers have become enchanted with 12-24 year-old consumers, and there is no question that radio must be able to acquire and retain this demo if the industry is to remain competitive in ad sales. National advertisers who have traditionally marketed on TV, newspaper, and radio are now integrating online video and social networking into their plans, and advertising dollars are getting stretched.

The 12-24 demo is important to radio. For some stations, 18-24 year-olds drive a significant controlling share of their 18-49 year-old rankers, making it important to win with 18-24s if they intend to win overall. Yet, younger listeners appear to be leaving radio. In the Fall of 1998, Arbitron reported that 95% of 12-17 year-olds and 96% of 18-24s listened to radio for at least 15 minutes in an average week. In Winter of 2007, 90% of 12-17 year-olds and 93% of 18-24s listened to radio in an average week.

Therefore, here are five must-know facts about the 12-24 audience and how they use radio:

1. You are speaking to "Generation Multi-task."

   Seldom are 12-24 year-old consumers focused on one task at a time. This is a generation of people accustomed to instant messaging, cell phones, text messages, e-mail and digital music. Your radio station is one of many items on a 12-24's "mental dashboard." Decisions are made quickly in a 12-24's brain as to what to focus on, and irrelevance will not be tolerated. Personalities must get to the point quickly to avoid being tuned out.

2. Boredom = Enemy

   Brandweek Magazine reported that in a survey among teens, 19% said the primary reason for changing a brand was boredom. Your radio station must constantly evolve to keep 12-24's engaged. If 12-24 year-old listeners are important to your station, use caution with elements that could become cliché and predictable. Don't repeat the same promotions unless you have added some twists in the execution. Surprise is good when it comes to keeping the interest and attention of loyal listeners.

3. One in four will switch if a brand becomes too popular.

   According to Brandweek's survey among teens, 25% would switch brands if they came to believe that it was "too popular." This is one of many reasons to avoid positioning that touts your station as the "biggest," "best," or "#1" at anything. Not only do most listeners not believe the boastful claims, but among those who do believe the claim, it may be a deterrent to listening. It is advantageous to hold the "underdog" position.

4. Interaction is expected.

   It's no longer just a "good idea" to allow listeners to participate in crafting their listening experience - it is essential to your survival with the 12-24 year-old audience. This audience expects the opportunity to collaborate with you in creating their entertainment experience. MTV does an exemplary job of creating an "interactive" brand in a variety of ways. Their website and mobile phone promotions allow viewers more meaningful and instrumental access to the programming on MTV. They can interact with other viewers, download ringtones, audition for shows and download behind-the-scenes footage. Use your website to create an interactive experience, where listeners can impact what happens on the air.

5. Authenticity is key.

   The 12-24 year-old demo is comprised of children of the heavily-targeted baby boomers. They are marketing-savvy consumers who understand brand construction. With this knowledge comes skepticism for a brand's message. Today's young consumer demands authenticity, reality and originality. Hype is now merely a steroid used by un-savvy marketers to mask irrelevant and uninteresting messages. Relevance to the audience and authenticity will win the loyalty of 12-24s more than a hard-sell hyped approach.