12 global trends in youth engagement for 2014

12 Global Trends in Youth Engagement in 2014

Apr 8, 2014

DIGITAL

DIMENSIONALITY

12 Global Trends in Digital Engagement in 2014 Private and Confidential; Not for Distribution

3 12 Global Trends in Youth Engagement 2014

1. Digital Dimensionality

Interactive out-of-home advertising, mobile apps

augmented reality that add a contextual layer to physical

spaces, and the crowd sharing of an event via social

media, are just a few of the elements that contribute to

Digital Dimensionality. Youth experiences like concerts or

retail in-store events are amplified when technology adds

a whole new dimension to the experience. The high costs

of experiential marketing start to pay off when the Digital

Dimensionality is applied, as a brand impression can

become a digital engagement, a social broadcast, and

even the start of a long and profitable eCRM relationship.

This is the world that youth live in today, who now expect

their real-world experiences in any location to be

enhanced by the smartphone in their hand.

Topshops’s augmented reality dressing room provides a useful service

and doubles as a showpiece of Digital Dimensionality that adds value to

the consumer experience.

© Fuel Industries 2014

THE CONNECTIVITY

CONTAGION



2. The Connectivity Contagion

Likely the most-observed trend emerging in 2014,

Google’s $3.2 Billion purchase of the connected home

technology brand, NEST, opened the year as concrete

proof that the Internet is about to take a giant step into

connected devices in everything from diapers to your

toaster and even your light bulb. Wearable and embedded,

the Internet in everything is transforming the world our

youth live in. Where Millennials grew up as digital natives

and saw the explosion of mobile and Internet on-the-go,

it’s absolutely clear that the next generation will see

connected devices become mainstream, interacting with

them in their daily life. The only question is if the

smartphone will still be the console that manages all the

connected devices in their lives in the future.

From nurturing toys like the Sense Mother, to everyday objects like the

Kolibree toothbrush, the Internet is coming to everything. This generation

will experience The Connectivity Contagion.


CONTENT

CONGLOMERATION



3. Content Conglomeration

As youth continue to move away from the mass media

outlets of the past, brands continue to move into the role

of content creators. In the past, marketers funded

entertainment content through advertising. But the real

value was in the content. For youth today, they only know

a world where content-is-advertising, and where digital

channels either create content to get their attention, or

curate the best content and make it easy to absorb and

share. This has given rise to a slew of powerful digital

“news” outlets for youth like BuzzFeed and Upworthy,

while propelling the advertising free on-demand nature of

Netflix and HBO to become youth entertainment brands of

choice. To engage youth today is to become a compelling

content curator AND creator. Brands who deliver on this

are going to own a generation for years to come.

This generation is growing up in a world where the brands they use provide

them with the content they love. On any platform. On-demand.


PROLIFERATION

OF CONNECTED TOYS




4. Proliferation of Connected Toys

With many successes but few hits, connected toys like

Skylanders, Disney Infinity and the new generation of

Furby will become more and more prevalent in the toy

aisle and the everyday lives of youth. While overall toy

sales were down slightly in 2013, tablets and mobile

devices – and the apps that kids want them for – are

screaming with potential for a new wave of toys that

interact with them. 2014 will see a new wave of

innovations – and our expectation is that more of these will

stick with consumers as toy manufacturers learn from

missteps and emergent startups step into the limelight.

Toy shelves will feel the change to; as we’ll see even

traditional toys and games make the leap to digital. From

toys that teach kids how to program, to digital experiences

requiring traditional toys, to new technologies that bring a

toy to life in new ways, no other category is set for total

transformation in the lives of youth than toys.

Furby might still be a little creepy, but he’s more relevant than ever.

Innovative technology in digitally connect toys, like Furby’s high-frequency

audio signals, will reinvent the category.


MONETIZATION

MOVES




5. Monetization Moves

In light of Apple’s multi-million dollar refund to the tune of

over $32 million US, driven by livid parents whose children

were given the ability to rack up credit card bills via

games, the freemium model for apps has taken a

significant hit. Along with it, the change in COPPA rules

that went into effect on July 1, 2013 requires clear gates

around in-app purchases for mobile apps. These

groundswells are changing how apps are monetized. From

Star Wars to Disney to Nickelodeon, major content

providers are increasingly challenged in generating

revenue from their digital products. So to create

compelling digital products and make money, monetization

is critical. So what’s a brand to do? Go back to the paid

software model with a set price and bring more value to in-

app purchases. Although this is the trend, we do see

alternative forms of monetization on the horizon, such as

tying digital apps or virtual rewards to physical products for

a stronger overall consumer value.

Paid apps are becoming more necessary as part of the monetization trend

combined with in-app purchases as a more attractive (and transparent)

storefront for parents.


SOCIAL

GETS FOCUSED



6. Social Gets Focused A recent focus group of 9-12 year olds revealed a pattern

of disinterest in Facebook, something reflected in recent

news stories around the decline of Facebook with teens.

While crying “the death of” is usually more valuable as a

headline than an actionable insight, we are seeing a shift

from the single Swiss-army knife-like social platform to

more mobile driven, single utility applications. New apps

like We Heart It, Jelly, Thumb, Whisper, and Backchat

(created by a 14 year old), are joining SnapChat, Vine,

Instagram, and Twitter to offer social media functionality in

a simpler and more streamlined mobile product, perfectly

tuned to the next generation. Innovative markets and fickle

consumers have a habit of destroying monopolies, and

that’s likely what 2014 will see more of as tech upstarts

vie to do that one thing much better than Facebook’s

everything. As Millennials were the generation of

Facebook, the next generation are looking to

be…something else.

Backchat, We Heart It, Snapchat, and Whisper are just a few of the apps

changing the way youth use social media.


TABLET

DEMOCRATIZATION

TABLET

DEMOCRATIZATION



7. Tablet Democratization Tablets just became as cheap as basic eBook readers,

and they’re about to get a lot cheaper. In fact, new

Android tablets hitting the market in 2014 are set to cost

as low as a college textbook. Proliferation of these

internet-enabled, do-everything, music-mixing, game-

playing, movie-showing personal devices are going to

become evident in 2014 as we truly move from a two-

screen world to a three-screen one. With e-textbooks and

school districts adopting digital classrooms, like LA Unified

School District’s recent purchase of iPads for all students,

books are going to inch closer to a novelty. For youth

today, that means a transformation of textbooks, books

and magazines to a platform that global youth own as

digital natives. It will propel content creation and

publishing from their generation and we expect tweens

and teens to become the next global media mogul. The

window to every youth consumer is available to those who

know it best.

New Android tablets now in the $40-$120 price range are driving even

greater proliferation amongst global youth with use in the home, school,

and everywhere.


REHUMANIZING

FAMILY MOMENTS




8. Rehumanizing Family Moments Screen fatigue from families and a desire for authentic

family moments in the home are creating a desire for

authentic family moments. While the new generation of

these experiences will likely still include a digital element,

the fundamental premise of re-connecting face-to-face is

going to grow in 2014. The whoever-grabs-their-phone-

first-from-the-stack pays game at restaurants is a good

example of this trend becoming popularized as is the

appeal of board games. With youth it means growing up in

a world where technology can be the center of family

connectivity. We are predicting 2014 to be the year of the

Smart TV, where an app enabled living room experience

begins to provide apps for kids to play together with their

families. Brands should take advantage of this insight now

with apps that enable real family moments.

Yup…families are getting sick of this. A device for every member of the

home is bringing a desire for authentic family moments. It’s an insight that

drives a tremendous opportunity for any family brand.


THE 3D PRINTED

HOME




9. The 3D Printed Home 3D printers are getting less expensive. What happens

when a toy manufacturer introduces a simple 3D printer

for the home that allows kids to make their own toys?

What happens when HP enters the home 3D printer

market with the same financial model as ink jets (revenue

on the cartridge, not the printer)? What happens when

consumers flood the market with their 3D printing files –

like allowing fans to print Happy Meal toys for themselves?

As more brands continue to experiment with campaigns

that use fast-to-market custom products, 3D printers have

captured our pop culture consciousness, creating an even

greater desire for our own creations. Although we’re not

quite expecting mass-market 3D printer adoption in every

home in 2014, we expect we’re going to get there soon.

And what does that mean for the next generation?

One way or another, this generation will be shaped by 3D printing. Product

creation and manufacturing for every child will empower youth in ways

we’ve never seen before.


IMMERSIVE

GAMING



10. Immersive Gaming From the new Oculus Rift Crystal Cove prototype to the

freshly-funded Avegant Glyph, new VR technology is

giving youth an immersive gaming experience like never

before. Rift (as it’s affectionately called) features greatly

improved positional-tracking capabilities and a crisp new

OLED display that is being hailed as the future. This has

game developers excited, with Doom 4 in development

and titles such as Minecraft, Battlefield 3, and Half-Life 2

rumored to be on the way. Another VR innovation, the

Avegant Glyph looks like a pair of headphones, but it goes

way beyond audio, using micro mirror rays to reflect light

directly onto your retinas when pulled down over your

eyes for an incredible pixel-free viewing experience.

Imagine a world where every pair of headphones is like a

4K screen inside your head! If you’re a young gamer, it’s

not fantasy, it’s what you want for your birthday this year.

The new Oculus Rift Crystal Cove wowed at this year’s CES. The

applications for VR devices is already stunning onlookers and paints a

picture of a future filled with unpredictable uses.


THE DIGITAL

ARTISAN



11. The Digital Artisan While the term artisan may conjure images of a Brooklyn

hipster wearing coveralls baking bread in a Pret A Manger,

the digital artisan economy represents the millions of

youth globally who are making their own products and

selling them online. With Etsy, Shopify, Square and

Square Market, and Kickstarter providing the tools to help

young entrepreneurs easily fund, promote, sell and

distribute their products, digital artisans are driving a new

way to turn their hobbies into successful careers. At the

heart is product creation, and the idea that any young

person can create art or products that can find a market.

The empowerment needed to think that way, and the

technology needed to make it accessible, has merged at

this particular point and time. For this generation, it’s not

only possible but it’s likely that something they create can

attract fans and make money. Millennials grew up

understanding that they could take control, for the next

generation, control is a given. They are driving their own

success.

Etsy is one of the ways that creative individuals are making their visions a

reality. Youth are experiencing a world where great digital tools allow their

creative aspirations to turn into a business career.


THE ONE

DIMENSIONAL 3D TV



12. The One Dimensional 3D TV While 3D movies continue to bring more money into the

studios via increased ticket costs in theaters, at home, 3D

television still isn’t in high demand. Back in 2012, only

115,000 U.S. households even watched a 3D broadcast.

With experts saying ‘everyone who wanted a 3D TV

already has one’, the outlook shifts towards continuing to

sell more connected smart screens. Youth behavior

patterns aren’t exactly helping the outlook for 3D: shorter

attention spans, TVs being used as the second screen to

a phone or tablet, and the general willingness to get

content on any size screen at any time preclude their

interest for a ‘premium’ cinematic experience at home (let

alone a static one that requires special glasses). While 3D

will continue to tickle curiosity in theaters with blockbuster

titles becoming more immersive experiences, home TV

sales will continue to lag.

The sheen of 3D TV has worn off, and there’s not a lot of growth in store.

As youth focus on their mobile smartphones and tablets, even exciting TV

features become less relevant to this generation.



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Written by: Jeff Roach, Sean MacPhedran & Nick Iannitti

12 Global Trends in Youth Engagement 2014

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12 global trends in youth engagement for 2014

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