Digital Marketing for the iPad generation

“How do I reach the new generation, those kids who were pretty much born with an iPad in hand?” and “What language do my consumers speak?” are two of the questions our clients are asking today. In fact, these are the two main change factors in our line of business: generational and transcultural. They’re right, because after almost ten years in the digital marketing game, at InPulse Digital we know flashy designs, fast technology and original communication is not going to cut it if we don’t know who our audience is, who we’re talking to, and (even) what their dreams are. The first of these challenges is how to reach these kids who are pretty much born with a tablet or smartphone in hand and enter the entertainment world having a doll house at home and dressing a virtual doll in their smartphone. According to Nielsen, the generation born in 1993 is the strongest mobile video consumer (13 minutes a month among 12-17 year-olds), they are more receptive to mobile ads, and they send an average of 3,300 mobile messages a month (twice as much as those in the 18-24 age range), therefore spending a lot less time speaking on the phone. 78% of 12-17 year-olds are active social networkers and spend less time watching TV and less time in front of their computers. The second challenge is the cultural one. In this case it is no longer enough to speak to first-generation immigrants in their language, finding their communication channels and an aesthetic that represents them. Today, the challenge lies in reaching those generations who were born in the US and are at the same time, integrated into the culture while maintaining their ethnic identity. It is about finding a transcultural language that unites these two identities instead of segregating them. A clear example in our daily work is “what language do we use? English, Spanish, or either is fine? The answer, among the 13.5 million Hispanic Facebook users, is still divided, but 31% of them (4.2M) prefer Spanish content and 43% (5.9M) are more likely to fan a page in English. But, not surprisingly, 25% (3.4M) of those kids of 12 to 17 are bilingual consumers: they say that it´s ok either in English or in Spanish. If we think that among those Hispanic users, it begins to make more sense, since those kids are usually educated in English-speaking schools and their entertainment is therefore mostly English-based. The generational and cultural challenges are still huge, and those who are really giving these aspects some serious thought in order to get results will be more likely to successfully reach their audiences. A key aspect will be that, on top of looking for entertainment, these generations will be educating themselves, so content will remain relevant. Another factor to consider is that those contents no longer distinguish language, but platforms and uses instead and it is no longer important if they’re in English or Spanish, but if they can interpret what they generation is looking for. At the end of the day, what we always go for at InStyle DM and will always remain valid beyond a specific audience: a good idea and a good story that transcends generations and cultures.