Just when we thought we were starting to enjoy the summer, the school bell starts ringing.
Ding-dong.
Time to plan your back to school promotion.
So what trends should you know about as you plan for this back to school season? Here is where it’s at for kids, tweens and teens this year:
- Snapchat.
Snapchat is the app of choice for today’s teens. This mobile app allows them to share photos with their friends without mom or grandma having to see (or worse – comment). There are ways promotions can be run on Snapchat. Check out our blog article from earlier this year for Snapchat ideas.
- Stickers
Kids love stickers. From video games and toys to TV shows and movies and even virtual stickers via GetGlue – anything that is a sticker is collectible and people will want it. (So do some adults as seen with the recent World Cup sticker frenzy.) I have even seen my own kids come to blows over who got the Anon sticker that came with my snow goggles. Not. Pretty.
There are collectible stickers in all shapes and forms that can be created to give out at point of sale as a nice to have, or launch a sticker contest asking people to get creative about where they put the stickers and share a photo to social media for an entry. Or have a mystery spotter who spots your stickers give out prizes to the participant.
- YouTube
YouTube still rules for video content, and influencers like PewDiePie, Tyler Oakley and Bethany Mota may have more of an influence on tweens and teens purchases than their parents do. (Hint: If your child has ever suddenly demanded a trip to Taco Bell for a Cool Ranch Doritos Taco or just had to find a sunflower dress, there is a good chance that they are influenced by a YouTube personality.) YouTube influencers are big business. They have sponsors and can make a million a year just for posting videos of themselves doing stuff most adults don’t understand. If you are marketing to tweens or teens, consider pairing up with an influencer or running a YouTube haul video contest or review video contest to reach your audience.
- Selfies
The selfie craze is still going strong. Even Taylor Swift recognizes that a selfie taken with a celebrity is the new autograph. A sound legal promotion involving selfies could resonate with your younger audience and drive brand affinity. Try to envision how you want your teen fans to be captured with your brand and run a contest asking for that. So if you are a food company, you can ask for selfies of your fans enjoying your product. Or if you are a cosmetics company, it’s selfies of your fans sporting their favorite nail or lipstick color.
- Anything from Disney’s Frozen
Even people without little kids at home have heard about the Frozen phenomenon. If you have a partnership with Disney, now is the time to play the Frozen card and ask for a tie-in promotion. And remember you don’t have to have the licensing rights to Frozen to give away a “little girl’s dream trip” to Norway – just make sure you have a promotional marketing agency like Marden-Kane help you draft the rules to make it legal!
In fact, Marden-Kane can help you develop a promotional concept involving any of these teen trends for your back to school campaign. Give us a call at 516-365-3999 to get started.
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