The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

On top of being able to catch up with a bunch of mates, I’m also speaking at an Asian youth marketing conference.

Now maybe many of you will disagree, but in many ways, I don’t think there’s that much difference between generations in their feelings/desires/aspirations/fears.

OK, let me rephrase that …

Underneath it all, the feelings/desires/aspirations/fears that each generation [specifically in developed nations] go through, aren’t all that different from the generation before.

Sure technology, education and economics can/have influenced some changes in attitude and approach – but at their heart, the fundamental issues teens face are very similar regardless of generation.

Well put it this way, I hope they are because that’s what I’m basing my preso on.

To be honest it’s a bit of a cheat …

The thing is, as most of the other speakers are media representatives, I’m pretty sure they’ll spend a lot of their allotted time trying to flog their particular channel as the ‘key to youth success’, which is why I felt the best way to stand out was to talk about what’s going on in some of their minds and lives [at least for this week] rather than just their media consumption habits.

What always amazes me is how many media guys don’t acknowledge the value and benefits of their competitors channels. They talk like they – and they alone – are the only ones that matter and whilst it’s fair to say that a lot of their life is now spent online, to claim they don’t interact with other channels is both wrong and stupid.

The other thing I find interesting is that in Asia, the general marketing consensus is – youth brands exempt – that the youth audience is not important.

Seriously.

The general attitude is they don’t have as much disposable income as the status obsessed 20 and 30 something’s, so they’re not as important to focus on because in this part of the World, business is valued on what happens today – not what might happen tomorrow.

Given culturally there are so many things that are done [by individuals, communities and governments] to secure a better future – often with an eye on it positively affecting many, many generations into the future – I find it so interesting that in terms of marketing, the focus is purely on the immediate.

Hell, even the worst cold calling sales organisations appreciates they have to keep the ‘pipeline’ filled … but not here, not in marketing anyway.

As usual I’ve basically rehashed a bunch of old slides [but changed a few words in a desperate bid to make it look ‘new’] … plus there’s no commentary on there to explain the flow and view … but if you’re in the least bit interested, or simply just want to take the piss, enjoy: