Youth Marketing is all about something you do with not to youth.” Graham Brown (mobileYouth 2008 Report)
Following my earlier riff about trends in the marketing of Great Youth Brands (last time was Red Bull), I’d like to talk about one of my favourites.
This is the key question – how does a mass market “everything to [...]
Common sense dictates that if a brand gets it wrong, it’s time for damage limitation with the marcomms department leading the charge.
That’s how ordinary brands deal with extraordinary issues – in average ways producing very average results.
However, I’d like to focus on how great youth brands are breaking the mold and doing something out [...]
Vodafone, like most mobile operators, faces the ongoing challenge of being relevant to the next generation of its customers (youth) while at the same time not losing its broad appeal. It couldn’t re-invent itself as another Blyk or Boost Mobile (nor would it want to) but at the same time, as with the current problem [...]
I’m a big fan of Seth Godin, you probably know already (I’ve already blogged down the line about The Dip). I borrowed one of his riffs earlier when I blogged about Sliced Bread and why we need to challenge the received wisdom. Godin was the first author to switch me on to the idea of [...]
In their own words
“This is the place to spill the juice about all the crazy stuff going on at your campus. It’s totally anonymous – no registration, login, or email verification required.”
Why it might be a killer
In the Perez Hilton era, this site lets regular folks gossip about their peers. This should catch on quick amongst the university crowd.
Some questions
Is this even legal? Doesn’t this facilitate the bulling that ends up with kids shooting up their peers in school?
What it does
Campus gossip has been around since the first university was established. With Juicycampus.com, the good old campus gossip meets the internet and the results are highly entertaining. On the site, you’ll find gossip from 250 campuses around the United States. All pieces of gossip are completely anonymous. This adds to the fun, but whoever that piece of gossip is about will certainly not like it. There are over 40 thousand posts on the site, and they all have something to reveal about someone in campus. If you’re thinking of dating someone you met in one of your classes, you should search for them on this to find out possible gossip about them. If you overlook the obvious privacy and defamation breaches that this site exploits, you have something that could change the way college gossip is spread. Let’s hope they don’t shut this down before it gets really popular.
Link: http://www.juicycampus.com
Our Review: http://www.killerstartups.com/User-Gen-Content/juicycampus-com-campus-gossip-online
More listeners and viewers, more ad spending
Regular Springwise readers no doubt remember Blyk, the Finnish free mobile operator that targets 16- to 24-year-olds with its ad-funded service. We covered Blyk’s British rollout on several occasions over the past year or so, and now one of our spotters has come across a similar concept that recently launched in the Philippines.
ümobile is an invitation-only mobile service and community that targets 15- to 35-year-old Filipinos with what it says is the first ad-funded mobile network in Asia, offering a range of telephony services including calls, texts, MMS, internet surfing and downloads. Beginning in June, when the service was launched by Connectivity Unlimited Resource Enterprise (CURE)—part of Philippine telco Smart—potential users were invited to apply for membership through a series of invite codes that were given away virally (and free) by already-accepted members or through online social networks. Young consumers with codes could then fill out ümobile’s membership application, which includes a range of personal information as well as lifestyle questions such as preferences in movies and music and whether or not they go to a gym, for example. Also required is a willingness to accept ads, of course.
Based on their answers, Filipinos who were approved by Aug. 31 were given their ümobile SIM cards for free—delivered at no charge—along with a free PHP 100 load every month for the next six months. Just how many ads users will be sent each day isn’t yet clear, but viewing them earns further rewards in the form of free loads or discounts and freebies. A portion of the revenues generated by a brand’s campaigns is given back to subscribers, who can then purchase ümobile services or pursue product offers.
Is there any market free love can’t conquer? Seems unlikely. Mobile operators: where will you spread some love of your own…?
Website: www.umobile.com.ph
Contact: customerservice@umobile.com.ph
Spotted by: Matthew Cua
Motorola Youth Research
