The real decision makers martin lindstrom

MARTIN LINDSTROM

The Real Decision Makers
I have some figures at my fingertips I think will astound you. Did you know a full 67 per cent of families buying a new car base their purchasingdecision on advice given by their children -- who are too young to drive? That 62 percent of mobile phones and 65 percent of clothing brands are bought by parents under the influence of their kids' opinions?We're not talking only about American kids, but kids across the globe, in countries as diverse as India, Japan, Brazil, Spain, Turkey, Germany, Thailand and Denmark. The power this young generationwields over their parents has been shown to be nothing less than mind blowing. The data comes from the world's largest study on kids and their relationship with brands. It was conducted for BRANDchild,the book I just co-authored with Patricia Seybold. I call this emerging generation the tweens. They fall, roughly, between the ages of 8 and 14. Research institute Millward Brown interviewedthousands of kids in 14 countries and 70 cities for the study. Among many startling findings that emerged, overwhelming evidence shows brand purchase decisions are increasingly being made by the children ofthe household. This is true across the board, in almost every product category from snacks and soft drinks to cosmetics and house wares. In light of these findings, every message targeting the adultmarket must be reconceived and reframed. Marketers will increasingly have to consider how to capture the attention of two very distinct audiences in one message. They must appeal to the adult purchaser,as well as to the kid who influences them. What does all this mean for your online strategy? As it's becoming increasingly clear you ignore this young audience at your peril, it's vital you structureyour message to appeal to both markets. This will be challenging, but it must be part of your site. Obviously, some features appeal more to parents, others to their kids. The challenge is to...