A quick overview of the growing influence of tweens on Twitter, circa mid-August 2009
A quick overview of the growing influence of tweens on Twitter, circa mid-August 2009
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kreel
3 years ago
alejandra.deltoro
3 years ago
Chancasta
3 years ago
Sam Joseph, Idea Architect at People, Ideas and Culture
3 years ago
Kevin Skobac, VP, Digital + Social Strategy at SS+K
3 years ago
Sebastiaan Bode, Internet Strategist at eFocus
3 years ago
Rolando Peralta, Chief Director at CommunitiesDNA
3 years ago
Ken Burbary, Chief Digital Officer at Campbell Ewald
3 years ago
Tweens On Twitter
http://www.y-space.info 3 years ago
As for devices, etc. - I'm curious about that as well. Most of them do not seem to be going to the actual Twitter site itself or using any sort of standalone app. They're tweeting via these quiz and poll sites, which are on the web and accessed through the browser. The site then feeds Twitter.
So it's unclear whether the tweens then go to Twitter to see their tweets or if they just leave well enough alone. The fact that many are only following celebs on there seems to indicate they're using it as a broadcast site to keep up with their 'faves' but that may change. (Particularly if they figure out that on a smart phone, DMs work just like text messages, only they're free!) 3 years ago
Also, I'm really curious about what devices tweens are using to generate Twitter traffic; i.e., what's the percentage of mobile devices vs. computers? Either way, I could see traffic actually climbing during the school year. Every experienced tweeter knows that Twitter is an ideal time-waster and procrastination tool when you have work to do. I think it would be the same for kids with homework to do. :-)
@CarriBugbee
Social Profiles: http://bit.ly/CarriB 3 years ago
I'm quite agree that we'll continue witnessing a significant growth in Teenagers using Twitter, and I think it's a natural behavior to think about their Twitter accounts as 'my celebrity channel'.
Cheers, 3 years ago
We’re definitely on the same page in regards to how the average age (and likely, the average socially acceptable age) of Miley Cyrus/Jonas Brothers/High School Musical fans is much higher overseas. Particularly with Brazilian teens: according the Alexa, the majority of traffic to the LolQuiz site, the largest of the poll/quiz sites, is from Brazil.
Good call on the Gossip Girl/Twilight crowds too: those are definitely older girls and two very different crowds. I can definitely see your point about Twitter taking off among teens/tweens, especially as a way to share thoughts around a broader target, be it the Disney Channel games, the premier of this season’s Gossip Girl or, if boys start getting into it, the Super Bowl or even local high school sporting events. Twitter provides a unique forum and real-time broadcast capability that other social networking platforms do not.
And then there’s the whole “on the internet, no one knows you’re a dog” thing: tweens can participate in a range of conversations without having to broadcast “I’m only 12.”
Very true too, re: parental permission to use Twitter. Though since it’s free, I can see upper middle class kids jumping on without bothering to ask: these kids generally have their own computers in their own rooms, and coupled with an iPhone app, it makes Twitter an easy thing to hide. And I say that because anecdotally, I’m seeing kids as young as 4th or 5th grade putting up Facebook accounts that their parents may or may not know about. 3 years ago
It's interesting to see some of the camps that are hitting Twitter from teen culture. Right now, Twilight fans are a camp w/ those into Team Jacob vs. Team Edward being very different than those into the Jonas Bros. Then there's those into Gossip Girl star (which, as a show, is more popular with Sex in the City fans than teens). And of course there's the geeks which will have none of this. Those who are more into indie rock bands or hip hop stars (trends older) are only really starting to get their feet wet.
You're totally right that the iPhone is playing a big role this summer, but that won't stop when the school year starts. Nor will polls or quizzes. In fact it'll get far more intense when it can be integrated into the 'water cooler' element of seeing each other and discussing what was on Twitter last night. As for teens/tweens being bored over the summer, of course. That's common. But boredom alone isn't the driving factor. So much of what they're doing is fundamentally social that even micro-boredom (of the doing homework kind) will spare plenty of room for 140 characters. Right now, I'm reading 2 hours of teen tweeting a day, sampling in all sorts of different ways to find different types of teens using the site. I'm seeing a huge upswing of Indonesian and Brazilian teens. (They've been historically early adopters of social media... Friendster and Fotolog being core examples.) I'm also seeing Australian teens and teens from different countries in Europe. Best I can work out, it's basically the teens who never got into Facebook.
If you want a good rant on what I'm seeing: http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2009/08/06/teen... (And btw, I think that there would be a LOT more tweens on Twitter because of the starlets if only their parents would let them.) 3 years ago
1) The teens who are into Disney stars are to some degree outcasts. They're the same type of teens who were into David Cassidy or New Kids on the Block when we were in high school. The age range for 'tweens' also seems to keep slipping lower and lower: my kindgergarten age daughter and her friends are very into Hannah Montana and iCarly (they may not totally get the shows, but they're aware of them and wear the merchandise) That may be an influence from older siblings, but if kindergartners are into them, then teens who are serious fans of those same acts may seem even more awkward.
2) I'm of two minds with the upper middle class tweens: on the one hand, the people fueling the quizzes and polls seemed to be coming from a more blue collar demographic: lots of reporting of being 'bored' over the summer without a whole lot to do- as you note. upper middle class tweens tend to be in some sort of structured summer program and not as likely to be using any sort of social media. So the whole poll/quiz thing may just pass them by along with Twitter.
The outlier is the $99 iPhone, which, along with the iTouch + home WiFi, are giving these upper middle class kids access to Twitter. It won't take long for them to realize that Direct Messaging is cheaper than texting, just as immediate and equally as private. And it may just seem a lot cooler than texting.
Curious too as to why you think much of the teen/tween Twitter usage will come from outside the US?
Thanks again for your comments here- can't tell you how many times I've referred to your study on class differences between Facebook and MySpace users- and your insights are always welcome. 3 years ago
1) It's not just the tweens who are into the Disney starlets. The tweens are into the character they represent; the teens want to be the celebs themselves. They follow for different reasons and with different expectations. (And then there's the sexual fantasies w/ same-age celebs... but let's not go there.)
2) I disagree with your assessment re: the school year. In all youth-oriented social media, summer is a downtime for traffic. Many middle-upper class American youth are in very scheduled, structured activities during the summer. In the school year, after school and activities, they return home for 'homework' where they sit in front of the computer and multitask. I actually think we'll see an increase in teen usage this fall, although I expect the majority of it to come from outside of the States. 3 years ago