Building brands and running companies can be one of the most time-consuming and challenging undertakings someone can attempt, and there are plenty of ways it can go south quickly. Even for established brands with seasoned teams. Do you think your brand or marketing campaign is failing to gain the momentum it deserves with young people?

1. REASONSYOUNG PEOPLE THINK
YOUR BRAND
SUCKS7

2. Building brands and running companies can be one
of the most time-consuming and challenging
undertakings someone can attempt, and there are
plenty of ways it can go south quickly. Even for
established brands with seasoned teams.
Do you think your brand or marketing campaign is
failing to gain the momentum it deserves?
consider checking these
7REASONS YOUNG PEOPLE THINK
YOUR BRAND SUCKS

3. YOU ARE HAVING AN
IDENTITY CRISIS
If your team can't sum up your brand or campaign in
one sentence, you don't have a clear and compelling
message. Great brands start with a vision, and the
messages and creative need to reflect that vision.
Creativity is also about problem solving—even if the
problem is "nobody else is making a product like
this."
No different than having good style, the ways you
promote the brand should also be an authentic
means of getting your vision out. If you don't know
how you want to communicate yourself internally,
imagine what it sounds like to young consumers
who have never heard of you.
1.

4. “POSER” YOU’RE EVEN FAILING
THE OBVIOUS AUTHENTICITY TESTS
For example, apparel claiming NY or LA, but the
company HQ is in Dubuque, IL. Your brand talks
“roots” or "heritage,” but you’ve only been around
for 12 months. Your campaign’s creative appeals to
people who are "bout dat life" or relate to “tre flips,”
but you’ve only discovered these phrases trolling
through Tumblr.
It’s proven over and over that good brands are real;
whether their inspiration comes from pop culture,
tech-nerds, skateboarding or simply a desire to make
better quality products. Just be real about what you
make and who you are, and if the stuff you make or
the experience is good, it will speak volumes.
2.

5. NOT EVEN YOUNG FRIENDS OR
FAMILY MEMBERS LIKE IT
A first step in making a great brand is listening to
your audience (assuming you have one) and getting
young people to adopt it. Yes, simply asking local
students or even friends and family members can
work as long as you’re not relying on them as
decisive qualitative research. At the end of the day,
if what you’re doing is really worthy, or you have a
powerful crew, that shouldn't be a problem. But if
young people give you negative feedback, or say "uh,
no thanks," it might be a sign to go back to the
drawing board.
Are friends and family expressing their interest in
experiencing it? If they're not seeing the value, why
would complete strangers?
3.

6. HIJACKINGSOCIAL CONVERSATIONS
So, two of your “targeted” bloggers or influencers
are chopping it up on Twitter, arguing over
whether or not Olivia Holt really was a legit
cheerleader, or hyping up Levis for getting back
into core skateboarding after all these years. What
a perfect time to interject and tell them about your
brand, right? Even better, pretend like you have
something to add, posting "LOL I totally agree! BTW,
check out our new app!" NO, that’s a deathkiss.
You want to get in with these people? Spend time,
truly contribute to the conversations, then over
time talk about how you happen to have a brand
and you'd appreciate it if they check it out.
4.

7. YOU’VE BROUGHT NOTHING
UNIQUE TO THE PARTY
Brands, like people, need to have charisma and
unique attributes in order to stand apart. The
combination of brand charisma, personality and
special functions are key elements of what makes
one brand cooler than another.
Brand personality and style is reflected in how your
product is made, and has everything to do with how
it makes you feel. When a consumer looks at your
products, user experience, retail environment, or
brand, it should instantly convey an emotion. A logo
or good name can pique someone's interest, and if
the goods back it up, then what you have is a really
good brand. But if you can't figure out a way to
make your work stand out emotionally, chances are
it's not going to be interesting enough to get young
people to care.
5.

8. It’s awesome to have someone famous rocking
your brand, but it's ten times better if they
actually buy the product themselves (they have
the money), rather than paying them to push
your product. Take the advice of Rob Garcia
from rising brand En Noir: "As far as celebrities
go… if Kanye's paying for this $h!t, everybody's
paying for this $h!t."
Be real, and if you do it right, the hype will
follow. That doesn’t mean you can’t seed
influence and facilitate consumer advocacy,
but it needs to be authentic and it takes time
to produce ROI.
RELYING ON BIG CELEBRITY
ENDORSEMENTS TO SELL YOUR PRODUCT
BUY THIS!
6.

9. SERIOUSLY, don't misspell people’s names in direct
communications, ad’s or other marcomm’s. That's
an instant disqualification, even if you think it's
"cool" with your target audience.
Sure, occasional typos do occur, but trying to use
language in order to fit in with a target audience
or subculture will get you kicked out of their
scene for good.
WRITING EMAILS LIKE
A TEEN ON LSD7.

10. cultivating brand relevance with young people.
We unlock the passions of tweens, teens, and young adults
through cohesive solutions that emotionally connect, inspire
action, and positively change behaviors. Some of the world's
greatest brands we work with, include; Qualcomm, Funny Or Die,
Bravo Sports, Polaroid, Hansen's Natural, Konami Digital
Entertainment, Givit, and Body Glove
Areas of expertise include; youth and parent consumer insights,
brand strategy, social and mobile technology, event marketing and
experiential engagement.
www.immersiveyouthmarketing.com
IMMERSIVE IS THE YOUTH
MARKETING AGENCY