 "Marketing to young audiences")
All of us, at one point or another, have heard or read that India has one of the youngest populations in the world (not to mention one of the largest as well). This provides content creators and marketers with unique opportunities and challenges. The opportunities, of course, are endless. But as content creators for this demographic we know just how challenging it is. In a country like India, which is already a diverse and fragmented market, catering to the youth, who are just as diverse and fragmented, is nothing less than a Herculean task. It involves a fair amount of risk and fleet-footedness on our part to be able to plug into their changing tastes.
For us at MTV, understanding and catering to this demographic is an exciting experience. For us, youth is our business. We make it a point to know them inside out. We don't just talk to them at regular intervals, but converse with them. And we have found that the best way to build a relationship is to not just cater to them, but have them create for us too. This is the underlying philosophy that shapes our content. We not only make shows for them, but take stories from their lives to make these shows.
What does our experience tell us about marketing to them? One of the first lessons is that we need to stop treating them as the 'audience' and look at them as partners. It helped when we decided to really listen to what they had to say, took a deeper interest in their social (media) interactions and deep dived into their lives. All those who are creating a youth brand would benefit from doing the same.
We realised soon enough that it was very difficult it to slot them into pre-fabricated models. For instance, our recent survey called 'MTV Many Me Project' found them to be people with strong opinions. And they are not afraid to speak it, even if it is politically incorrect. Now that would make them rebels, but that description applies to generations before them too, in the same age-group. But we also found out that their greatest heroes are their parents, which makes them different from the generations that came before them.
Differences matter and at MTV, our focus has been getting to know these well. One cannot get away with generalising their likes and dislikes and using labels for them such as 'rebellious' or 'edgy'. Today's youth are multi-dimensional. They look for different ways to get the maximum out of life and want their lives to have purpose. Also they are not bright-eyed optimists or down-in-the-dumps doomsayers. They are pragmatic and realistic in their expectations. In our survey, only 38 per cent stated that they feel extremely optimistic about life currently, and more than 60 per cent said that they were somewhere in between; meaning realistic.
The people we surveyed believed that they can be many individuals at the same time without being contradictory caricatures. By holding many versions within, they believe they are not confused or chaotic; merely smart thinkers, who are driven, creative and resourceful. The biggest mistake a marketer could make today is to treat the youth as a one-dimensional segment. The need of the hour today is flexibility.
Brands will need to reinvent themselves faster and with greater frequency than they have before to keep up with the changing lifestyles, desires and preferences of the young consumer. And we at MTV know, talking to the young, understanding their likes and wants is the only way we can keep up with them.
Ferzad Palia
Head, Youth and English entertainment, Viacom18
Head, Youth and English entertainment, Viacom18
