Know Your Decision Makers

Source: The Cassandra Report of Winter/Spring 2013

The household decision maker has evolved over the years, depending on societal trends, the economy and other factors. Today, kids are becoming more and more influential in the decision process. In fact, tweens (aged 7-13) are quickly developing a bigger say in household purchases.

Many know that the world’s youth want instant gratification and products that express their personalities. However, did you know that tweens are still split between TV and the Internet? According to the Cassandra Report from Winter/Spring 2013, 51% of tweens still prefer TV, and 72% of tweens watch TV at the scheduled time versus a pre-recorded episode.

Thus, despite luxuries such as the DVR, On Demand programming and other online services, household decision-influencers are still reachable by television. This is important when figuring television advertising into your marketing mix.

The Cassandra Report of Winter/Spring 2013 gave an insight as to how parents consider their children’s opinions. Fifty-five percent of parents say their kids’ opinion counts a lot when it comes to what movie to see, 29% on food shopping, 26% on personal care products, 27% on family vacations and 23% on technology decisions.

For a marketer, knowledge is power, and knowing that our youths’ opinions are influencing household purchases, can affect marketing strategies. To truly inform the household purchasers of products, a campaign must include everyone in the family.