Jupiter: Turn the Teen into a Lifelong Customer

Thomas Husson posts at the Jupiter Analyst Weblogs about the challenges of turning teens into lifelong customers as the European mobile industry begins to segment its audiences and marketing efforts. He cites examples of this new trend, such as Vodafone's recent launch of Simply for 40-60 year olds and Passport for tourists and business travellers, and Telefonica's new product offer targeting families.

Husson comments on the fickle nature of teens, their love of brands and the challenges in marketing to this group. He makes the following observations on their importance over the long run to the industry:

When evaluating the ROI of their investment, most operators forget to include loyalty. Youth do not necessarily provide short term profitability, but their ability to develop products that drive profitability for the mass-market as a whole is huge: they have a higher demand for communication devices, they are early adopters of new technologies and they are family advisers!