Teens are more willing to friend and actively support brands online
- 72 per cent of teens say they are willing to friend a brand in Habbo Hotel compared to 40
per cent of adults on Facebook
Helsinki, April 26, 2010 –
Habbo Hotel, the worlds largest virtual
community for teens, discovers that brand friending for teenagers online is a powerful way to build
brand advocacy.
Brands play a key part in how teenagers define their interests and beliefs and it seems this
association is just as strong online as it is offline. Today’s teenagers don’t differentiate
between the online and offline worlds and brands that engage and involve teens are just as likely
to form a part of their digital persona, as they are a part of their real life identity.
In January 2010 Habbo Hotel asked over 5,300 teens what they thought about brands appearing
in their favorite digital spaces. The
Habbo Hotel survey was influenced by
FEED Razorfish’s annual
study, charting how technology is changing the way consumers engage with brands. FEED asked 1,000
connected adult consumers about their opinions on how online brand activity influences their
decisions. The Habbo Hotel survey revealed that adults and teens think very differently about
brands and branding in online environments with younger consumers willing to more actively engage
if the brand conversation is relevant.
The biggest differences between adults and teens were seen in their willingness to associate
themselves (“friending”) with brands online. 72 per cent of teens say they are willing to friend a
brand in Habbo Hotel compared to 40 per cent of adults on
Facebook. In Habbo Hotel this applies
especially to branded items.
Not only are more teens friending brands but they are far more engaged as well. Compared to
70 per cent of Facebook or
MySpace’s connected adults, some 92 per cent
of teens want to take part in brand activities or contests in Habbo Hotel. Moreover, 40 per cent
said they have produced content for these brand activities, which matches Habbo’s experience.
Perhaps even more impressive is how teenagers are willing to continue showing their
allegiance long after a brand promotion has finished. Some 93 per cent of Habbo Hotel teens
continue to show their loyalty through showcasing branded badges or virtual goods long after the
event. This high degree of loyalty defies the rapid brand switching culture of today and provides
indications as to the long-term value of branded content in the form of virtual goods as a new
marketing platform.
“Teenagers are a pretty discerning bunch and gaining their support and loyalty can be tough
for brands. They live their lives as much online as offline, which gives brands an ideal
opportunity to engage with this hard to reach group,” says Phil Guest, Executive Vice President of
Global Advertising Sales, Sulake. “Engagement happens when relevant brands involve rather than
interrupt. We see this happening in Habbo Hotel everyday, where unrivaled levels of engagement are
measured in many ways including the level of friending and brand conversations.”
Download the Habbo Hotel
“A
Teenager’s Brand Experience” survey results.
Habbo Hotel press images:
www.sulake.com/press/image_bank.
For more information, please contact:
Phil Guest, EVP, Global Advertising Sales, phil.guest@sulake.com or press@sulake.com.
About the survey
Habbo Hotel’s survey “A Teenager’s Brand Experience” was conducted anonymously on Habbo.com,
Habbo UK, Habbo Canada, Habbo Singapore and Habbo Australia during January 2010. The survey was
promoted within the site content and only fully completed surveys were included in the results.
Over 5,300 teens and tweens mainly between 13-16 took part in the survey.
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