data basics; online research: The Surfer in the Family

American Demographics, April, 2000

The Web offers a new way to talk to kids, but are you ready to listen?

It's Friday night at a suburban Chicago theater, the opening weekend for Scream 3, the hottest slash flick series to come along in years. Adults cringe at the sight of dozens of pre- and post-pubescent teens gathered in packs at the ticket counter, all torqued up for an evening of unsupervised fun with their friends.

In line, Brian, 14, and five of his friends are waiting to buy tickets for the 8:15 show. Asked whether they checked the newspaper for show times, Brian and his companions hoot at the question. "I've got my movie theaters on my Yahoo! site," responds Brian. "My parents read the papers, but mostly I tell them what time the movies are."

Brian may not be able to drive, but he can surf to sites that tell him exactly what he wants to know. And he's not alone. According to New York-based Jupiter Communications, an Internet research firm, kids aged 8 to 12 and teens aged 13 to 22 are the largest growth sectors of the Internet population. In 1998, approximately 8.6 million kids and 8.4 million teens were online. By 2002, the research firm predicts 21.9 million kids and 16.6 million teens will be online. With a mean annual income of $3,000, young consumers (aged 16-to-22 -years-old) represent a $37 billion market online, reports Forrester Research of Cambridge, Massachusetts.

"Brand preferences for many kids are established by the time they're 12," says John Geraci, vice president of youth research at Harris Interactive, a market research and polling firm in Rochester, New York. "They have very firm ideas about what they want to spend their money on. But the interesting thing about the Internet is that it's not so unusual for a parent to ask his kid to research an adult purchase, such as a car or a vacation. Suddenly, you see why this technology gives kids so much influence."

They've got money to spend, but understanding the fickle kids market is tricky. How can companies figure out which trends will last - and which will fizzle by the end of the week? Smart marketers are going online to get answers. They're conducting online focus groups, surveys, chat sessions - whatever it takes to get a quick read on kids. Several market research firms now offer kids' online research, and demand for the service is expected to climb. Overall, online research today is a $200 million business, accounting for just 5 percent of the estimated $4 billion spent annually on market research in the United States. By 2001, analysts predict that 20 percent of market research expenditures will be for online research.

It's easy to see why online research appeals to marketers with tight budgets to maintain. Costs are often 30 percent to 50 percent less than in-person surveying and focus groups, experts say. Staffing requirements are nil, as are food, transportation, and meeting expenses for the kids. Kids often participate in the online research project because they get paid to do so - sometimes in cash, but usually in gift points or certificates that pay for entertainment, such as movies.

Still, Internet research shouldn't have marketers rubbing their hands together, says Julie Halpin, CEO of the Geppetto Group, a youth-focused advertising and marketing agency in New York City. "We look at online research as another piece of the puzzle, not a replacement piece for focus groups or other forms of qualitative and quantitative research," she says. "It's very effective at gathering responses quickly. It pinpoints changing trends and attitudes faster than anything to date. But it's only one tool. You don't use a hammer to screw in a screw."

Parents are the first stop in talking to kids online. The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which goes into effect April 21, requires the operators of any Web site that collects data from kids under 13 to obtain detailed parental permission before the child can enter the site. COPPA also requires the posting of strict privacy policies that will safeguard the child and his family from those who may attempt to steal their information online.

In general, market research firms have already responded to COPPA with "parent permission only" policies - and not just for kids under 13. Many concede that the permissions issue became especially important after the Columbine High School massacre last year, when it was learned that the assailants had used the Internet to plan their attack.

Shelly Bracken, vice president of research services for Digital Marketing Services, a division of America Online, supervises AOL's Opinion Place, which conducts incentive-based online research with children and adults. To get kids' names, AOL uses mailing lists from children's organizations, but everyone under 13 must get parental approval before they can answer questions at the site. "We want the parent to supervise the child," says Bracken, "and we don't want them to think we'd ask anything they wouldn't want their child to be asked."

Halpin of the Geppetto Group says that once kids have cleared permissions, research can take many forms. Kids can answer yes/no questions on a site, or send their impressions of a product or service via e-mail. "You're also able to ask more open-ended questions online," explains Halpin. "You find out what it is about Scream 3 that makes it important. When we get an answer from a kid or a teen that's interesting, we can go back to him and ask, `You said you liked being afraid? Is there a difference between being afraid at the movies and in real life?'"