Yaniv Weizman,
CEO of the teenk advertising agency and chairman of the Proud Youth Organization,
author of the book "
Motivating
Youth" (Niv Books Publishing).
Member of the Tel Aviv City Council
Steps beyond the boundaries of music.
Lady Gaga / Photo: Reuters,
Yaniv Weizman, you decided to write a book about how teenagers think and behave, and the ways to motivate them. In the book, you refer to Generation Z, which was most often born in 1997-2007, and grew up alongside screens, which influenced its social abilities.
"I do recognize in them a great difficulty in creating real human interaction, in reality. This is reflected in their body language, in the way they start a conversation and converse. This is especially interesting when I talk to network stars. And suddenly in a face-to-face meeting - you see a person who fails to express himself. "
To the extent that?
"Yes, I am amazed when I see it. For some, when they have no ability to edit, flutter, control the pace of speech - there is significant difficulty in the way they express themselves. They edit themselves all day, and when they do not - self-confidence goes down, and fears and anxieties float. That gap every day. "
And that's not the only thing that bothers you about them.
"True. I'm bothered by the so-called 'rating generation'. Every day they check how many likes they got on photos they uploaded and how many views their ticketing videos got. Many more Dudu Topaz stories, with children experiencing significant crises.
"What happens when you suddenly lose followers in Tiktok? The stories about reality stars who, for example, were in 'Big Brother' and then fell apart - I recognize today in children aged 12-11.
The fear of losing ratings is no longer the domain of TV people, but of every boy and girl on social media.
This is also where the role of the adults responsible for providing tools for strengthening self-worth comes into play, even when there is a decrease in views and likes. "
And everything becomes more complex when teens are in more than one network.
"The previous generation, Generation Y, had Facebook. But as you say, today's young people are already skipping 4-3 social networks. They run Tiktok, upload photos to Instagram, maintain a YouTube channel, and on each platform they have several channels of expression - Story, shorts. In Tiktok, for example, you can become a star in a day, in an instant. Suddenly you get hundreds of thousands of views of the video, and you do not understand where it came from. Everything has grown a lot, and there is also a matter of responsibility. "YouTubers, for example, part of the job is the understanding that one day the fame they receive may end."
Talk about everything.
"The Queen of Tiktok", Charlie D'Almio / Photo: From Tiktok,
What's going on behind the door?
Part of the responsibility you are talking about, in the sense of great power and alongside it great responsibility, is also felt among the young people you work with? Are they aware of the great power that these platforms have?
"Ultimately, these guys open a camera and say whatever comes to them. One of the YouTubers I mention in the book was a guest on a panel of marketers and teachers, and told about videos in which she talks about mental disorders, because this is the generation that deals most with worlds of anxiety," Depression and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and when they have no one to talk to, YouTubers open a camera and talk.
"One of the mothers in the audience asked the same young woman - 'Who is your name to open a camera and talk about anxieties and mental disorders among thousands of girls?'
"And the girl replied, 'What do you mean by name? I'm opening a camera for those who have no one to talk to. I'm talking and the girls are connecting.'
The intensification of the discourse on mental disorders among teenagers is probably also related to the fact that network stars are talking about the subject. Charlie D'Almio, for example, "the queen of ticks," revealed on Instagram that she suffers from eating disorders.
"First, the phenomenon of FOMO, the anxiety of missing out, contributes to the development of anxiety and depression. As for the discourse on mental disorders in the world of adolescents - it is not seen enough in prime time. I come across ticketing videos of boys and girls being hospitalized in mental institutions, and they have thousands of followers. Suddenly they find sympathy. You hear more and more young people talking about taking psychiatric drugs, Ciprofloxacin for example. This is also true of discourse on sexual harassment, sexual violence. Things are talking. "
And the parents are not in this discourse? Eventually, young people open a camera because there was no one else to listen to them.
"Parental role matters, but unfortunately there are not enough defense mechanisms or a responsible adult. Many times parents do not even know about videos their children upload. I ask parents - why do not you open the child's YouTube channel and see what he uploads? You understand the absurdity. ? The child uploads videos from the room next door, and the parent has no idea. Parents today have a psychological barrier to watching content that their children upload, but it's entirely in their hands.
"There is a great opportunity for parents because parenting today is very strong, and children need parents. Parents today are more connected and young. You sit in the living room and see that mom, girl and grandma have the same cell phone, and they also buy bazaar. Generational gaps are not as they used to be."
In the book you talk about how the parental role is very relevant in the age of Pike News.
"True. Teens have a very advanced 'bullshit detector', they recognize when they are trying to mix them up. And the family cell can be the best place to build trust. This is doubly true in an era where the president and prime minister sat in jail and there is really no one to believe. So this is a great opportunity. "Bringing the parents back to the center, turning them into role models. And that is true, by the way, also of teachers, who can position themselves in the same position as parents."
Warranty and Rating.
Young people on the phone / Photo: GettyImages,
Tesla's parable
In what other ways can you build trust with teens who no longer believe in anyone, and then also manage to motivate them?
"You talk to teens and they just want them to talk to them at eye level. I find myself talking to teens in honest and genuine conversations just because I really listen to them. I think they lack it - someone who will listen and not judge them.
When it comes to motivation, to refine it - there are two key values that make it possible to produce youthful identification and movement: belonging and meaning. When you make teens belong to an idea, a central agenda, a group, when you make them feel meaningful - this is the moment where They form part of their personal identity. "
This is interesting, because more than once we also encounter a more superficial form of thought with respect to teenagers.
As an advertiser and marketer, you probably come across advertisers who appeal to the lowest common denominator.
"There's a superficial thought around them. Like you said, if it's in the advertising world, there's a thought about running them through likes. But the story is much more complex: they are driven by agendas, they need to tell a coherent story. Even when I work with brands, I Ask them - on the basis of what agenda do you want to address the youth? What do you want them to say about you on the value, social level? We at Tink have an example of working with a brand of sanitary napkins. A common value that we want to promote - female empowerment. "
This is the concept of the brand movement that you mention in the book.
"True. It's a combination of the brand and the word movement, which connects to the worlds of youth movements in which I grew up. It's a combination of the commercial voice and the voice of the youth movement guide in the past."
Is
there also an agenda for the sale and marketing of coffee, beeswax or chocolate? This is one of the complaints against advertisers - that marketers make young people demand or buy products that are not necessarily suitable for them, or consume less healthy food. This is an arena where a lot of slime is thrown.
"Any brand that has an agenda, a message to the world and the ability to connect people - will be more successful as a brand. If we leave the food products for a moment - then Tesla, for example, is a fascinating case. At the end there is a very rich person Talk to teens about Tesla - they'm excited. They have a broad perception of this brand - that it contributes to a greener environment, protects the planet. It's an agenda talk. They say 'I want to ride this car, it's cool and cool, And I also know I'm doing something good for the planet.
"By the way, it goes beyond advertising brands. Lady Gaga, for example, releases songs but in the end - treats her works as social paths. She conveys an agenda to the world, and her fan base has already earned the nickname 'Little Monsters'. They love her music, At the same time, they are a cohesive community, with a central agenda based on accepting the other and the different. "
These are very interesting things, but it is still not clear how to create an agenda for a less healthy brand, food saturated for example with the same red stickers.
"Today, the leading food companies in Israel are attentive to the variety of consumers and needs, and also attentive to the discourse around the world of food consumption and marketing. At the end of the day, when I sit at marketing tables, marketing executives are also parents who connect to the social responsibility discourse. Agenda is part of their vision.
"By the way, I do not think that products that may be perceived as bad or unhealthy should be cleared from the world. They have a place but their marketing should be responsible. I like chocolate and chocolate food like most of the world. So it is painted in my eyes to go against companies that market chocolate or other snacks. "They have a place in our lives, of course. And the food manufacturers understand that they have a responsibility that goes beyond the sale of chocolate or another snack. To me, this is a welcome change that we are witnessing, which is part of a long and important road."
Agents of change.
Kindergarten children / Photo: Gideon Markovich,
Spotify instead of McDonalds
How do you as an advertiser deal with the fact that Generation Z communicates more in visualization and audio, but hardly in text?
"In Israel we do not feel it completely yet, but this is a generation for which sound is such an essential thing. Today many teenagers live almost exclusively through sound. A decade ago the leading youth brands were Coca-Cola and McDonald's. Then Google, Microsoft and Apple ousted them. Do you know what the biggest youth brands are today? Netflix, Spotify and YouTube.
"There's a crazy growth in the world of podcasts, and at the same time - the videos on Tiktok and YouTube, for example, have become short. The various platforms give vertical content, long - short and fast. In general, content brands give real value, and when you communicate with teens - content is king."
Towards the end of the book you also mention the alpha generation, born in 2010 and beyond. He is expected to play an important role in modern society.
"The alpha generation has already received the very binding title - the generation that will change the world. I look at what is happening in my three - year - old girl's kindergarten, and in general what is happening in the kindergartens. Take the proud community as an example - today, in almost every kindergarten, you see model pictures "Others of families, for example father and father or mother and mother. It happens in almost every kindergarten."
Not only in Tel Aviv?
"Almost all over the country. In the past the reality was far from it and did not allow such models to be known at such young ages. Beyond that, every kindergarten today has a child who is sensitive to peanuts, gluten. Commercial brands.
"Giant brands like Barbie look completely different from the past and encourage a multi-dimensional perception of beauty. Lego has launched 'Lego Pride'. Even in the children's channel it is not understood that there are tide figures. "Or another that is fuller. Our children are already living this multidimensional reality, but we did not grow up that way. So this generation, the alpha generation, are the agents of change and this is the real revolution happening. If we do not spoil them - they will change the world."
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