Smartphones × Diversifying Interests = "Teen Curve"

The vertical axis represents "Attention/Buzz Level." Higher positions indicate stronger attention, but the trajectory remains steeply concentrated on a few items. The horizontal axis lists various topics of things, events, and people, positioned within speech bubbles on this diagram.

Among all generations, the strongest and longest-lasting curve (indicating diverse topics of interest) belongs to teenage influencers. The information they disseminate via YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, LINE LIVE, etc., while granular individually, collectively holds immense market impact. Understanding this teen curve structure—embodying both diversification and polarization—will be crucial for future marketing.

The movie "Your Name," released last year, recorded the top box office revenue in 2016. This work, which achieved popularity akin to the top of the teen curve, also attributes its success to the cumulative spread via SNS. As the internet has become even more widespread, consumers' interests are diversifying while simultaneously concentrating more intensely on topics with stronger attention and buzz.

How Information Spreads in the Era of Universal Sharing

The driving force behind this teen curve and the creation of trends is the general public—ordinary people who share information and recommend things to each other via SNS and other platforms. These individuals, who introduce recommendations to one another and spread information while branding themselves, are the disseminators. They are constantly searching for something to share each day (here, "share" is used as a broad term referring to passing information on to others, encompassing both online and offline word-of-mouth).

Within this landscape, numerous influencers have emerged, securing particularly strong positions as information sources. Communities are forming around these influencers, and we are seeing increasing instances where new trends originate from these small units.

Furthermore, in recent years, the digital environment, including SNS, has deepened significantly, making the topics visible to ordinary consumers more diverse. As this diversity becomes visible, everyone recognizes it, driving further diversification. To avoid being swept away by this branching flood of information, people rely on a human-centered guidepost for information: the influencer.

Teen Influencers Revolutionizing Media Structures

To gain perspective on the modern media landscape, understanding the role of teen influencers—influencers in their teens—may be the most direct path. As post-millennials, teen influencers are the quintessential children of an era defined by connecting through social media. Delving deeply into their world is the mission of this series.

By examining these individuals—who not only absorb influence but actively generate it, creating waves of trends—we aim to share profound insights into today's information landscape and practical knowledge for crafting communication, marketing, and promotional strategies.

This introductory installment has focused on somewhat conceptual discussions, but moving forward, we'll use interviews and in-depth coverage to paint a more concrete picture of teen influencers' mindsets and lifestyles. Stay tuned!

Collaboration with the High School Girl Pageant / Future Research Development

This project is a collaborative research effort between HJ, the organizer of the High School Girl Miss Contest and High School Boy Mister Contest, and our Dentsu Inc. Gal Lab. With HJ's cooperation, we are gathering research subjects and conducting interviews.

★High School Girl Pageant
Following SNS voting from October 5th to October 15th, photo booth voting and SHOWROOM judging are currently underway from October 27th to December 8th. Please keep an eye out!

★ High School Boys' Mr. Contest
A documentary series featuring the 10 finalists is currently airing on AbemaTV every Sunday from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Be sure to check this out too!