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At age 17, Meghan has several hundred friends on Facebook and MySpace. She shares "vids" and "pics" through YouTube and Flikr and often studies with friends over AIM. Meghan reads Shakespeare on SparkNotes and keeps a blog on her second MySpace account, which she hides from mom and dad. If it’s out there, she StumbledUpon it, Reddit and Digg(ed) it. If it was del.icio.us, she added it to her Super Wall. Meghan Twitters and desperately wants an iPhone. She “hearts” iLike, hates e-mail and loves to "txt."

Meghan is a .teen.

At roughly the same age, the Web and today’s teens are symbiotic peers. Teens demand increasingly sophisticated personal technologies to build and extend their social circles. As innovations mature from memes and novelties into trends and norms, online communication evolves.

According to research from the PEW Internet and American Life Project:

• 93% of American teens use the Internet
• Of these online teens, 55% use social networking sites and 63% have an online profile
• 94% of online youth use the Internet for school research
• 90% of online teens use a family computer, only 53% of which have filters
• 84% of teens own at least one personal media device
• 63% own a cell phone and 51% have an iPod or mp3 player

Modern teens share many of the same motivations as their pre-digital counterparts. They seek to socialize and learn in engaging on- and offline environments that permit and validate their self-expression. Digital spaces provide an extended social habitat for young users around the world who have been, and continue to be, reared alongside the Web.

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Why .teens Are Online

Despite appearances, teens are not wholly possessed by technology. Many are comfortable with personal devices such as laptops, mp3 players and mobile phones, but they also bring developing maturity and constantly shifting attentions to their user experiences. Many are easily bored by websites they perceive to be ordinary, instead favoring exclusive web spaces where they can personalize their interactions. They want web content to be engaging, findable and usable, and also offer opportunities for the following:

Invention

The Web is a repository for creative works and teens are among the most active producers. Many artistic, web-savvy teens have parlayed their online inventions into major offline successes. Online, esteem comes from recognition and peer validation. For young artists and entrepreneurs the potential for rapid, widespread attention is paramount.

Assertion

Derivative works such as mashups and re-mixes are equally prevalent online. The Web enables teens to assert their individuality through the reinvention of existing content. Today’s most-watched YouTube videos can spawn legions of offspring that include parodies, homages, and critiques. Teens also are active commentators, posting on blogs and forums in subject areas ranging from health and news to sports, entertainment, and politics.

Connection

Humans are social; the Web is a social technology. Teens were among the first to understand and exploit this relationship and the trend shows no sign of abating. Online teens have their own subcultures and languages expressed in shorthand, symbols, and slang. They overwhelmingly favor instant and text messaging over the more archaic email.

Education

The Web is a valuable partner in education. Teens still listen to parents and teachers when it comes to learning, and they actively pursue online resources that support their academic goals. If a teacher suggests it, often a teen will visit it.

Consumption

Though most teens rely on parents for financial support, a vast majority visit retail sites and use the Internet for independent product research. Teens are active consumers and they use the Web to inform their purchasing.

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What .teens Expect from their Online Experiences

Teens frequent their favored sites for a reason. They want to have flexibility in their means of communication and look to websites that satisfy that demand. In addition to flexibility, teens want online environments to be:

Boundless

Online teens routinely bounce between computers, mp3 players and iPods, cell phones and video gaming consoles. They want convenient and real-time access to personalized content, which creates new challenges for user experience designers. Web content must be easily adaptable and transmittable through a variety of means.

Persistent

In addition to flexibility, teens demand 24/7 connection. Whereas pre-digital relationships relied heavily on memory and storytelling, today’s teens insist upon instantaneous transmission of news and gossip over permanently accessible channels. A connection stoppage is a grave offense.

Simulated

Virtual spaces continue to increase in sophistication and teens continue to push the boundaries between their real and simulated selves. The avatar-based experience – in Teen Second Life, for example – allows these young users to extend their online identities in greater visual and graphical detail.

Exclusive

Teens seek to create and manipulate content through online subcultures away from parents, teachers, administrators and other adults. They don’t want to be categorized as adults yet abhor treatment as children. This tension pervades the teen user experience.

Sophisticated

Teens are comfortable with portable technologies. They are increasingly aware of privacy and safety issues online, making them reticent to release personal information. They are susceptible to information overload and favor better, rather than more, content. Flashy graphics and videos aren’t enough to attract teens – they can easily see through the artifice to bad content.

Applying the .teen Matrix

Teen audiences and their online motivations are in constant motion. As teens mature, younger generations replace them, bringing new impulses and characteristics to the fore. Today’s teens actively participate in a Web they perceive as customizable and ever-present. They demand high-quality, relevant, innovative, exclusive, customizable and engaging content that is accessible through a variety of digital means.

In addition to being readily searchable and obtainable, user experiences that satisfy the basic needs and motivations of teen audiences have the greatest chances of cultivating them as future users.

Use the .teen matrix to evaluate the relevance of your web content to today’s teen audiences: 

Content	Invention	Assertion	Connection	Education	Consumption
Boundless
Persistent
Simulated
Exclusive
Sophisticated

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What .teens Are Telling Us

Teens have a unique social orientation to digital technologies that condition their online experiences. As they mature into adults, their youth experiences continue to inform their online behaviors. Listening to teens today will help user experience designers create sites that remain relevant tomorrow:

"Don't call us kids. Ever."

A website that labels teens as “kids” has invited the “kiss of death” (Nielsen). Sites should offer teen audiences simple, effective and audience-appropriate content that is clear and relatable.

"Be discoverable."

Teens don’t want “others” impinging on their exclusive spaces. They will find sites that are relevant, interesting, and searchable. User experience designers should ensure content is search engine optimized, interesting, and innovative.

"Invest in our education."

Teens use the Web for education. If a teacher recommends a site as part of the classroom framework, they most likely will visit it. Investing in quality educational content is a sure-fire way to reach teen audiences.

"Make it exclusive."

Teens want to feel valued and understood. They want sites that address their unique needs and offer them sophisticated content, yet in their own language. They want to relate with other teens and don't want those relationships to feel forced or enforced. Establishing a sense of intimacy and exclusivity will help attract them.

"Keep it simple."

Teens are still developing their research and literary skills. They favor sites that are simple, uncluttered, well-organized and that avoid over-saturation with flashy graphics and animations. Focus on providing high-quality, engaging content that is easily browsed, memorable and can be shared.

"Don't fake it."

Teens favor quality content over flashy content. As is the case for most online audiences, clutter and congestion also is a turn-off for teens. Web sites should be aesthetically interesting with visuals backed by original, evocative content.

"We are global."

Teens connect from all over the world and many serve as ambassadors for friends and family members who need technology and/or language assistance. Many global teens access sites from alternative means, such as mobile devices, so consider accessibility when building websites.

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Resources and References

Articles

Baig, E. C. "Study Shows Some Teens not as Tech-Savvy as Parents." USA Today. January 30, 2005. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-01-30-teens-usat_x.htm?id=2129

Holson, L. M. "Text Generation Gap: U R 2 Old (JK)." New York Times. March 9, 2008. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/business/09cell.html

Nielsen, J. "Usability of Websites for Teenagers." January 31, 2005. http://www.useit.com/alertbox/teenagers.html

PEW Internet and American Life Project. "A Timeline of Teens and Technology, presentation for Policy & Advocacy in the Schools Meeting." August 16, 2007. http://www.useit.com/alertbox/teenagers.html

Prensky, M. "'Engage Me or Enrage Me': What Today’s Learners Demand." September/October 2005. Educause Review. http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0553.pdf

Terdiman, D. "What Websites Do to Turn on Teens." Wired. February 9, 2005. http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2005/02/66514

Websites

Channel One. http://www.channelone.com

Digital Natives. http://www.digitalnative.org/Main_Page#What_is_the_Digital_Natives_project.3F

Los Angeles Public Library. http://www.lapl.org/ya/index.html

Northwestern Mutual Foundation. http://www.themint.org

Peace Corps. http://www.peacecorps.gov/teens

Planned Parenthood. http://www.teenwire.com

Spark Notes. http://www.sparknotes.com

Teen Second Life. http://teen.secondlife.com

The California State University. http://www.csumentor.com

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