WHEN

DID
TEEN
BECOME
A
MARKET
CATEGORY
?
Your teenager is being bombarded with
thousands of messages every dayand
many of them were bought and paid for by
companies looking to get into their pockets.
When did an age group become a target for
billion-dollar corporations? And what does
it have to say about our hearts?
By Ryan Mason
10 PARENTING TEENS

y kids are amazingly frugal. This is in large part to their moms example.
However, I have come to expect frequent conversations with them that
begin with, Dad, can I have a? I have been asked to make worthwhile purchases
ranging from smartphones to video games to an adorable mini micro pig. Where
does this sense of entitlement come from? Allow me to introduce you to the
modern teenager.

TEENAGERS ARISE
The rise of the American teenager is a fairly recent phenomenon. It was a cultural
and economic shift that gave way to the modern teen we know today. That is
why you will not find the word teenager in a dictionary before the 1950s. So
whathappened?
There were many factors: the move away from an agrarian society caused by the
Industrial Revolution, mandatory public education, and the economic surge brought on
by World War II all played a part in defining this age group.
Stephanie Coontz, author of The Way We Never Were describes a new
mentality, which she labels the new American ideal. This new ideal included
the belief that most respectable families should exempt their youth from the
expectation of meaningful labor. Parents wanted their children to have the things
that they never did.
This new perspective became coupled with the fact that youth were now in control
of enough spending money to make a noticeable impact on the economy. It did not
take long for marketers to go after this new segment with age-focused marketing.
Teenagers had discretionary income and the market wanted it.

ITS ALL ABOUT THATMONEY

ThinkStock

Marketing to teens is no longer an afterthought. Companies have become

sophisticated in their approach and have earmarked millions of dollars for
researching their teen audience. One global marketing firm called Outbrain is very
transparent about the benefits of teen marketing. They state on their website, By
correctly marketing your company to teenagers, you have the ability to increase your
sales and profits you need to adjust your marketing efforts to center them around
teens needs, push your marketing on teens, and create excitement and interest in
your product.
Retailers and credit card companies hire college students to help them
promote their products on campus. These students are known as brand
ambassadors or campus evangelists and their job is to generate interest in a
particular brand. These evangelists have a mission of reaching college students
where they live. This may sound harmless, but on-campus marketing is a very
lucrative business: College students typically spend close to $40 billion annually
on everything from clothing to computers. Teens are often caught unaware that

the attention they are receiving is an

intentional marketing tactic aimed at
separating them from their money.

I DESERVE IT!
There is a voice in all of us that
screams, I deserve it! Millennials
have largely grown up in high-praise
environments. Their experience tells
them that everyone gets a trophy for
simply participating. They have lived a
life virtually free of responsibility and
accountability. They feel entitled to
have what they want. They deserve it!
This attitude is at the heart of the
human condition. We are inherently
selfish and prone to want what we
cannot have. My children want a mini
micro pig without a second thought of
how they will afford it or the associated
responsibility attached to the purchase.
They like the idea of it.
I like the idea of having stuff, too.
I once heard, It is OK to have stuff;
just dont let stuff have you. That is
easier said than donethere is a fine
line between possessions becoming
servant or master. Materialism
elevates our own comfort and physical
possessions over our relationship
with God. That is a form of idolatry.
Jesus taught that the greatest

TEENS ARE OFTEN

CAUGHT UNAWARE THAT
THE ATTENTION THEY
ARE RECEIVING IS AN
INTENTIONAL MARKETING
TACTIC AIMED AT
SEPARATING THEM FROM
THEIR MONEY.

MAY 2015 11

commandment in the Law is to, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with
all your soul, and with all your mind (Matt. 22:37).
I would never refer to myself as materialistic, but that is exactly what I
become when I elevate stuff over spiritual values. Materialism is fueled by the
false belief that possessions can make us happy. We can try to overcome all
sorts of hurts with retail therapy, but peace will not come until it is granted by
the One who made us.

THE PARENT FACTOR

Parenting is really about training our children to leave. We have the privilege and
responsibility of being the primary spiritual formation leaders of our children.
That involves helping our teens identify and avoid danger as they mature. We
teach our younger children to look both ways before crossing the street and
not to take candy from strangers. We should also model and teach our teens to
avoid the perils of materialistic idolatry. It starts with us as parents. Ultimately,
our goal as parents is to lead our children to love and worshipGod.
The perspective that we have about money and possessions reveals much about
our relationship with God. Have we fallen prey to the comparison trap where our
success in life is measured against our accumulation of stuff relative to someone
else we know? The Bible never teaches that wealth is evil, but it does caution against
serving two masters. No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate
one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be
slaves of God and of money (Matt. 6:24).
Solomon should have been able to find happiness in his wealth as the richest
person alive. However, his experience was lacking. He declared, Whoever loves money
never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income
(Eccl. 5:10). Solomon concluded that we are to fear God and keep His commands,
because this is for all humanity (Eccl. 12:13).
The way we shepherd our teens will either contribute to their entitlement
mentality or help them develop a healthy sense of stewardship. We need to help our
teens redefine key words like value, success, and contentment. It is a radical idea that
everything we need is found in our relationship with God, but Christianity has always
been a radical faith. A radical faith that produces supernatural peace. Let us lead our
teens to become so consumed by the things of God that the things of the world no

12 PARENTING TEENS

MATERIALISM IS FUELED
BY THE FALSE BELIEF THAT
POSSESSIONS CAN MAKE
US HAPPY. WE CAN TRY
TO OVERCOME ALL SORTS
OF HURTS WITH RETAIL
THERAPY, BUT PEACE
WILL NOT COME UNTIL IT IS
GRANTED BY THE ONE WHO
MADE US.
longer satisfy. How will you begin this
conversation with your teen?
To get the conversation started with
your teen on money and materialism,
see our conversation starters on page 41.
RYAN MASON serves as Minister of
Education at Hillcrest Baptist Church in
Dallas, Texas and loves to write about
real life issues and help others apply biblical truths to daily living. He is married
to Kilie and they are blessed with two
amazing children. You can connect with
Ryan on Twitter @ryankmason.