Asian-American Youth focus of Marketing Study

Malena Amusa

Asian-American Youth focus of Marketing Study

There are several things Asian-American youth just hate and love, according to SnapDragon Consultants, a branding and consumer research firm, and artist activist Kate Rigg.

Together, they conducted a supposedly sweeping survey of Asian-American students aged 14-23 asking about their feelings and dreams, Yahoo News reported today. Not-so-conclusively, they produced this list: “10 Things Every Brand Should Know About Asian Americans.”

No, I’m not kidding. Check it out. I really like #7 that basically trades one stereotype for another. And number the #5 News flash: Blacks and Asians call White people, well, “white people.”

1. Many Asian-American youth feel excluded and misunderstood by most
brands. It’s made worse by the fact that they see advertisers actively
wooing the African-American and Hispanic markets.

2. Mixed race kids are proudly identifying as Hapa, a once derogatory word
in Hawaiian to mean “half.” Hapa is also slang for marijuana in
Japanese (spelled Happa). Hapa is supplanting terms like Amerasian,
biracial, and blasian.

3. Asian-American youth are secret fans of “easy listening” adult
contemporary music. Lite FM is a hidden passion.

4. There’s a “hero gap” among Asian-American kids, which is being filled
for many by activists from other cultures. Martin Luther King is a role
model and hero to many young Asian-Americans.

5. Most Asian-American kids refer to white people as “white people” the
same way African-Americans do.

6. Underage gambling is huge. The “new” American poker obsession is
nothing new to Asian-American kids. Gambling has a long history in
Asian culture. Many students Rigg spoke with are avid online gamblers
and card players. Some organize private online poker tournaments.

7. Asian-American kids want an end to the hyper-nerdy images of themselves
on TV and want to see more punked-out skater and graffiti DJ images
which reflect a different energy. The feeling is: Enough with the math
geeks, future doctors and violinists. Asian-American kids crave street
credibility — not just academic accolades.

8. Asian-American kids universally hate the question: Where are you from
— especially since the answers are usually something like
“Westchester” or “Boston.”

9. All things Korean are hot and getting hotter. Fashion. Foods. DJs.
Online communities. Korea is the new Japan.

10. The 15 minutes of seemingly benign American Idol fame for William Hung
had a surprisingly negative effect on Asian-American students. There’s
a feeling that Hung perpetuated the worst stereotypes about Asian
people and gave non-Asians permission to indulge in two years of
racial stereotyping and mocking.

…Now that’s news for Chinese New Year and Black History Month…

Posted at 9:56 AM, Feb 14, 2007 in News | Permalink | View Comments

Comments

yeah uh it may not be a revelation to YOU that asian kids call white people "white people" but it is to the marketers and media makers who have decided to lump the asian american demographic in with their white consumers= no responsibility to present images of asian americans = no attention to their needs as consumers and experiences as asian AMERICANS = filmakers like Better Luck Tomorrow's director being told in a studio meeting that his film would be better with an all white cast because there is NO ASIAN DEMOGRAPHIC separate from the WHITE audience.

I dont know about you but I am tired of being lumped by white people in with white people and then having to see exotic images of asians as "other". This is the most important insight and ps. white people have NO CONCEPT that there is even asian american culture whether it be hip hop or anything else.

Wake up and smell the assimilation my friend. By asian for asian is not going to make a damn difference in getting the A/PI culture the credit and time it deserves in the pop culture, media culture and consumer culture into which we are pouring hard earned dollars.