As the parent of three young kids — ages eight, four, and two — I have become accustomed to not getting my way. When it comes to TV shows, we watch the Disney Channel significantly more than we watch ESPN. When it comes to dining out, those days of sitting at the bar and enjoying a cocktail while waiting for a table are now spent standing in line and making sure that we get meals with two boy prizes and one girl prize. And do not get me started on bed times, listening to the radio, and homework.
It appears as though I should also start including them on my next car loan and other big financial purchases.
A recent study indicated that one in three tweens (kids between the ages of seven and 13) are “extremely influential” on household purchases big and small, ranging from what movie to see (been there, done that) to family vacations and technology purchases. More than 25% of those tweens surveyed have shopped online during the past year, and 59% want a customized product over one available to the mass market.
Auto lenders should take notes, given that these kids are likely to be with their parents when those parents visit dealerships or start surfing around online for new cars or car loans. Kids armed with iPods or smartphones are also able to do their own research and find out information that mom and dad might not be able to find.
Lenders should also pay attention to this market because they are the next generation of car buyers. And if tweens today are acting this independently and entrepreneurially, then that trend is only likely to strengthen as they get older and become potential car-buyers.
The consultancy that released the report recommended that companies should start building a relationship with tweens now, “even if what they’re selling doesn’t seem imminently useful to kids. Earning their trust now will have sticking power when these young individuals enter adulthood.”
Want more advice for reaching this market? Make sure you are innovative and digitally evolving, make them feel secure, and appeal to their optimistic nature.
We’ve written a lot about the importance of appealing to younger car buyers. Maybe lenders should start aiming their sights even younger.
Michael Duke is correct when he states that finance companies and banks have profited from this type of customer for years. Unfortunately the person whose SS # was taken by Montes-Rodriquez was not a part of this tacit agreement. It was the consumer that brought the issue to light, not a lender whining about a defaulted contract that they failed to verify. What is illegal is in fact illegal. This is a bit of law making from the bench.
You might want to have your kids start to price out the cost of auto insurance. It appears that you may hit a stretch when all three are on your policy at once. I read an article not too long ago that stated that many children (about 25%) are on their parents policies while their “child” is in their late 20’s!
Years ago I testified before the US House Banking committee on behalf of CBA about my banks program of offering low cost auto and homeowners insurance (through our grandfathered insurance agency). We beat the 5 big direct writers over 75% of the time on pricing. We had to stop selling it when we sold the bank as a SOP to the Federal Reserve to approve the sale. It was becoming a very nice profit center for us.
My point is that “insurance” is a big part of the monthly cost of cars when teens (especially boys) are involved.