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What are the main interests of 8-12 year old kids from COLOMBIA? Where are they active on Youtube, Instagram, Facebook or other Social Media Channels? On which devices and at what time?
Hello! Thank you for your question on central interests and social media and digital usage habits of 8-12 year old kids in Columbia! Direct information on this demographic was difficult to locate, but we found that Colombian use of internet and social media is rising rapidly and that Colombian teens, especially younger teens, use social media to construct unique self image, "[collect] moments", enjoy stories, and follow celebrities. Android is the software of choice for smart phones and other devices, and young people use them to stay connected on broad audience social platforms and individual conversations alike throughout the day, most often in Spanish. Please see below for a deeper dive of our findings.
METHODOLOGY
After exhaustive research of a variety of sources including academic databases, corporate websites,industry reports, government reports and databases, regulatory filings, trusted media sites, user forums and review sites, we were not able to find in-depth results specific to Colombian youth in the 8-12 year old age group. Most of the information available on this demographic portrays their recruitment efforts by the rebellion group FARC and the situation of those youth in poverty. The information we concentrated on below, however, concerns general Colombian internet and social media use patterns and Colombian teen leisure activities. Although this is indirect information regarding your target findings, our hope is that it will move you closer to the data you are looking for and toward making appropriate decisions.
Another methodology point I want to make clear is that many of the sources cited are originally in Spanish. Because my Spanish literacy is minimal, I translated the webpages before quoting and citing them. While I worked to find the best translation, I encourage you to delve into the attached articles if you're curious about the original text.
COLOMBIAN 8-12 YEAR OLDS
Information we did locate specific to this age group in Colombia shows they are highly focused on the latest trends and fashions, "adolescents at a global level" and "posh tweens" who are "victims of any trend in a massive way".
Quite relevant to their social media use, this group of tweens "show a particular interest in everything theatrical, for which the magnet to attract them as consumers is an element of performance. Even better if they can participate too," according to one research group who compared sociocultural differences Colombian citizens of various ages.
GENERAL SOCIAL MEDIA USE IN COLOMBIA
Colombians as a whole use the internet and social media in equal numbers with respect to gender. As of 2014, Colombia was the "third most digitally developed" nation in Central and South America with 57.3% of the population using the internet, behind only Brazil and Mexico, and its internet use had been growing at a consistent ~12.9 percent for several years running. Further, 63.8% of the population accessed Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media sites in 2014, with 22.5 million Colombians using the internet and 22 million Colombian Facebook accounts at that time. In 2015 that number rose to 24 million Facebook users, with 4.2 million on Twitter. 100% of those surveyed report Spanish as their preferred language online. Relatively small numbers access Facebook and Twitter in English--2.1 million--and only 250,000 report using these online platforms in Portugese.
In August 2014, 16.5% of internet traffic came from mobile phones, with an additional 2.5% from tablets and other devices. In 2015, 16 million Colombians accessed Facebook, Twitter, or both on an Android device, and only 1.5 million people used IOS and Blackberry each.
Google launched the Youtube Kids mobile app in Spanish in Colombia in June 2016, after having released it in Argentina and Mexico three months earlier. With 10 million users worldwide, the app's targeting suggests not only market interest but increasing use in the last several months. Social Breakers was a useful resource for researching Youtube subscription rates in Colombia for brands and platforms popular to the tween age group. Here is the link if you'd like to research other specific brands, and I've included a selection popular to this age group below:
LEGO
- Subscribers : 2,445,369
- Total uploaded video views : 4,141,918,370
Angry Birds
- Subscribers : 1,802,555
- Total uploaded video views : 2,903,530,260
Kids TV HD EggVideos.com
- Total uploaded video views : 1,910,128,300
TOBOTYOUNGTOYS
- Subscribers : 511,340
- Total uploaded video views : 960,983,823
TEENAGE SOCIAL MEDIA HABITS
Information and statistics on social media use and habits of 8-12 year olds in Colombia was not available, but we wanted to share related findings of the social media use and habits of 13-19 year old Colombians.
In order of preference and use starting with the highest, Colombian teens favor Youtube, Facebook, and Instagram most. A typical teen has between 6 and 10 social media accounts on various platforms, with distinct uses for each. The author characterized typical social media usage as, "When they wake up, the first thing they check out is their conversations in WhatsApp and before they go to sleep, they give priority to Facebook."
Teens usually share fun moments in crowded places over WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Facebook Messenger and share "more intimate events, in less popular places" via Snapchat, Tinder, Vine, and similar outlets. (This information is as of October 2015, when Vine was still in use.) Older teens used Tinder more frequently than younger individuals, and "a significant majority" felt Snapchat had little use if they weren't using it to send and receive illicit photos.
Teens' opinions focused on Twitter as a place "to express feelings and to follow famous people" but not to connect to peers, have fun, or--particularly in Colombia, the report notes--gather news. Instagram functions as a representation of self, uniqueness, and method to gain peer approval, holding high effect on a teen's self esteem, according to researchers. Colombian teens between 14 and 16 were more likely to use Ask.fm to ask questions they preferred not to ask in person than those between 17 and 19 years old.
Another distinguishing characteristic the 14-16 year old group exhibited, in contrast to the 17-19 year olds, was assigning more credibility and popularity to celebrities who post frequently on Youtube, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Almost one-fifth of the teens sampled identified following particular celebrities because those individuals represented their goals for the future and can identify with them. Forty percent "rely on content" shared by celebrities, while less than 20% "give credibility" to recommendations their friends share among the various channels.
These adolescents were characterized as "collectors of moments" in the report's discussion. Following in suit, the most relevant figures and acquaintances they follow "are funny and 'always have fun stories to tell'".
TEEN AND TWEEN FREE TIME ACTIVITIES
I wanted to include information that is less recent but gives further background on youth habits and interests in Colombia. Two different studies of youth 8-12 (in 2001) and 12-16 (in 2010) years old pointed to watching TV, listening to music, and playing sports (usually informally, with only 25% of students playing sports for a school team) as adolescents' most frequent pursuits outside of school and studying. The earlier study focuses most on sports with 92% of 8-12 year old boys actively participating, most frequently in football/futbol, and 79% of girls those ages playing sports, most often basketball. Other popular activities included watching TV for around 80%, listening to music for an average of 41%, and talking with friends for an average of 31% of 8-12 year olds. In contrast, the 2010 study, though it did not use a large enough sample size for comparable statistics, ranked listening to music as the highest pursuit of 12-16 year old youth, followed by watching TV. It showed significantly less time devoted to playing sports.
CONCLUSION
While specific, recent data on 8-12 year old youth interests and social media use in Colombia is difficult to find, the county as a whole is rapidly increasing its internet use and social media engagement, with teens and in particular young teens using social media to construct self image, collect moments, enjoy stories, connect to friends, and watch celebrities. Before the penetration of social media across the market, youth pastimes centered around TV, music, friends, and playing informal sports; these still likely play great part in their lives today.
Other questions you may find helpful that Wonder would be eager to help with are further information on Colombian youth social media use as a whole, or how and when youth start using social media, internet, smart phones, computers, etc., in Colombia, Latin America, or around the world. Thank you again for choosing Wonder!