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| They even tweet each other! |
While both Barbie and Ken seem to have fairly active accounts with 1,359 and 324 tweets respectively I am curious as to who Mattel is seeking to connect with by using Twitter. I would think Mattel would want Barbie to connect with the audience that primarily plays with her, little girls. I will be the first to admit I am not really into Twitter and as such I have no idea what the primary age of the users is. However I really can't believe that the little 6 year old girls who I imagine play with Barbie are on Twitter.
So that again leads to the question of who is Mattel seeking to connect with? The general public? Adults who have the ability to purchase a Barbie for the children in their lives? That is my guess, but I would love to hear other thoughts too. Who do you think Mattel is trying to reach?
-M
Update: Barbie said yes! So it's official, Barbie and Ken are back together. Mattel even made special commemorative dolls to mark the occasion. I found them in Walmart recently.
The front and back of the box.
I couldn’t help but laugh after reading this story! Your question is a very interesting one. I didn’t even think what the target audience might be! Clearly its not for children playing with Barbie. After thinking about this, I think Barbie and Kens Twitter accounts are just for fun. Maybe to make people laugh and give them something to read while their bored or something because clearly the stories are made up. It seems like it’s almost a story that they have created here for girl (and maybe boys) who once played with Barbie. I think it’s a fun concept!
ReplyDeleteI actually had a conversation with a friend not long after I read this and she said the same thing. She said that she thought that they were probably created mostly to catch the attention of women who used to play with Barbie and Ken and remind them of the fun they had. Maybe by doing that adults will purchase Barbie over say a Bratz doll.
ReplyDeleteI do find it interesting that if you go look at their tweets they are basically plugging other companies. Ken tweeted about using an iTunes gift card the other day. They are very interesting accounts that's for sure.
I have to say that this strikes me as a tad odd but at the same time has me pretty interested into what Barbie and Ken could possibly have to say. I have to agree with Sarah that these accounts are probably just for fun because I can not really see how or who Mattel would be marketing here. I think it's cute but I can't say that I would start to follow Barbie on Twitter.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure their accounts are just for fun nostalgic purposes! I remember thinking the same thing when they made that big public announcement about Barbie and Ken officially ending their relationship. Probably just Matel's way of keeping them relevant. Interesting post!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post, I actually singed into Twitter to see who is following Barbie and Ken. And the majority of their followers are not children but rather people who, I’m assuming, are using the page for “nostalgic” or entertainment purposes. To add to the discussion about who is running the page, I think that it has to be someone who works to Matel, maybe someone in PR (or an intern). This is because other characters, like Shamu, have Twitter accounts that are run by PR personnel. But maybe there is a HUGE Barbie and Ken fan that has a lot of time on their hands.
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