Who Determines what is "Cool"?

[v-boi2002]

In my marketing class, we went over how teenagers thought one thing was cool at one point, but then something else was cool at another point. The question is this:

Do teens determine what is "cool", then marketers make and promote those products?

or

Do marketers determine what they want to be "cool", then use marketing to tell teens what they should be buying?
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[xenon10]

No, I don't think it's either. I think it's the media. Media like artists, models and idols. Medias are a great influence to teenagers; I mean they're glued to it 24/7.

Usually, marketers follow what these teenagers view. SOme even take surveys teenagers for their preferences. So, I guess it's still teenagers. Haha

[v-boi2002]

But marketers sometimes use the media to help promote their products, don't they? Don't they get popular celebrities and such to help endorse their products?
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[Bowser]

Its a bit of both realy....advertising is nothing more than propoganda that influences us without us even realising it.
On the other hand, if a consumer no longer like somthing or thinks its no longer fashionable, then word of mouth can influence things a great deal.


For example, the way the pkmn franshise was boomed into the west and was advertised as being the best game/toy/anime about....we baught into that......but because it dragged on, many ppl started having more negative views about it, and thanks to word of mouth/enternet, it is seen in a bad light, despite the marketers trying their best to get it back into fashion.

So yeah...it goes hand in hand...

[XeroAlpha]

It's the teens I would say, because the marketers base their products on what teens are currently interested. But that's my opinion >_>

[omegavii]

There is no doubt that marketing/sales departments of corporations drive current popular trends. Individual teenagers does not have proper access channels to propagate their message, ie what is cool, across a wide medium. Whereas marketing departments can simply spend a few million on MTV and Clear Channel to advertise their products over and over and over again until people catches onto the message.

There are some exceptions and some trends are formed by word of mouth. Blogging for example. Most trends however, are directed by corporations in order to make profits.

[Ani_MaSTeR]

hmmm....
i guess its the industry that plants the ideas in the audiences head. then the audience buys it, then they walk around and everyone sees it. resulting in more people seeing/ buying, hence cycle repeat.
well, thats what i think anyways.
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[ch1nkaling]

Both, it's a cycle. Marketers send people to find unique teens whose styles they end up deeming special and cool. They then sell it back to teenagers who buy it and make that the new trend. but as soon as that settles as the new trend, something else will then be unique and special, thus marketers will sell that as the new cool, thus repeating the cycle.
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[P96Ambnl]

i determine what i think is cool O_o
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[Jin_Roh]

I do cause i say so...so there!!
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[xenon10]

hmmm...bowser's right. they come hand-in-hand, like jack and jill(lame comparison).

but some can be placed under classifications

example: wat i've said, media influences the teenagers...on clothes. they are the ones who determine what's hot and what's not in the fashion world.

when it comes to household or hygienic products, that's where the medis gets artists "to advertise" for them. amd as it progresses, it's still like the media influencing the kids. but they worked together.

was that understandable?

for me, it actually depends. i don't choose my clothes cuz their j lo's style, but whether it fits me. some people just don't know that tubes and tank tops don't look good on them. <<<those are fashion victims. XP

[v-boi2002]

Hmm. Perhaps I should have added a 'both' option.
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[the_waltz]

teens don't know jack about what's actually cool; neither does the media
i'm telling ya, it's the government that decides

[1ce]

What I believe is that the marketers give out the message that things are "cool" and certain teens obtain that message and use it at school or anywhere saying so and so is "cool". Its basically a cycle where the message is given by whatever company (I.E. Commercial or advertisements) and it gets to social groups as cool.

[v-boi2002]