In today’s society it’s become more and more apparent that teenagers have a massive amount of disposable income, more so than their parents seem to have. Is it any wonder that marketing companies have been targeting the youth market with such vigour? It’s a very affluent market, and one that generate huge profits for companies smart enough to capitalise on it, such gadget and technology companies.

Because of the way family structures and family units have changed over the past few years, the wealth that seems to have befallen the teenager has increased. This has led them to spend more on goods, services and disposable items.

Recent research has suggested that the teen market in Canada is 4 million strong, and they spent a staggering $14 billion in 2006.

This means the average Canadian teen has roughly $500 per month to spend. When you consider that they have diverse income streams such as pocket money from parents, part time jobs, money from grand parents and stepparents, it’s not hard to see how they manage to amass such spending power.

The biggest market teens are spending their money on is in technology, such as mobile phones, iPods and MP3 players. Teens are even acting as council for their technophobe parents, so when the teen isn’t actually buying the technology product, they’re the decision maker in any purchase.

This means that any company looking to drive sales of technology products needs to appeal to the youth market. If they’re not buying the product themselves, they’ll most likely have the final say in the decision.