Youth Tribes is a segmentation of the UK 16-24 market developed by Channel 4 to understand youth audiences. It identifies 23 tribes based on interviews with young people about influential groups in their areas. The tribes are grouped into 5 macro segments - Mainstream, Aspirant Mainstream, Alternative, Leading Edge, and Urban - to aid targeting. Detailed profiles of each segment are provided based on a survey of 4000 16-24s fused with TGI data. Examples show differences in attitudes, interests, and media consumption across segments.

1. Youth Tribes
2010

2. Background
Identifying the tribes
- Methodology
- Video
- The tribal map
Targeting using Youth Tribes
- Survey, TGI fusion and segmentation
- The macro segments
- Examples of tribal media
- Case study: Targeting the Aspirant Mainstream

3. Background

4. UK Tribes is a product of Channel
4’s ongoing ambition to
understand youth audiences
In a nutshell, it’s a segmentation of
the 16-24 market.
What makes it unique is that the
groups are described by young people
themselves, in their own terms.
This map was drawn by a
14 year old boy when
asked to describe his area.

5. Our first task was to
investigate which
tribes young people
identify with in 2010.
Identifying the tribes

6. We knew that some of the more niche
groups would be difficult to reach -
you’ll never find a Street Rat on an
Methodology… online research panel – so we decided
to hit the streets and interview the
young people we found there.
Interviews
• 200 in street vox pops
• London, Norwich, Cardiff, Liverpool, Glasgow
• Open questions about tribes, then prompted with list
Discussion Group
• 6 youth experts (journalists, researchers etc.)
• 6 young people from a wide range of backgrounds
• Structured discussion about current youth culture

7. First, we asked about the
factors which bring young
people together and create
tribes.
Then we asked respondents
which tribes could be found
in their area
Finally, we asked them what
tribe they belonged to.
This video can be found at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0E89CRoJmM&feature=player_embedded

8. In the end 23 tribes were
identified – 2 less than last year.
Get Paid Crew
Skaters Metalheads
DIYers
Blingers
Emos
Trackies
Sports Junkies Young Alts
Street Rats Scene Kids
Casuals Gamers
Chavs
Boy Racers Geeks
Ravers Indie Scenesters
Townies
Trendies Hipsters
Rahs Craft Kids

9. For detailed information on
all the tribes please visit the
website.
We’ve commissioned
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articles, photographs and
video content to bring each
group to life
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10. Having identified the tribes,
our second objective was to
develop a tool which would
help us target youth
audiences.
Targeting using
youth tribes

11. Previous experience has told us that
targeting at a tribal level is often too
complicated. Unfortunately it just
isn’t practical to create different
strategies for each of the 23 groups.
Macro segmentation
So we decided to group similar tribes
together to create five macro segments.
The segmentation is based on the key
factors which define tribes: music, fashion,
hobbies, interests, attitudes and culture

12. Once the five segments had been
identified, a large scale survey was
undertaken.
We interviewed a sample of 4000 16-
24s, selected to be representative of
the national population
TGI fusion
The results of the survey were then
fused to the TGI dataset so that
Tribes information is available
alongside the familiar TGI questions. The fusion provides us with detailed
media, brand, attitude and behaviour
information for each macro segment,
enabling deeper understanding and
precise targeting

13. The first and largest segment is the Mainstream:
“The Mainstream is the biggest part of the market, but
with alternative/trendy lifestyles and music now much
more accessible, the various Mainstream Tribes also
lose much of their membership in later years. Those
who remain tend to specialise into more aspirational
subsets like Casuals, Boy Racers and Sports Junkies.
Siege mentality makes the alpha males among
Mainstream tribes suspicious of trendy music or
clothes and quick to criticise peers who seem to be
standing out. Big brand sportswear and high street
fashion dominates with Mainstream tribes, and music,
even for Ravers, is mostly commercial.”
Mainstream
- Casuals - Street Rats
- Townies - Boy Racers
- Chavs - Sports Junkies
- Ravers

14. The TGI fusion provides us with a wealth of
information on the mainstream segment. Here
are a few examples.
Slightly older and lower social grade
Fashion choices heavily influenced by television
Not ambitious, but confident about their future
Unconcerned with political issues
Mainstream
Most likely to desire a top of the range car

15. Segment 2:
“Rahs and Trendies make up a
significant proportion of the youth
market, and their spending habits puts
both Tribes in the most desirable
demographic for marketers. Aspirant
Mainstream kids will spend money to
Aspirant Mainstream
get the look, the music and the
- Rahs
lifestyle they want – and the effect
they are going for is expensive.” - Trendies

16. Some key facts from the Tribes dataset:
More likely to be female, upmarket and younger
Keen to travel and ‘give something back to society’
LOVE fashion, and particularly admire the style of Prince William!
Aspirant Mainstream
The most likely to worry about violent crime, but least likely to be a victim

17. Segment 3:
“Possessing an alternative taste in
music and fashion no longer
automatically denotes outsider status.
Instead, this segment makes up a
significant slice of the youth market,
with the internet helping to smash the
barriers to the Alternative lifestyle. An
enthusiasm for indie fashion and band
culture is now almost obligatory in the
development of middle class teens.”
Alternative
- Scene Kids - Metalheads
- Emos - Young alts.
- Skaters - Gamers

18. Some key facts from the Tribes dataset:
More likely to be male, upmarket and younger
Most common in the North, West and Scotland
Love going to gigs and downloading and sharing music
Tech savvy and more likely to use video on demand
Fashion choices are inspired by favourite musicians
Alternative

19. Segment 4:
“Leading Edge tribes are the smallest
segment in the youth market.
However, they drive taste across
virtually all other sectors, impacting on
the listening habits and fashions of
everyone from rural teenage Emos to
the stars of US hip hop. These tribes
stand at the gateway of popular
culture, and are the main influence over
other Tribes like the Young Alts.”
Leading Edge
- Indie Scenesters
- Hipsters
- Craft Kids
- Geeks

20. Some key facts from the Tribes dataset:
Love all things niche and cutting edge
Found all over the UK, NOT just in London
Most concerned with global and political issues
Leading Edge
Love to party: take more drugs than any other group
Hate sport!

21. Segment 5:
“Urban music is the most pervasive and
Urban
influential genre in popular music, topping the
charts around the world and sound-tracking
the lives of many different Tribes. Members of
the Urban segment are therefore very close to - Blingers
one of the biggest cultural signifiers in the
youth market – although in planning terms,
- Trackies
genuine Urban segment members make up a - Get Paid Crew
small slice of the market.”
- DIYers

22. Some key facts from the Tribes dataset:
Urban
Male, younger and lower social grade
The most diverse segment in terms of ethnic background
Mix fashion influences to create own style
Love sport
Ambitious: the most likely segment to desire a high powered job

24. Aspirant Leading Edge
These charts can be used to
demonstrate the tribal profiles of
brands and media. The following
slides contain a few examples
Mainstream Alternative
Urban

25. Aspirant Leading Edge
Mainstream Alternative
Urban
First or second favourite TV channels

26. Aspirant Leading Edge
Mainstream Alternative
Urban
First or second favourite TV channels

27. Aspirant Leading Edge
Mainstream Alternative
Urban
TV channels watched in last week

28. Aspirant Leading Edge
Mainstream Alternative
Urban
Websites visited in last 12 months

29. Aspirant Leading Edge
4%
Mainstream Alternative
Urban
% ownership

30. Contact us:
Joe Beek jbeek@channel4.co.uk
0207 3068054
Neil Taylor ntaylor@channel4.co.uk
0207 3068127