Cause-Related PSAs Influence Teens More Than Athletes or Celebrities is the Finding from Refuel Agency Research

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 12, 2021

Derek White, CEO of Refuel Agency, explains "As digital natives, teens are often believed to be primarily influenced by online personalities, however we found that the changemakers of tomorrow are highly engaged with their environments and their peers—and they aren't necessarily looking to online personalities or influencers for information about causes." 

Key findings include:

• 32% (1 in 3) of teens pay attention to PSAs to learn about issues or causes they care about, while only 17% pay attention to athletes and 20% celebrities. 
• Teens are 88% more likely to pay attention to PSAs than athletes, 60% more than celebrities, and 33% more than influencers 
• The cause issues that Gen Z teens care most about are social equality, mental health, and COVID. 
• Over half of teens say their parents have some influence regarding social causes. 
• Over 4 out of 5 teens said they took some form of action after seeing a PSA. 
• Teens are more likely to support brands that share their views on social causes. 

The findings show that teens are influenced by in-school media, which sparks conversation with trusted peers in an environment that is already dedicated to learning. White explains, "Brands and agencies looking to make an impact with cause-related marketing initiatives need to insert their campaigns into these teen-centric feedback loops—introducing their campaigns as conversation starters that teens will amplify with their friends, in their schools, and on social media."

For complete survey results, visit https://www.refuelagency.com/teen-explorer-social-cause.

About Refuel
Refuel Agency helps advertising agencies and clients boost their campaigns by offering both omni-channel solutions targeted at Military, Teen, College and Multicultural markets. Majority owned by Prospect Capital (NASDAQ: PSEC) a leading Business Development Company with over $6B in investment assets, Refuel Agency has worked with almost half of all Fortune 500 companies across multiple ad categories, reaching over $1.5B in total billings. Refuel is headquartered in Santa Barbara with offices in New York, Los Angeles and Princeton.