Understanding what is in the minds of consumers is always important for marketers. And as mobile has become the communication channel of choice for the youth market, what better tool to use to understand their perceptions of various brands.

In the past two years, mobile Q&A company ChaCha has responded to over 400 million queries, primarily from users who are 13 to 24 years years old. Now, ChaCha has teamed up with research firm Frost & Sullivan to put together a very interesting whitepaper on brand perception in the youth market.

The ChaCha services works by providing free answers to questions that people send in. Most of the communication is done through text messages. By looking at the range and frequency of these questions, ChaCha and Frost & Sullivan were able to build up a good view of current thinking in the youth market.

For example, in the area of laptop computers, about 56% of all questions submitted were related to Apple, indicating a very high brand awareness. The Apple brand was followed in popularity by Dell, HP, Toshiba, Acer, and Lenovo. However, 1/3 of the questions were showed some uncertainty as to which brand to buy, for example “Are Apple computers better than Tosiba”. A further 1/3, e.g. “Why are Apple computers so expensive” or “Where can I get an Apple laptop cheaply”.

So although members of the youth market are very aware of Apple, they are not completely convinced and ready to buy.

This whitepaper also looks at a couple of other categories of youth oriented products, such as jeans, athletic hoes, and films. Here is a view of the questions asked about various brands of shoes by the 13 to 17 year old group.