Social Media Tools for Youth

Being a teen isn’t easy. That’s why it’s so important to set them up with the right tools to make the most of their experience. Fortunately, with Interactive Marketer’s social media tools for youth, your 12 year old and 13 year old will have everything they need to start making amazing things happen online. From Snapchat hacks and Twitter secrets to all things Instagram and YouTube, our collection of blogs are full of ideas on how teens can be the best followers and become great leaders in this digital age.

Find the best social media tools for kids and teens, including social media for tweens and how to set up a Facebook account for someone underage.

 Facebook

A free site where registered users (aged 13 and up) can share pictures, links, videos, and other content with their ‘friends’. Friends are other registered users you have connected with within the network. Most of the time, anything you share will only be seen by the people you have ‘friended’. Facebook changes it’s privacy settings regularly so it’s important to stay up-to-date with their settings and policies.

icon instagram Instagram

A free image sharing service that is used mainly on mobile devices. On Instagram, it’s common to connect with people you don’t know but share common interests with (for example, Taylor Swift). You can have a public account or a private account where only friends can see your posts. Instagram also has their own privacy settings to stay up-to-date with.

icon snapchat Snapchat

A mobile phone messaging application that allows you to send video or picture messages to one or more people at a time. The messages are only viewable for a few seconds at a time, as determined by the sender. However, there are ways of saving the images using other phone functions.

Tiktok logoTikTok

A free video sharing platform where users can shoot, edit and share short videos. Like other social media apps, users can follow, like and comment on everything they see. The bulk of TikTok users are 24 and younger.

icon tumblr Tumblr

A blogging website where people can publish their own articles and share it with people who follow their blog or profile. They also view the content of people they follow. On Tumblr, it is more common to connect with people you don’t know in real life than people you do.

icon whatsapp WhatsApp and messaging services

WhatsApp and messaging applications let you contact friends using internet data (or wifi) instead of your mobile carrier, which reduces the cost of messaging. It can be used without a sim card if connected to a wifi network. It is popular because it allows you to send messages to a group of friends at one time.

Other games and sites

YouTube, Club Penguin, or online games like World of Warcraft are also considered social media because of the way they enable social interaction.

TEXTING APPS

GroupMe is an app that doesn’t charge fees or have limits for direct and group messages. Users also can send photos, videos, and calendar links.

What parents need to know

  • It’s for older teens. The embedded GIFs and emojis have some adult themes, such as drinking and sex.
  • Teens are always connected. Without fees or limits, teens can share and text to their heart’s content, which may mean they rarely put the phone down.

Kik Messenger is an app that lets kids text for free. It’s fast and has no message limits, character limits, or fees if you only use the basic features. Because it’s an app, the texts won’t show up on your kid’s phone’s messaging service, and you’re not charged for them (beyond standard data rates).

What parents need to know

  • Stranger danger is an issue. Kik allows communication with strangers who share their Kik usernames to find people to chat with. The app allegedly has been used in high-profile crimes, including the murder of a 13-year-old girl and a child-pornography case. 
  • It’s loaded with covert marketing. Kik specializes in “promoted chats” — basically, conversations between brands and users. It also offers specially designed apps (accessible only through the main app), many of which offer products for sale.

WhatsApp lets users send text messages, audio messages, videos, and photos to one or many people with no message limits or fees.

What parents need to know

  • It’s for users 16 and over. Lots of younger teens seem to be using the app, but this age minimum has been set by WhatsApp.
  • It can be pushy. After you sign up, it automatically connects you to all the people in your address book who also are using WhatsApp. It also encourages you to add friends who haven’t signed up yet.

Discord started as a place for gamers to chat while playing video games but has become a bigger platform where users can use text, voice-chat, and video-chat to discuss a wide variety of topics.

What parents need to know

  • There are public and private “servers” or discussion groups. Teens can join public groups, ask to join private ones, or start their own. The safest option is for them to join a private group with people they know in real life.
  • Some groups are more moderated than others, some are NSFW, and some are hate-filled. There are plenty of groups that are meant for adults only, and some are totally tame and well moderated. If your kid is in one of the latter, the risk is much lower.

Social networks for 6-10 Years

Spotlite (formerly Kudos)

An app that is a digital environment where children can explore, learn, and understand how to be positive online.

What is Spotlite?

Spotlite focuses on the importance of creating a safer, social experience for kids, tweens and teens. Kids can share videos, pictures, react to and comment on posts by friends and join groups for sharing with others with similar interests. The platform is 100% COPPA compliant.

The main aim of the app is to teach preteens, tweens and teens the etiquette of interacting online. It has constant reminders to keep things positive like the comment box that directs users to ‘ leave a nice comment’.

Safety features

  • All accounts require a parent or carer to provide email authentication and approval. No friends can be added until a parent approves the account.
  • Spotlite does not track or sell any of your child’s personal information such as location.
  • Parents have to approve the use of Spotlite if for kids below the age of 13.
  • Shared video/pictures are only available to be seen by the friends you have accepted.
  • There are 24/7 Content Moderators. Any inappropriate content/users will be banned

Age: 8+
Cost: Free
Available on: Android and iOS

PlayKids Talk

A kid-safe chat and messaging app for under 12s


What is PlayKids Talk?

PlayKids is an internationally-acclaimed platform with cartoons, books, and activities for kids aged 2 to 8. With the PlayKids Talk app, kids can access activities, games and content such as videos. Parents can also manage kid’s contacts, authorise camera and microphone access

Safety features

  • To set up the child’s account parents are required to go through age-verification.
  • Parents can control all aspects of the child’s account such as contacts and profile.
  • Parent has access to the account on their phones as well to keep an eye on what is being shared in real-time

Age: 4+
Cost: Free
Available on: To access all apps on the PlayKids platform, you can download it for Android and iOS.

Conclusion

Social media sites and apps continue to grow in popularity, as more people get online each day. As your student navigates this new territory, they will likely wonder, “what’s the best way to use these tools?”

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