What you need to know:

• Digital agency TotallyAwesome, which safely targets children with advertising, says more than a third of kids under 13 have Facebook accounts.
• A study involving parental involvement and 700 children between four and 18 years old found 36 per cent have Facebook, 30 per cent are on Instagram and 21 per cent are on TikTok.
• The complexity of how the “zoomer” generation consumes media means marketers have more choices – but they need to be aware of the privacy concerns.

More than a third of Australian children under 13 have Facebook accounts despite the platform’s age limitations, a new study has found.

Digital agency TotallyAwesome, which works with brands like Lego to safely target children, teenagers and families online, has prepared its fifth annual Zoomers Digital Insights (ZDI) study on the evolution of “zoomers” – people aged between four and 18 years old.

The study covered 700 people in that age range – with parental involvement – and found the number of channels and platforms zoomers access is multiplying. More than a third (36 per cent) of kids under 13 have a Facebook account, 30 per cent are on Instagram, and 21 per cent have a TikTok account.

Children and teenagers mostly use digital devices for short-form content such as music videos (46 per cent), toy review videos (44 per cent), gaming videos (41 per cent) and Tutorial videos (36 per cent). Smart TV's are most used to watch movies.

“The presence of multiple digital devices and channel choice among Zoomers leaves brands with increasing complexity in reaching these audiences,” TotallyAwesome ANZ managing director James Sawyer said.