YMS Services                                                         

In this section you will find:   

● Consulting Services and a link to YMS Analysis Tools

● Consulting Services: YMS offers a broad range of services from

New Product Ideation to Character  Creation & Maximization.

    ●  PRODUCT IDEA GENERATION: YMS works directly with you to  identify responsible and enriching winning product

         possibilities for specific youth targets.

        Example: YMS has developed a proprietary, unique, and highly effective Ideation System. Over a

                        day and a half period, more than 100 new product and line extension ideas were 

                        generated for Kellogg's.

    ●   SEGMENTATION ANALYSIS: Accurate determination of which youth age segments to target

         and why: 0-3   4-7   8-9   10-12   13-15   16-19

       Example: YMS was contracted by Nickelodeon to assist them in understanding the 3-7 and 8-12 year

                        old audiences for the advertising and promotion of the Jimmy Neutron movie.

    ●   VIABILITY ANALYSIS: Identification of your proposed product’s Strengths, Weaknesses,

         and recommendations for “Go” or “Non-Go.”

        Example: Over a period of 8 years, and utilizing the YMS proprietary system of analysis, YMS

                        determined the relative viability in the marketplace of more than 100 new toy and

                        game product ideas for Mattel.  After an internal Mattel study, YMS was shown to be

                        accurately predictive at more than 85%!  This in an industry in which there is typically

                        a 20% success rate for new product introductions.

   ●  PRODUCT MAXIMIZATION: YMS will provide you with clear-cut recommendations for

        eliminating the weaknesses and maximizing the  strengths of your product or program.

       Examples: YMS assisted Kraft Foods in determining which of a dozen+ new snack ideas were most

                        viable - clearly indicating the strengths and weaknesses of each item, and providing

                        recommendations for the maximization of the strongest products. In a similar vein in

                        the animation arena, YMS assisted nickelodeon with maximizing programs such as

                        Sponge Bob Square Pants, Jimmy Neutron, The Wild Thornberries and Catdog.

    ●  NAMING AND POSITIONING: Especially for today’s youth, powerful and effective product

        or program naming and positioning is critical.  YMS will work with you to create the most

        marketable approach to naming and positioning possible.

       Examples: YMS helped Nestle formulate and test the names for the Nestle Magic chocolate ball

                     product lineup. For Baylor University's Child Nutrition division, YMS/The Character Lab

                     generated the names Reggie Veggie and Judy Fruity for their characters designed to

                     help preschoolers eat more fruits and vegetables.

    ●  PACKAGING: We’ll help you develop maximally effective packaging with exceptional youth

        and parent appeal. We know which approaches to language, color and graphics will excite

        and engage them.

        Example: YMS has been closely involved with maximizing packaging for more than 200 products.

                        Notable examples include Quaker Oats and General Mills snacks and cereals, the

                        Kid Cuisine line of frozen meals, and dozens of toy packaging projects for Mattel.

    ●  ADVERTISING: YMS has developed a systematic approach to determining and impacting the

        effectiveness of youth advertising in concept, storyboard, or final form.

      Examples: Amblin-Spielberg contracted YMS to assure that the advertising for Land Before Time

                       was on-target and age-appropriate for their audiences. YMS has assisted many

                       companies at the storyboard stage of creating advertising campaigns including

                       Mattel, Nestle, Quaker Oats and Johnson & Johnson.

    ● SUBJECT TESTING: YMS has determined that ordinary focus group techniques are not adequate

        for getting at the special communication abilities of youth. We have developed a highly

        innovative approach to youth testing that we call “Subject Testing,” and it has proven far 

        more accurate for getting at the underlying likes and dislikes of today’s youth.

        Example: YMS has conducted over 100 focus groups with kids, moms and dads. A recent example

                        is a two city approach to testing different character depictions of the USDA's Power

                        Panther character with inner city, underprivileged youth.

    ●  KMSR: The Kids' Market Strategic Review is a "big picture" analysis of either a brand, category,

        or company's entire youth/all family targeted products and programs. The KMSR provides

        strong recommendations for maximizing a company's opportunities for success.

        Example: YMS and its Character Lab resources were contracted to analyze the entire Warner

                        cast of characters from Batman to Bugs Bunny and the Tasmanian Devil. The result was

                        a major revamp of each of the "character bibles" and their entire approach to licensing

                        and merchandising.

    ●  TEAM/STAFF TRAINING: YMS has conducted more than 50 half and full day workshops,

        training company personnel on child and youth development issues. These include the

        Needs, Motivations, Perceptions, Capabilities and Preferences of each of the stages of

        development, and gender differences where pertinent.    Click Here for more on YMS Trainings

        Example: A recent example was the training of the USDA's Department of Food and Nutrition

                        Services in distinctions related to age segmentation, the Needs, Perceptions,

                        Capabilities and Motivations of Kids and Tweens, and "Youth Impactors".

    ●  CHARACTER DESIGN AND MAXIMIZATION: 

        Examples: YMS' Character Lab has been involved with the creation of and maximization of 100s

                         of characters utilized for products and programs. For details and a wide variety of

                         examples, please go to the:

 Link to YMS Analysis Tools: Click Here