With the nationwide increase in mental health issues arising among teens and young adults, the need for bringing mental health awareness to teens is more important than ever. But as there is still a definite stigma surrounding seeking help for mental health issues, it can be challenging to encourage teens and parents to seek professional help.
Recent studies have shown that as much as 60 percent of teens have struggled with mental health at some point in their lives after age 13. And with these numbers on the rise, improving mental health awareness and offering teens a safe space to talk about what’s troubling them is becoming critical. But how do you improve mental health awareness in teens, and how can you apply this to your marketing strategy?
Thankfully, through compassionate and empathetic messaging, reaching teens who are struggling with mental health issues can be accomplished.
Are you trying to reach a teenage audience to promote mental health awareness? Reach out to Beacon Media + Marketing today for a free consultation.
Marketing Mental Health Services for Teens
The average teenage mind is occupied with myriad things, and thoughts are constantly crashing into one another as they attempt to figure out who they really are and their place among their peers, their families, and in life. And all of this can not only be overwhelming, it can also significantly impact mental health – and be quite distracting as well.
One way to meet teens halfway when attempting to improve mental health awareness is to have these conversations where they’re likely to spend a large portion of their time – social media platforms.
Today, the average teen spends nearly a full workday online – nearly 8 hours. In fact, data published by JAMA Pediatrics found that screen time among teens rose from 3.8 hours to 7.7 hours in 2021. As such, if you want to send teens a message, social media is one of the best places to do so.
Common social media sites that teens frequent are:
- Tik Tok
- Snapchat
When marketing mental health awareness to teens, meeting them halfway on social media not only grabs their attention, it begins to normalize the fact that they’re not alone. And the more positive content surrounding mental health awareness they’re able to read, the likelier it will be for teens to seek your help with counseling for mental health issues.
The Power of Hashtags in Teen Mental Health Awareness
In the past, hashtags were mostly used on Twitter to follow popular posts, causes, or other trending topics. But today, hashtags are everywhere – on just about all social media networks.
Today, even teens do their research. And though they likely know how to Google, many teens may be more likely to follow a hashtag and read content in this way instead of searching for specific terms. The great thing about utilizing hashtags for mental health awareness is that they can gain momentum; the more they’re shared, the more awareness will spread.
A few popular hashtags for promoting mental health awareness may include:
- #teenmentalhealthawareness
- #mentalhealthhero
- #loveyourself
- #teenselfcare
- #selfcare
- #stopthestigma
- #suicideawareness
- #mentalhealthmatters
- #teenmentalhealth
- #strugglingteens
By adding tags that teens will likely follow to your content, you may be able to reach more teens in need – and change lives in the process.
How to Talk to Teens About Mental Health
As mentioned, teens have a lot going on. Even though it may not seem to be much from an adult perspective, the emotions teens deal with on a daily basis can be mentally exhausting. And this is largely because many teens still don’t know exactly how to process those emotions. But when you can talk to them with empathy and compassion, you may be able to send a clear message.
It’s also important to note that no teen wants to be spoken to like a child. If anything, this type of talk will make them shut you out – complete with a complementary eye roll. But when you can speak about the importance of mental health, cite facts, and show them that they’re not alone and that it’s normal to desire help, this can become the breakthrough needed for a teen to seek you out for professional help.
A few ways to approach the subject of mental health with teens can include:
- Talk about popular teen idols who’ve struggled with mental health
- Host a podcast interviewing teens who have overcome mental health issues
- Enlist an influencer who has struggled with mental health to promote awareness
- Create content around trending topics where mental health issues have played a role
- Create content that normalizes teens seeking help for mental health
When you can create content that teens relate to or will be attracted to, they’re going to be more intrigued and may take the first step in seeking out help.
Spread the Positivity
Not enough can be said about the power of positivity. This is because people gravitate toward what makes them feel comfortable and welcome. When you can incorporate this into your messaging, the likelihood of teens seeking out your help becomes much higher.
One way to do this is to share self-care tips. As mentioned, social media is a great place to share content that you hope will reach a teen audience. And even if it’s a blog post on self-care or a video showing how to implement a self-care regimen, your ideas may inspire teens to begin the process of self-care – including walking into your therapy practice.
You can also use your platform to help spread positive vibes. With a website, hosting a blog that speaks to teens directly, or one that offers a podcast where teens can listen to advice and hear the struggles of other teens can be highly effective in spreading both mental health awareness and positivity.
Above all, you want to be encouraging and supportive in all of your content. This helps to destigmatize seeking help for teen mental health, builds awareness, and shows them that they don’t have to internalize their feelings – that they don’t need to reach a breaking point before seeking help if they’re struggling with mental health.
Spread Teen Mental Health Awareness With Beacon Media + Marketing
Reaching a teenage audience isn’t the easiest thing to do. And this is because most teens are preoccupied with what’s going on in their immediate world. It’s only by entering that world that you’ll be successful in directing your message at teens – and this is where we come in.
Here at Beacon Media + Marketing, we pride ourselves on being able to promote mental health awareness and reach an audience that desperately needs your help. And our team of creative professionals knows how to break down these walls through focused and compassionate messaging – targeting teens and speaking to the issues that affect them on a daily basis.
With social media experts, creative content strategy, a team of great writers, and the desire to make a difference, here at Beacon, we’re ready to go to work for you to reach a teen audience and help you to promote your message so they can get the help they need.
Are you ready to make a difference and reach a teenage audience to promote mental health awareness? Contact Beacon Media + Marketing today for a free consultation.
