Mattel Inc.?s American Girl brand is foraying digital play experiences with the launch of a mobile application that enables users to make virtual friendship bracelets as well as a microsite designed to coincide with its new Truly Me doll and accessories line, but the effort misses the mark by not having the site mobile-optimized for consumers who may access it through their own or parents? devices.

While American Girl has always been synonymous with the classic dolls and their book accompaniments, the brand is branching out to include more digital platforms to cater to a growing customer base that prefers to consume content on mobile. It now offers a section of its site entirely dedicated to mobile apps and digital games, and is also holding a social media campaign to celebrate the Truly Me line.

?American Girl?s digital play experience empowers the brand to create a story behind its product,? said Shuli Lowy, marketing director at Ping Mobile, New York. ?Instead of just giving consumers a plastic toy, the brand works to turn each doll into a unique character with her own accessories, interests, talents, and experiences.

?The brand also gives children opportunities to customize their dolls so that they can really identify with their toys,? she said. ?Children often play computer games; American Girl is strategically leveraging that activity to provide a meaningful brand experience.?

Digital step forward
American Girl is dipping its toes into a digital play experience by rolling out the new section of its site, which can be found at www.americangirl.com/play. Consumers on desktop can easily toggle between the various sections, activities and eCards.

This speaks to the brand?s desire to branch out from solely non-digital toys, as more children are using their parents? personal devices or receiving ones of their own.

American Girl fans will be able to explore the new Truly Me line with videos, how-to guides and quizzes, as well as access content similar to its eponymous magazine and play a variety of computer games.

However, while users may access the site on their mobile or tablet devices, the format remains the same as that of the desktop site. This could be bolstered by designing a mobile-optimized site, so that users may be retained.

?One of the oversights of the campaign is that the digital play microsite is not mobile-optimized,? Ms. Lowy said. ?The majority of consumers who come to a site that isn?t mobile-optimized on their phone will immediately leave it.

?Even if American Girl?s target audience may not have their own cell phones they could be accessing the content through iPods or through their parents? phones. A mobile experience is therefore important.?

Toys going mobile
More toy marketers are releasing complementary mobile apps for their products to boost customer engagement.

?On one level, it?s easy to sit back in a curmudgeonly way and say ?They should play with tangible, real things? but the truth is, we live in a digital society,? said Paula Rosenblum, managing partner at Retail Systems Research, Miami, FL. ?In the final analysis, is having doll costumes ?printed? a whole lot different than the paper doll crazes of days gone by?

?For better or worse, this is part of today?s childhood experience.?

American Girl is enhancing its Truly Me world with the Friendship Ties app, which enables girls to create virtual friendship bracelets to save onto their devices and share with friends. The app, which is currently only available for iOS users, teaches customers the basics of bracelet-making and allows them to save their chosen pattern in the event they would like to make a real-life version.

The brand is also rolling out a social media component to the Truly Me experience, asking mothers and family members to share photos depicting what makes their girl irreplaceable across social media channels via the #TrulyMe hashtag.

?The traction which of #TrulyMe will depend in part on how American Girl promotes the hashtag,? Ping Mobile?s Ms. Lowy said. ?The more visibility it gets, the more likely it is to be adopted.

?Many of the girls that the doll brand caters to are slightly below the age of when kids start becoming active participants in social media. The age of the product users may present a challenge in achieving traction with the #TrulyMe social media campaign.?

Final Take
Alex Samuely is an editorial assistant on Mobile Marketer, New York