Gen Why
Home textiles industry, let me introduce you to the Millennials, aka Generation Y. I don't believe you've ever been formally introduced.
With the recent news that retailers like Macy's and Kohl's are launching specific efforts to go after this cohort - generally recognized as those from age 20 to those in their early 30s - it appears that the people who sell stuff are finally realizing that this generation consists of people who buy stuff ... or at least could buy stuff.
But it's not going to be that easy. Us Baby Boomers were easy marks. Put anything shiny in front of us and we couldn't whip out our credit cards fast enough. The Gen Xers who followed have basically turned out to be a bust, not overly concerned with the great American art of conspicuous consumption but willing to buy if it seemed like a good enough idea.
But Gen Y is a whole different slice of the demographic pie. These guys are scary ... at least to anyone who doesn't understand the ground rules of selling them. And so, in the interests of those whose job it is to sell stuff, I thought it timely to explain some of the dynamics of the Millennials. And in the spirit of the season (at least for some of us) I'd like to put it in the form of the four questions.
Why is this Generation different from all other generations? People born after the early 1980s have never not had the Internet as a resource once they could start handling a keyboard. This has forever changed the way they gather information, communicate with each other and interact with businesses. It's the single most profound change of the rules since the invention of television a half-century before.
Why is this Generation so hard to sell to? Yes, they are more cynical and less susceptible to marketing, but Boomers were natural-born cynics ("Never trust anyone over 30") and marketing does work in reaching Gen Y consumers, but not the same old marketing. Pictures of smiling, satisfied customers won't cut it with this group. They want the facts, they want some humor and they want a deal. Oh, how they want a deal.
Why is this Generation not shopping the way their parents did? This group was originally called the Echo-Boomers, children of Baby Boomers. They watched how their parents consumed and like every generation before them - especially the Boomers - they did the exact opposite. This is the way it's been since that first shopping mall, the Garden of Eden.
Why is this Generation just not buying enough stuff? See all of the above but add in one extremely important factor: No age group has been hit harder by the Great Recession than Gen Y, which after getting out of college has not found the jobs their predecessors had waiting for them. Factor in massive school loans and higher prices and you have a group that is moving back into their old rooms at home. Not exactly a recipe for consumption.
Maybe a more apt name would be Gen Why Not?
Abdelrahman commented:
heya guys, lol first of all i thought that it was funny that no other gen Y pesron has responded to this prob cos we got better things to do but seeings that its sun mornin i can spare 5 mins to give ya some of my thoughts bout this whole gen Y thing. ive been teachin for the past 3 1/2 years in public schools in australia and at the start of my teachin career i think i thought like the rest of the newbie teachers we are gonna change the world and show ppl how to teach and that, then it comes to bout 3 yrs on and u work out that us gen Y ppl really dont fit the mould of a traditional teacher and do like to think outside the box when teaching and the methods we use, then it makes u think well why bother to stay in it if the department of education and government arent gonna change.back to some of the questions that u asked ruby You want to be connected yes very true we like to stay in touch with mates all over the world hence why we enjoy facebook so much.You value the information you get off the Internet as more reliable than the information that you get from older adults yeh i guessYour family is much more important than work of course it is, works just work where as ur family IS YOUR family, of course ur gonna care about them and find them a really important part of ur life i mean they are the ones who helped shape u into the kind of ppl you are today without them, i dunno where or what id be doing now!You won’t sacrifice a pesronal life for a professional one of course not, its where we get to have fun and not treat life so serious. if u cant go out and hang with mates, have a few drinks and lots of laughs, whats the point of life really. im not sayin that i works not important it is but i dont live to work, i work so that i have the cash to live and do fun things ). i pesronally just find it getting harder and harder to keep up wid my mates who arent teachers, they seem to have alot more free time in the evening and especially weekends to do more things, whereas i often hear myself sayin the same old things ohh ive got this marking to do or ohhh i cant come wid ya i gotta plan my lessons for the next day, week etc etc. i think im coming to the stage where i really just want a normal 9am-5pm job where i can leave my work at work.You usually won’t go to trainings on weekends or at night no as i mentioned before, we already are tryin to cram in our social lives enough already, doin T and D on the weekends or in evening is cutting into our social time (and it really is an important time for us)You prefer to have professional development training online yes very much soYou like to multi-task while you do just about anything -lol of course we do cos its quicker, we got lots of things to do so why not do lots of things at once, we are quite good at it lol :O)ur other questions What do you bring that’s new to the teaching environment?a sense of passion, energy and life to teaching. we have new ways of thinking and how to teach, how to connect with the kids and yet still being able to stay in control of your class and teach them stuff. ohh and also we bring a sense of fun to the staff room lolWhat do you dislike about the current teaching environment?teachers who dont like teaching anymore or have lost their passion for it, i mean i know that i will never be the teacher who stays in teaching just cos i need the money or im waiting to get my superannuation lol its just not meand yet still more questions (this is takin much longer than the 5 mins that i first thought lol )What do you like about training? things that are meaninful, fun and relevant to what we are teaching and the environment that we are in.What do you dislike about training and staff development? boring, dull pointless stuff, being stuck inside a room allday, not being able to have any fun.How would you go about changing teaching and learning? create a fun environment where u can still learn new things.What bothers you about Baby Boomers with whom you work? look now lets get this rite, not all babyboomer teachers are the same, some are really really brilliant and ive learnt so very much from watching and talking to them. there are just those who annoy me cos they are over the whole teaching thing so it makes me think just get out if you dont like it anymore, i mean there are plenty of keen teachers who really do want to teach and thatokies hope that helped ya a bitcatchyatina
Ida commented:
Gen Y is influenced by pull marketing tactics not push. Draw them in, engage them.Aggressive selling doesn't work.
James Booth commented:
Warren
a very good read. I think the key to maximizing the potential of GEN Y is understanding how they influence their parents when they move back home because they can't afford their own place. Also Gen X combined with Gen Y now surpass the Baby Boomers in number-something else those who sell "stuff" better get on board with. Glad someone else is talking about this-best, James Booth
