Gen-X VS Millennials VS Gen Edge

GENERATION

GENERATIONGEN X

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GEN X VS MILLENNIALS VS GEN EDGE

GEN XGENERATION

DaveGrohl1964-1979

JadenSmith1996-present

TaylorSwi51980-1995

GENERATION

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CULTURAL CONTEXT

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GENERATION

GENERATIONGEN X

‣ Climatechange‣ Thewaronterror‣ Financialboom&crash‣ Internetrevolu8on‣ Youtube&Facebook‣ iPod

‣ Greatrecession&austerity‣ Widespreadglobalconflict‣ Firstblackpresident‣ Ubiquitoussmartphones‣ Snapchat&FacebookLive‣ Spo8fy

‣ Massdivorce‣ AIDScrisis‣ EndoftheColdWar‣ CableTV&dial-upmodems‣ Landlines&pagers‣ Walkman

IDENTITY SHAPED BY A MIX OF CRISIS AND OPPORTUNITY

IDENTITY SHAPED BY A MIX OF HARDSHIP AND INSTANT GRATIFICATION

IDENTITY SHAPED BY A MIX OF ACCELERATION AND FRAGMENTATION

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UPBRINGING

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GENERATION

GENERATION

MillennialswereraisedbyhighlyinvolvedBoomerparentswhoins?lledintheirchildrenasenseofop?mismandwereac?velyinvolvedinfosteringtheirsuccess.

‣ It’shardforthemtoseethemselvesassolelyresponsiblewhentheyaresoreliantoncollabora8onandnetworking

SUPPORTEDGenEdgersarebeingraisedbycynical,rebelliousGen-Xerswhogivethemahealthydoseofskep?cismandself-reliance.

‣ GenEdgersaresavvyandwillleverageopportuni8esaffordedtothembutul8matelytheyfeelpersonallyresponsiblefortheirsuccess

SELF-RELIANTGen-Xerswerethefirstgenera?ontohave bothparentsworkingoutsideofthehomeandexperiencedivorceonagenera?onalscale.Theycamehometoanemptyhouseanddevelopedastrongsenseofself-sufficiencythankstolowlevelsofparentalinvolvement.

‣ They’reindependent;accustomedtorelyingonthemselves

AUTONOMOUS

GEN X

Asthefirstgenera?ontoexperiencefluiditywithgenderrolesenmasse,Gen-Xhasbeenattheforefrontofvariousequalitymovements.

‣ Tookupandpopularizednascentmovementsaroundgayrights,LGTBQ2,feminismandequality‣ Confusionaroundhowtotalkaboutafar morefragmentedgenderlandscapetoday

GENDER RIGHTS

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GENDER DYNAMICS

ForMillennials,genderandsexualequalityismoreestablished—yieldinghighlevelsofacceptance.Paradoxically,thisalsomeansthatthere’snotas muchawarenessofthehard-foughtbaTlesoftherecentpast.

‣ Stayathomedadsandequally-sharedresponsibili8es‣ Nojudgement;respectforpersonalchoices‣ Experiencea‘don’tknowhowgoodyouhaveit’fromGen-Xerswhohadtoovercomemoremarginaliza8on

GENDER OPENNESSCoinedthe“pluralistgenera?on,”GenEdgedoesn’tdefinethemselvesasmuchbygender.They’retheonesonthevanguardintermsofrejec?ngbinaries.

‣ Fashionthatcross-pollinatesbetweengenders‣ Ac8velynego8a8nggenderpronouns—i.e.,shevstheyvszevshir‣ Theyseegenderandsexualdiversityasnatural,notpoli8cal

POST-GENDER

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GENERATION

GENERATIONGEN X

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ROAD TO ADULTHOOD

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GENERATION

GENERATION

Millennialsbenefitedfromalongperiodofrela?veeconomicstability,sotheywereabletodeveloptheiriden?tyinaprolongedyouthcontext.

‣ Thisstressesthemoutastheyfearmissingadultmilestones‣ Successdefinedbypersonalsa8sfac8on andindividuality

EXTENDED ADOLESCENCE

Duetothechallenging,compe??vecontexttheywereraisedin,GenEdgedoesn’thavetheluxuryofexperiencinganextendedyouth.

‣ Successmeasuredbybalancingnewopportunitywithdesiredstability‣ Ex:pragma8ccollegedegrees;learningtocode

ACCELERATED ADULTING

Gen-XreactedtotheBoomermodel–theywantedmorecontrolovertheirlivesanddidn’twanttohavekidsrightawayorevenatall.

‣ Manybecamechildlessbychoiceorhadchildrenwellintotheir30s‣ Successmorelikelytobemeasuredalongculturaltermsorcareer

REDEFINING ADULTHOOD

GEN X

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APPROACH TO MATURATION

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GENERATION

GENERATIONGEN X

Millennialsarehighlymo?vatedtoachievematurity;theywanttobetakenseriously,tofeellikethey’reapartofeverythingthat’simportantandtoachievetheirpersonalgoals.

‣ Frustra8onwithprolongedadolescence‣ Adulthoodstartsa`er35‣ Messagingaroundexperienceresonates

MATURITY ASPIRANTHardenedbytheworldaroundthem,GenEdgeisforcedtogrowupfast.Theydon’texpectmuchfromtradi?onalnormsandins?tu?ons.

‣ Frustratedbyforcedacceptanceofconven8onsthatcomeswithbeing‘young’‣ Messagingaroundindependenceresonates

PRE-MATUREManyGen-Xersarenowparents,andtheyaremoreeconomicallyempoweredthanever.Butbecausetheyneverabandonedthecultureoftheiryouth,there’sastrongdesiretolivefortoday.

‣ Frustratedwithtradi8onalagingmodel‣ Messagingaroundyouthfulnessresonates

MATURITY ADJUSTING

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ATTITUDE / OUTLOOK

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GENERATION

GENERATION

MillennialswerepromisedtheworldbytheirBoomerparents-theyareahighlyposi?vegenera?onandbelievetheycanmakeadifference.

Engagewithbrandsthatdeliverasenseof:‣ Mutualvalues-basedgoals‣ Op8mism‣ Shi`ingtradi8onalparadigms

IDEALISTSGenEdgehasgrownupinastateofrecessionandbleakgrowth-theyarepragma?candvalueresponsibility&tangibleresults.

Engagewithbrandsthatdeliverasenseof:‣ Usefulness‣ Opportuni8esforthemtoactuallyDOsomethingintheworld‣ Globalresponsibility

REALISTSGen-Xisdefinedbyapervadingsenseofcynicism.Theygrewupvaluingtheunderground,andsoughttokeeptheirculturesecretfromthemainstream.

Engagewithbrandsthatdeliverasenseof:‣ Exclusivity‣ Underground‣ Rebellion

SKEPTICS

GEN X

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SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

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GENERATION

GENERATION

Millennialsseeadiversegroupoffriendsasessen?al.Theyarehappytorevealmostoftheirsecretsinordertoforgeconnec?ons.

‣ Differentskillsstrengthenthegroup‣ Adoptdis8nctrolesindifferentfriendshipgroups

GROUPSGenEdgevaluetheirprivacy…alot…andarecarefulofwhattheydiscloseandwhotheyletintotheirinnercircle.

‣ Incrediblyclosetotheirfriendswhentheydoletthemin—theyarethefamilytheychoose‣ PreferephemeralappslikeSnapchatthatallowforimpermanence

SQUADSGen-Xgrewupintenselyexperiencingthetensionbetweenbelongingandindividualism.Strivingtobepartofthepopularcliqueswasparforthecourse.

‣ Setsocialhierarchiesanddichotomies‣ Coolkidsvs.Nerds

CLIQUES

GEN X

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RELATIONSHIP WITH TECHNOLOGY

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GENERATION

GENERATIONGEN X

MillennialsgrewupduringtheInternetrevolu?onandareconstantlystrivingtofindbalancebetweendisconnec?ngvsmissingout.

‣ Abletotalkabouthowtechnologyhaschangedtheirworld‣ LesslikelytoownaTV‣ Lesslikelytohaveacablesubscrip8on

TECH MANAGERS

GenEdgefinditalmostimpossibletotalkabouttechnologyandtheimpactithasontheirlives;theydon’trememberthesoundofamodemoraworldwithmonolithicnewssources.

‣ Technologyistheirnaturalportaltotheworld‣ Immediacymaders

TECH NATURALISTS

Gen-Xcameofageasthepersonalcomputeremerged,manylearninghowtousetechasadults.They’redigitallysavvy,but‘80smainstreammediasettheirvalues.

‣ Nostalgicforwhentechnologywasn’tpervasive‣ Appreciatetradi8onaljournalism‣ Magazines&newspaperss8llplayarole

TECH ADOPTERS

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TARGETING GEN-X, MILLENNIALS, & GEN EDGE

TARGETING GEN X, MILLENNIALS, & GEN EDGE

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THE SOUNDGEN X VS MILLENNIALS VS GEN EDGE

TAKING THE RIGHT TONE

Connec?ngwithGen-Xisnotjustabouttalkingtothemasparents,butalsoasindividuals.

Don’tairbrushtherealityofmiddleage-theyaretheoriginalcynics.Butdon’tsimplydefinethembytheiragecategory:theyhaverejectedtheideaof‘geengold’.

Successisaworkinprogress-indulgentpurchasescelebrateachievements,notarrival.

Escapismforthemishard-earned,sodon’tmakethemfeelguiltyorridiculousforit.They’relookingforward,notbackwards.

Millennialsputapremiumonauthen?c,handmade,andlocally-producedgoods.

Geengagooddealisapriority,buttheywon’tcompromiseonquality.Theywanttofeelgoodaboutwhattheybuy.

Don’tassumethatMillennialsarecompletelyfocusedonthemselves;especiallyastheyage,they’reeagertobeginreciproca8ngthecareandsupporttheirparentsonceshowedthem.

GenEdgersarecri?calthinkers...whichmeansthey’regoingtothinkcri?callyaboutyourbrand.

Toachievetheirgoals,GenEdgelookstothealterna8ve,thechallenger,therebel.Brandswithalterna8veposi8oningwillresonate.

Keepitreal.Theylookforfunc8onandefficacyinbrandsasmuchastheyseekimage.

Theyseeadver8singasanannoyanceandhatebeingobviouslymarketedto.Figureouthowtointegrateratherthandominate.

GEN XGENERATION

GENERATION


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WHERE THEIR ATTENTION IS

Whiletheyarefullynaturalizeddigitalci?zens,theyac?velycarveoutimmersive,non-digitalmedia?me-presen?nganopportunitytoconnectwiththisgenera?ononameaningfullevel.

Gen-Xholdsontoandvaluesprintedsupplements…fuellingopportuni8estocreatebrandedcontentthatreallycutsthrough.

Con?nuefocusonnon-tradi?onalmediachannels,withanefforttoconnectauthen?cally.

They’rewatchingTVonalterna8veplaiormswhilesimultaneouslytetheredtotheirsmartphonesandsocialmedia.

Atthesame8me,theyhaveledtheresurgenceofoldformatslikevinylandrichlydesignedprintmagazines.Tangiblequalitycanco-existwiththeirmul8-screenmediastream.

GenEdgewantstoown,subvertandchangethings.Expectthemtopokefunandplaywithyourmessaging.Takeitasacompliment.

Theyalsolovetodocumenttheirdo-eraetudesandbroadcasttheireffortswhenitfeelsright.Considerthemyourtarget...andyourmediaplaiorm.

Don’ttrytocontrolyourmessageormedium;itwon’twork.Theywanttohackorpersonalizeratherthanbetrappedinawalledgarden.

GEN XGENERATION

GENERATION


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PRODUCT AND PORTFOLIO INNOVATION

Withastrongsenseoffamilialduty,shoppingcomeswithpragma?ccompromise—butatthesame?me,theyneedtoindulgeinpersonalpleasures.

Tapintothisneedwithproductsthatcelebratethemasindividualsandhelpthemavoidthefearofmergingintothesupermarket‘herd’.

Millennialsaredabblers.Drivenbyanoverabundanceofchoiceandlimitedresources,Millennialshaveshifedtheirbuyingstrategytoberentersinsteadofowners.

Moreop8onshaveonlyfuelledtheirpromiscuousaetudetowardsbrands;thisgenera8onvaluesexplora8onovercommitment.

Pushfreedomtotrynewfunc8ons,units,marketsasacompe88veadvantage.Introducemorevariantsmoreo`entomaintaininterestincategory.LimitedEdi8onplaysdirectlyintoMillennialneeds!

Edgersaremorefocusedonstandingoutthanbeing#1.

Considerwaystoallowyourproductstodrivetheindividualismorcompe88vedifferen8a8onthatEdgerscrave.

Edgersareprac8calspendersandwilllackamo8va8ontopurchaseunlessaclearpointofdifferenceisevident.

GEN XGENERATION

GENERATION

Gen-X VS Millennials VS Gen Edge

Marketing

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