Surprising brand awareness from Millennials

[wyldwolf]

(may need a linkedin login for this)

Last week, we polled 150 Millennials about their favorite and least favorite brands. After reviewing the responses, I was struck by a few common threads from within the data. There were patterns I found compelling, particularly given that this poll was unsolicited – there were no dropdowns or menus to choose from.

Turns out:

We care about more than just stupid sh*t.

There can be a lot of player hating when it comes to Millennials. It’s easy to assume we’re selfish or materialistic or have our noses buried in our smartphones to the point where we don’t notice the things that really matter.

Not true. We may be obsessed with technology, but we can also multitask, and it turns out that when it comes to brands, we care about things that are neither stupid nor trivial. While many people put a premium on a brand’s product quality (does it hold up over time? Is it a good value for price?), there was also a strong contingent that looked at more than just personal use.

A few examples:

What’s your favorite brand? Tesla.

Why? From the outside looking in, it seems like a truly global company that has a good view of the future in mind. At the risk of sounding fan-boyish, Elon Musk is a pretty big inspiration when it comes to business. Actually seems like the guy has a soul.

What’s your least favorite brand? Shell.

Why? The state of Nigeria alone tells you everything you need to know about Shell and its business practices. At least BP puts forth a paltry effort when they destroy a natural habitat. Shell doesn’t even care.

Respondent’s age: 26.

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What’s your least favorite brand? Papa John’s.

Why? They fund anti-LGBT superPACs.

Respondent’s age: 19. He can’t even (legally) drink yet, but he cares about the ethics behind the company.

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What’s your favorite brand? Costco.
Why? They treat their employees well, good selection of goods.

What’s your least favorite brand? Walmart.

Why? They pay and treat their employees poorly.

Respondent’s age: 27.

(I won’t include all the other responses that Walmart received; suffice it to say that they were pretty much eviscerated with respect to their practices regarding employees as well as product sourcing.)

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I’m not saying every response was a dissertation on corporate social responsibility. There was a diversity of answers, just as there is a diversity of people within this one generational bracket. The point is, a lot of us are paying attention to companies for more than just the products they offer. Heads up, brands: People take note of your corporate practices, Millennials included. We may be young, but we’re paying attention, too. We want to work with and give our money to companies that align with our values.

https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140724170402-28522942-millennials-the-why-behind-favorite-brands?trk=tod-home-art-list-large_0

[Warpy]

1. People over 25 are generally pretty aware of what is going on

Some of them are like these respondents and some of them just want to see the world burn.

18-25 is the span where you pick through what your parents gave you, keep the stuff that's good and applicable to your life and shitcan the rest. They can be very aware but that's not their primary job.

[Wait Wut]

2. As a gen Xer...

...I'm not surprised, at all. In fact, I'm pleasantly unsurprised.

I've been saying this for a few years, the newer generations give me hope.

[awoke_in_2003]

3. Kids today...

have much more information available a lot quicker than we (I am 46) did. Sometimes that is good, sometimes bad (bad info, not the availibility of info)