Thursday 29 April 2010

Generational Marketing (Basics + Generation Y)




The marketing method to a specific generations of people affects the way that businesses promoted and sell their products and services. Every generational group has their own specific characteristics which help businesses characterize people by qualities such as they way they act, speak, their beliefs etc. to help market to their target market and catch all the right people.

Some of the Groups include:
*Millenials or Generation 2001ers - born after 1980
*Baby Busters or Generation Xers - born between 1965 and 1980
*Baby Boomers - born between 1946 and 1964
*Mature Citizens - born between 1909 and 1945

Below is a typical picture board that would appeal to myself as a part of my generation:



Typical things on this board include the introduction to Britney Spears and her sweet & innocent years. This is something everyone in my generation (Y) would remember. Jordan (Katie Price) too has been important as many girls look up to her as a role model. Zac Efron which is a teenage sensation currently who started off from High School Musical is included due to his high popularity. TV shows such as SKINS was very controversial and turned heads due to its extreme views on teenagers in the UK. It proved a success with its first and second season, however it's third has fallen in popularity slightly. Nowadays, fashion (VOGUE) is really important to this generation as more and more people starting from younger ages are caring about their appearance now. Lady Gaga is currently the more influential person out there as she broke out of the box and stood out due to her outrageous outfits not only on the red carpet but also in her everyday life. She is one of those people that will shape this generation. McDonald s of course is highly popular with my generation as well as obesity becoming an everyday common accepted disease as we can see from the boy in the picture. Brands such as TOPSHOP is highly successful this generation for all ages but mainly for teenagers up to about the 40s age range.

Teenagers
According to the Cambridge online dictionary, a teenager is a person from the ages of 13 to 19.

They are seen to be the most materialistic out of all the generations. Copying each other and competing to have the best toys, clothes and shoes is an everyday event. Image is very important to this age group as they are trying to fit in and impress everyone else.

The Life Cycle:
Childhood
Early Maturity
Middle Age
Late Maturity

(Admap 1997)

Generation Y



This is a label for people born during the 1980s and early 1990s. People in Generation Y are usually referred to as “echo boomers” because they are the children of parents born during the baby boom (“baby boomers”). The children born during this period have had constant access to technology such as computers and cell phones during their youth has caused employers to update their job spcifications and requirements and strategies in hiring in order to include technology into it. They are basically anyone who has been born in this millennium and is sometimes called millenials.

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/Generation-Y.html


This generation is said to be as large as 78 million people in the UK alone. Gen Y can be split into three age groups:
*Young Adults
*Teens
*Tweens

This generation is very based around the computer and internet. Nowadays, businesses have grasped on to this and decided to market their products heavily on the internet. Apart from the obvious pop up adverts, or side bars, social networking sites have become the massive rage. Websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Bebo and Myspace is where companies go online and create fan pages, pay ordinary people to mention their brand in their status, or start up new products. Myspace has become most popular for their music and discovering new talent. Twitter has become widely used with celebrities and bloggers, where as Facebook has very popular with groups on celebrities and products, whether its good or bad. The main objective for these busiensses and people is just to create some sort of talk about themselves. Some Facebook groups are even made by the company themselves. An example of this is the one about bringing the chocolate bar, 'Wispa' back. It works and it is the easiest way to reach this generation.



This advert is aimed the Generation Y as firstly it shows teenagers as the main characters. A common issue is facial acne at this age and also the fact that teenagers are usually self concious. The advert, smartly targets that and has a hidden message that using Clearasil will help to overcome the feeling of being self-concious and become confident and cool. The humour sense of the ad, too attracts the viewer as humour is something they relate to.



This is my most favourite advert out at the moment and is targeted at both males and females of the Generation Y. Apart from the fact that Adidas is a young brand, the sneaky peaks of very famous celebrities who are in the interest of all fellow generation Ys are all featured. David Beckham is probably the biggest one, followed by Snoop Dogg, Whitney Port, N Dubz, Oasis and many more recognisable faces. Also, from listening to friends talk; a lot of them have mentioned this advert saying how much they love it and thought it was really cool.



This Dior Perfume ad is targeted at the younger generation oppose to adults. Even though, Christian Dior is usually aimed at the wealthy, and most of their perfume range is aimed at older people, the particular Miss Dior Cherie range of perfume is usually bought by the late teens or young adults (myself for one). This specific advert for it shows a very famous high fashion model who most girls would not remember by name but she has a very familiar face as she is seen in many print ads as well as fashion catwalk shows. The print in the bottom of the page, 'Luxury of Freedom' is giving a sense of a teenager who cant quite be free but would like to experience it. Although the model is well above her teens, she is dressed to look pure and innocent, wearing a light creamy pink colour to show sweetness and nativity. The fact her shoes are off show freedom and a sense of rebelliousness which is what teenagers tend to do. Someone living in a house as big as her (in the background) would not usually walk around barefoot, however she seems to be so free, she doesn't care. This is something a lot of teenagers would look up to. They would love to have a lot of money, a big house, nice car, be tall, beautiful yet still not let this overpower them and control them and still be free.

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