In effect, all the elements that help to define a cohort were violated by the broad span of years originally included in the concept of the Baby Boomers. Boomers I were in or protested the War.
Boomers 2 or the Jones Generation missed the whole thing. Boomers I had good economic opportunities and were largely optimistic about the potential for America and their own lives, the Vietnam War notwithstanding. This first post-Watergate generation lost much of its trust in government and optimistic views the Boomers I maintained. The youngest members of the Boomer II generation in fact did not have the benefits of the Boomer I class as many of the best jobs, opportunities, housing etc.
And, with that education and a growing maturity they are starting to form families with a higher level of caution and pragmatism than their parents demonstrated. Concerns run high over avoiding broken homes, kids growing up without a parent around and financial planning. The largest cohort since the Baby Boomers, their high numbers reflect their births as that of their parent generation. Gen Y members are much more racially and ethnically diverse and they are much more segmented as an audience aided by the rapid expansion in Cable TV channels, satellite radio, the Internet, e-zines, etc.
The contrast in priorities and needs is stark. The same logic can be applied to any generation that is in this stage of life or younger. As we get older, we tend to homogenize and face similar life issues. The younger we are, the more dramatic each stage of life is. Consider the difference between someone in elementary school and high school.
While they might be the same generation, they have very different views and needs. Marketing to young generations as a single cohort will not be nearly as effective as segmenting your strategy and messaging. Each generation label serves as a shorthand to reference nearly 20 years of attitude, motivations, and historical events.
Few individuals self-identify as Gen X, Millennial, or any other name. Ten years from now, the priorities of Millennials will have changed — and marketing tactics must adjust instep.
Remember, these arbitrary generational cutoff points are just that. Whatever terminology or grouping you use, the goal is to reach people with marketing messages relevant to their phase of life. In short, no matter how many letters get added to the alphabet soup, the most important thing you can do is seek to understand the soup du jour for the type of consumer you want to attract.
Before we dive into each generation, remember that the exact years born are in dispute, because there are no comparably definitive thresholds by which the later generations after Boomers are defined. But this should give you a general range to help identify what generation you belong in. The other fact to remember is that new technology is typically first adopted by the youngest generation and then is gradually adopted by the older generations.
This generation has begun to adopt more technology in order to stay in touch with family members and reconnect with old friends. While this might seem counterintuitive, it can be explained by the fact that this generation has the most wealth and is looking to help their children with their student debt. They have a belief that you should take care of your children enough to set them on the right course and don't plan on leaving any inheritance.
With more Americans outliving their retirement fund, declining pensions, and social security in jeopardy, ensuring you can successfully fund retirement is a major concern for Boomers. However, they are also digitally savvy and spend roughly 7 hours a week on Facebook the highest of any generational cohort. They believe banking is a person-to-person business and demonstrate brand loyalty. These demands put a high strain on their resources. They are looking to reduce their debt while building a stable saving plan for the future.
Cord-cutting in favor of streaming services is the popular choice. They typically have multiple social media accounts.
They prefer to shop products and features first, and have little patience for inefficient or poor service. But these sorts of one-to-one matchups of parents and children become less valid as the average age at which parents have their first child has gotten higher. That means that, from here on out, even more diversity of human experience has to be crammed into broad generational labels.
The march through the Greek alphabet may continue anyway. Those placeholder names stand a good chance of catching on—so long as nothing important and generation-defining happens in the next half century, of course. Skip to content Site Navigation The Atlantic. Popular Latest. The Atlantic Crossword. Email Address. A Room With a View: If you think that your grades define you, consider this your wake-up call. Minority Report: Americans win big with bipartisan infrastructure bill.
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