Mental Monday: Gen BuY

Good Afternoon, Social Rabbit here with your guide to the world of social media.

Today’s book is Gen Buy – How tweens, teens, and twenty-somethings are revolutionizing retail by Kit Yarrow and Jayne O’Donnell.  If you are running a business that appeals to this Gen Y audience then it contains a lot of great insights into how they tick, what they are looking for, what they want in a brand and how to communicate with them.

Gen Y is the generation that has grown up in the digital age, and that makes this book an important one to read when looking at social media, because they are very active on it and expect a lot from brands.  The book contains eight chapters covering why they buy, why they are different to their parents, shopping, sex and work.

My favourite direct quotes from the book are:

• Today’s consumers won’t be “sold”; they want to be seen, known, and respected – and only those marketers and retailers that invest in relationships through empathy, deep understanding, and insight will prevail.
• What works with Gen Y will increasingly work with all generations – which is why we say they’ve revolutionising retail
• Gen Yers demand an authentic relationship based on a deep knowledge of who they are and what makes them tick (and buy)
• What we buy and have is one of the primary ways that we communicate who we are to others in today’s speedy and more visual society
• Gen Y is seen as the most “self indulgent” generation, Gen X as the most “innovative”, boomers as the most “productive”, and our eldest generation as the most “admired”
• Having never experienced a world without computers, the internet, cell phones, and digital cameras, Gen Yers are free of anxiety and full of playfulness when they interact with the internet and technology of all sorts
• Four characteristics [of Gen Yers] stand out: their confidence; their connectedness to each other, their parents, and the world; their management of an overwhelming array of choices; and their warp-speed living and all that it entails
• Gen Y is a high-speed generation, and as such, compared with older generations, they’re easily bored and highly attuned to the power of visual symbols
• Manufacturers and retailers that want to attract Gen Y need to ramp up technology – constantly.  In stores, on their websites, and by making it mobile and interactive.  If your website stinks, for example, so does your store.
• To appeal to young people, the most important characteristics websites must have are free overnight or second-day shipping….. fast page loads, and zooms of all views
• this generation does not want to be lied to, or to be told what they should want or who they should be.
• Gen Yers aren’t more brand savvy, they’re more media savvy
• one of the more popular means of getting close to Gen Yers is through their interest and their favourite causes
• the products that celebrities pick are the products that consumers want.  First there’s the glow of association that a product receives if it’s also chosen by a celebrity.  Additionally, many consumers believe that an influential person has access to everything, therefore the things she picks must be the best in that category – it’s an assurance of quality and style
• Short attention spans and the quest for stimulation, variety, and attention makes “closet turnover” important – and consequently makes fast fashion a necessity for retailers hoping to get the nod from young women in particular
• shopping helps to create a sense of belong and connection – in other words, community
• many Gen Yers are so connected to their favourite retailers and brands they often feel like they are investing in a relationship, not unlike one they’d have at school or their jobs
• when kids feel close to and familiar with brands, owning them seems only natural
• Gen Y is even more hopeful than previous generations.  They’ve seen the power of technology, and they believe in “new” as better
• Shopping plays a gigantic role in helping Gen Yers connect with each other, learn about and understand themselves and feel more in control of the future.
• Gen Yers – particulary the younger ones – look for community and belonging through brand relationships and the products they share
• Peer reviews on websites help sort through the clutter and are considered more credible than merchant descriptions
• if we’re having a good time or feeling good and stumble across a product in that mood, there’s a rub-off effect on the brand

I think that this book can really give you some insights into how to interact with your gen Y consumers both on and off line, it is worth a read if that is who your customers are.  I know that for my Mocks brand I will now be looking at approaching the interaction slightly differently!

Until next week go and make them laugh!