January 2, 2006 (Cover Story/Special Edition)

The American Consumer:
18-34 Lifecycle: Bling is the Thing

Young Adults Seek Post-9/11 Reassurance by Creating their Own Material World

Sixty-nine million consumers, or 23% of the U.S. population, will occupy the 18-to-34-year-old segment in 2006, and their attention has never been do difficult to earn. This is an age group bookended on one side by those raised on TV images of the Vietnam War and on the other side by those who grew up watching MTV. The demo has witnessed the deadliest attack on U.S. soil since Pearl Harbor.

"9/11 without question is the defining moment for this 18-34 generation, and it will forever continue to be," says David Morrison, president and founder of TWENTYSOMETHING Inc., consultants on the young adult market. Such uncertainty has led this group to seek lasting value in both relationships and products. Family and meaningful employment have become more important, as have luxury brands. "Because there's so much uncertainty from day to day, from year to year, you need to indulge yourself more than ever before," Mr. Morrison says. That's quite a statement, considering their predecessors, the Baby Boomers, are no slouches at consumer self-gratification. If you were to give 18-34s their own moniker, perhaps it would be the Bling Generation.

LUXURY RESONATING

"Young adults are watching lots of indiscriminate discretionary spending taking place on TV," Mr. Morrison says. "The bling is everywhere. This is the Bling Generation. Whether or not they actually buy into it, it is resonating all around them." Technology and luxury are two things this generation clearly desires. While they're more likely to use the Internet than watch TV, this group does less of either than their elders. males in this group spend 10 hours a week watching TV and 12 hours on the Internet, compared with the 15 hours of each reported by older males.

HARD TO REACH

Their technological savvy also determines how, and not just where, they interact with brands. "They always tell us that they are not influenced by celebrities, and they are particularly vehement about this", says one analyst. "However -- more than ever before -- you can chart connections between what you see celebrities wearing in the tabloids and what college students covet." In a 2005 survey, for example, only 5% of respondents said they preferred brands they saw their favorite celebrities using, but the generation raised on MTV's "Pimp My Ride" and VH1's "Fabulous Life Of" still aspires to a materialistic vision of the good life. 51% of 18-to-29-year-olds said they would like to own an expensive car (13 points higher than the overall population), while 66% said clothes and jewelry define their personal identity (6 points higher than the overall population).

MORE ACCEPTING OF BRANDS

This brand consciousness can represent an opportunity for marketers. Compared with their older counterparts, the younger end of the demo is more accepting of brands and branding in general if they deliver value.

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© 2004 Crain Communications
Abbreviated Version

© 2006 Crain Communications
Abbreviated Version