March 1996 Sidebar Story

What Will Grab Xers

The '80's adage "create a campaign, create a market" will no longer apply. Take designer Tommy Hilfiger's megamillion-dollar ad campaign in the '80s -- he boomed to become a fashion phenomenon. Now take CBS's recent media blitz for the Gen X soap "Central Park West" -- the show bombed. "Generation X is a more market-savvy group," says TWENTYSOMETHING Inc.'s David Morrison. "They know they're a target market; they understand the fundamentals of business and expect someone to market to them. They're more likely to scrutinize the message as well as the product."

- Great creativity isn't always critical in grabbing Xers. For instance, you may laugh at BMG Music Club's approach (its current ads feature leaping youngsters), but BMG sells to Xers. The key? The club offers a good price.

- Despite Gen X's alleged online proclivity [Editor's Note: at the time this article was printed], it's not at all clear that they will prefer to shop online. "[Online] is going to be a way to shop", says Morrison. "It's definitely not a way right now." For now, paper catalogs are easier to shop from than online services; online works only for buying, say, CDs. Techno-savvy as they are, Xers will migrate to whichever shopping service -- catalog, mall, or online -- is most efficient.

- Baby boomers may have like the hard sell; baby busters don't. They want information. And that's where catalogers will have an edge over retailers, according to Morrison. With catalogs, Xers "don't have to deal with confrontational or pitching salespeople", he says. "They want to get the information, they want to analyze it, and they want the freedom to make the decision."

SEE MAIN STORY

Abbreviated Version
© 1996 Cowles Business Media