Millennials take a social approach to shopping — they like to shop with friends and family, and seek friends’ opinions before making big decisions.
Millennials (ages 16-34) are more likely than people ages 35 and older to go grocery shopping with spouses, children, and/or other family members, according to advertising and marketing agency Barkley. Millennial women are twice as likely as women ages 35+ to shop for clothing with friends, spouses, or relatives.
Millennials have far more connections on social networks than those ages 35 and older; more than half (55%) of 16-34-year-olds have 101 or more Facebook friends. Millennials are three times more likely than people ages 35+ to have more than 500 Facebook friends.
Millennials are significantly more likely than those 35 and older to seek input from their friends, family, and coworkers or classmates when choosing which products to buy and making bigger life decisions.
Millennials’ friends provide more intangible kinds of support, too: the majority say that when their friends agree with their plans it makes them feel more excited about carrying them out.
Millennials take a holistic approach to health and nutrition. Four in 10 think they eat healthier foods than their parents, and they define that as being fresh, unprocessed, and natural/organic, according to The Hartman Group, which defines Millennials as ages 16-30. They’re interested in exercise that can be easily and enjoyably integrated into their lives — such as bicycling to work, participating in group sports, and playing physical videogames such as Wii.
Millennials take a social approach to eating, and are less rigid about when and where they have meals; almost three in 10 (29%) say they tend to eat several small meals throughout the day rather than breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Compared with adults over 30, Millennials are less likely to feel comfortable eating a meal alone at home (45% vs. 54%), less likely to eat home-cooked meals regularly (39% vs. 51%), and more likely to eat whatever and whenever they feel like (39% vs. 30%).
Six in 10 Millennials say they enjoy cooking; men and women are equally likely to say so.
Although the majority of Millennials eat meat, they’re more likely than Gen Xers or Boomers to eat vegetarian meals part or all of the time.
Six in 10 Millennials eat out at least once a week, compared to half of consumers over 30. They’re more likely than older consumers to be influenced in their choice of restaurants by friends’ recommendations or the wishes of people they’re dining with — though their top criterion is what kind of food they’re in the mood for.
Sources: “American Millennials: Deciphering the Enigma Generation,” August 2011, Barkley, Jeff Fromm, SVP Sales, Marketing & Innovation, 1740 Main St., Kansas City, MO 64108; 816-423-6195; jfromm@barkleyus.com; www.barkleyus.com. Price: Contact for information. [Detailed findings will be presented at the “Share. Like. Buy.” conference, Sepember 22-23, 2011; www.sharelikebuy.com.]
“Culture of Millennials, 2011,” The Hartman Group, Blaine Becker, Senior Director, Marketing & Business Relations, 3150 Richards Rd., #200, Bellevue, WA 98005; 425-452-0818, x124; blaine@hartman-group.com; www.hartman-group.com. Price: $15,000.
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