10 Trends on Generation Y (Warc article 1)

Generation Y also known as the millennium generation author Melanie Shreffler explains in her article (10 Trends on Generation Y) how technology is at their fingertips and yet still advancing, the habit & media trend of Generation Y will have a major impact on 2012 and the near future to come. 

Music - 

Students have adopted platforms like Pandora and Spotify, making the need to own music, even in digital format, less important. In the six months it has been available in the US, Spotify has made it possible for music fans to get access to artists' complete collections online, on their tablets and on their phones. It has now become a trend that generation Y have no problem to find their favorite music online to listen to in leisure but now they have expected to be able to do so.

Cable to Streaming 

TV networks, particularly the ones which are aimed at Millennials, are now finally embracing streaming services. The author discusses that during the final months of 2011, the channels CW, Disney and ABC Family partner with Netflix, Hulu and Amazon offer their content to subscribers with little by delay following the show's original airing. Tv networks then realise that Generation Y aren't  going to subscribe to expensive cable when they can instantly can get that on their TV online. As taken from the author article "What can cable companies offer that Millennials will value? Internet access. That's one cord Millennials will never sever."

Social TV Viewing

Generation Y are likely to watch TV more and more, they continue to make time to catch up with their favourite shows when they air, because they know that friends will be talking about the next day or on Facebook and Twitter. Therefore even if they have the biggest schedules, it doesn't let that stop them seeing as the ever expanding technology has led to watching them on online through laptops and apps on their smartphone, to avoid feeling left out of the conversations.  

Shopping tools?

Half the population have smartphones, meaning marketers have jumped hoops to assist and persuade consumers making more purchases, from QR codes and reality app, facebook pages, text alerts is what 2011 saw. Now in 2012  Gen Y know what actually works, they are the tech savvy millennial's they can be stymied by QR codes rather than straight forward marketing messages. The author discussed that new media is what fails to market gen y but to explain that marketers need to learn how to use each media more effectively to target the target market. Social media is all about connecting but the idea of using facebook and twitter as their marketing wall, students find it rather off putting.

Instantly looking at the first 3 paragraphs it just means that technology is generation Y LIVES!! it is  apart of who they are, they grew into technology and still are yet to gain more from it. 

Brands good or bad?

Melanie (author) had brought to the table that young shoppers are no longer interested in brands that put their logos on ever product they make. They like more generic looking items, want quality clothing and due to several years of economic recession they don't want to broadcast the brands they wear. They would rather fit in then be a trendsetter or brand billboards. 

My understanding believed that trends is what generation Y are all about but due to this response is that highly true?

Students & tablets

Students wont have an ipad but they hope to own one, seeing as the price tag is too high, author Melanie explains that the hand me down from parents are likely to gain one. Instead they are more proud to say they own a Kindle Fire or Nook tablet, which offer the same functionality. 

"We expect many students have unwrapped these hybrid tablet/readers as gifts during the holidays, significantly increasing the number of Android platform users. They may be unhappy at first that they aren't the owners of an iPad, but that feeling will likely fade as they get to know their tablets."

Technology extensions

As touch-screen technology becomes ubiquitous, traditional brands are finding ways to use these devices to their advantage. For example, Disney worked with Apple to design toys for its Cars franchise that interact with an app on the iPad; Duo has a few products that turn the iPad into board games; and Atari has a plug-in that turns the device into an old-school arcade. Millennials are using mobile devices to help their lives, from keeping track of their health to finding entertainment to supporting learning. There are many opportunities for tech and non-tech brands alike to make the most of this trend.

From this paragraph it explains that technology has hit opportunities for non tech brands to become the trend as in an app which is used in the latest smartphones.

Twitter takes over

While Facebook is still the leader in social media, young people are increasingly using Twitter as a sort of social media filter. Millennials have been on Facebook for the majority of their young lives, friending just about everyone, from acquaintances to parents to brands. They don't want to unfriend anyone (that's not nice), so they're turning to Twitter as a means to follow just the people and brands they actually care to hear from on a regular basis. Although the Twitter network is more open, it feels more private because they've managed their connections better than they did on Facebook. While this trend is starting small, it will gain steam as more Gen Yers join the network to be where their closest friends are. Twitter won't replace Facebook, but young people will spend more time with it because it fills a particular niche.

Twiiter is a social site, it wont replace facebook but be a competitor, generation Y have grown up using facebook just about liking and adding friends, pages and groups. Yes Twitter cannot replace facebook but it has unique selling point because it provides a particular niche. 

Nostalgia returns

Millennials may seem too young to already long for a simpler era, but they do. As they graduate from high school and college and try to make their way in the world, they're facing tough times. They're returning from university to live with their parents to save money (even when they've found a job). That's also allowing them to return to their childhood years for comfort. They watch cartoons, play video games, and listen to old albums that take them back to a time when everything was possible, gaining the courage to go back out into the 'real world' and forge their own path. Nostalgic media and brands can reap the rewards of this trend.

 Home multimedia hubs

Now that we're fully in the era of digital media, Millennials are embracing multimedia hubs, singular devices that connect them to their music, TV shows, movies, games and more. The early adopters of this trend embraced Roku and Boxee boxes plugged in to their TV sets, but now Microsoft's recently upgraded Xbox Live platform and Apple's future iTV are both meant to serve as home media hubs. They're perfectly engineered for stream-happy Millennials, with built-in apps to manage their Hulu, Netflix and iTunes accounts, while also allowing them to rent shows and movies that aren't on their subscription platforms. Perhaps more appealing, is the seamless integration of social media that enables simultaneous viewing and game play. And there's voice control operation that pushes these devices into the realm of super-cool.