100 Youth

Market Statistics

by Graham D Brown
Total Youth Research

Page 1 of 32

Table of Contents
MILLENNIALS: THE MOST IMPORTANT GENERATION

YOUTH: CHANGING VALUES

MOBILE: ALWAYS ON AND EMOTIONAL

GET THE TOTAL YOUTH HANDBOOK

THE DISCONNECTED GENERATION

10

PRIVACY: A KEY DRIVER

12

SOCIAL MEDIA: ALL ABOUT EVERYDAY, CROSS-MEDIA STORYTELLING

14

SHARED EXPERIENCE

16

PEER TO PEER INFLUENCE

18

YOU CANT BUY THEIR TRUST OR ATTENTION

20

EXPERIENCE IS THE BRAND

22

OFFLINE: THE MOMENT OF TRUTH

24

LOYALTY: TRUST CREATES THE EXPERIENCE

26

ANALOG OFFLINE RETAIL: AS IMPORTANT AS EVER

28

JOIN THE TOTAL YOUTH ACADEMY FREE AND GET ACCESS TO ALL THIS30
ABOUT GRAHAM D BROWN AND TOTAL YOUTH RESEARCH

31

GET ALL THE STATISTICS, TRENDS AND ANALYSIS OF THE YOUTH MARKET
32

Page 2 of 32

MILLENNIALS: THE MOST

IMPORTANT GENERATION

There are 80 million Millennials in the US,

outnumbering 78 million Boomers,
65 million Gen X
Not only are they now the biggest consumer demographic, but Millennials are also the most
important in terms of technology adoption. Millennials (Gen Y) will change the face of business
by adapting to new technologies and business models. The Sharing Economy is just one
example of how business will need to change to accommodate this generation of customers.
What Gen Y are adapting to, Gen Z will grow up expecting.

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 There are 80 million Millennials in the US, outnumbering 78 million Boomers, 65 million Gen
X (Source US Bureau of Statistics 2014)

Millennials consumers are worth $1 trillion annually in the US and $10 trillion globally in 2015
49% of 18-21 year olds use mobile video chat on a weekly basis. Only 3% of 30+ year olds
use it

76% of Children under 18 were designated primary technology users in the family. 47% of
parents admit children influenced their purchase of an iPad

READ MORE:
A general overview: The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Research Guide to Gens Y & Z (Total Youth Academy members)

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YOUTH: CHANGING VALUES

Driving license ownership

fell by 30% for 16-17 year olds
between 1980 and 2010
Young people are more tolerant of races and groups than older generations (47% vs. 19%),
with 45% agreeing with preferential treatment to improve the position of minorities. (Source
US Chamber of Commerce 2014)

Only 28% of Millennials feel their current organization is making full use of their skills (Source
Deloitte 2015)

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 Only 15% of Millennials ranked buying a car was very important in their hierarchy of needs
(Source Goldman Sachs 2013)

38% of Millennials have a tattoo, 21% have some form of body piercing not in the ear (Source
Pew Research 2009)

78% of 18-34 year olds said car ownership was difficult due to a number of factors including
rising fuel costs

Driving license ownership fell by 30% for 16-17 year olds between 1980 and 2010 (source
UMTRI, Pew Research 2013)

READ MORE:
A general overview: The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Research Guide to Gens Y & Z (Total Youth Academy members)
The Total Youth Research Guide to the Sharing Economy (Total Youth Academy members)

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MOBILE: ALWAYS ON AND

EMOTIONAL

89% of 18-24 year olds check their mobile

phones within 15 minutes of waking
55% of students reported strong negative feelings when separated from their mobile for 24
hours (The World Unplugged 2013)

Youth spend 36% of their disposable income on mobile phones (compare that to 8% music
and movies)

89% of 18-24 year olds check their mobile phones within 15 minutes of waking
97% of Under 20 year olds said they had used their smartphone in the bathroom (source 11
Mark 2013)

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 80% of Millennials said they check Twitter at least once a day (source Twitter 2014)
95% of 18-24 year olds check their messages within 1 hour of going to bed
10% of Gen Y used their smartphone to buy something online while in the bathroom
81% of youth under 25 sleep with their smartphones next to them either in the bed or on the
night stand

38% of students surveyed said they could not go more than 10 minutes without checking their
digital device (about the time it takes to walk to class)

63% of 18-29 year olds admit answering a call while in the bathroom (source 11 Mark 2013)
94% of Gen Y and Gen Z use messaging apps on a daily basis
Facebook Messenger is still the most popular messaging app with 35% of the market (source
Global Web Index Q4 2014)

READ MORE:
Read the The Total Youth Handbook to learn more about The Mobile Generation
The Mobile Youth: Voices of the Mobile Generation (Amazon E-Book)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Mobile (Total Youth Academy members)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Mobile Messenger (Total Youth Academy members)
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)

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GET THE TOTAL YOUTH

HANDBOOK

h.p://www.TotalYouthResearch.com/Total-Youth-Handbook/

Page 9 of 32

THE DISCONNECTED
GENERATION

25% of Millennials said they did not

have anyone to confide in
The average Millennial has 1 good friend, down from 3 in the 1980s
Facebook found that we had, on average, 155 friends, but only communicated regularly with
7 of them

25% of Millennials said they didnt have anyone to confide in

The average 18-29 year old was in constant contact with 19 people (friends and family) in
their daily lives, a decline of 42% (from 33) since 1995 (Source mobileYouth, Harris
Interactive and Pew Research 2013)

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 The number of families who gather every day around dinner or TV to catch up has declined
20% since 1991 (source APA 2013)

88% of youth who bought from a Food Truck at least once in the last month said that
meeting new people was the best part of the experience. Only 43% said food
quality (Source USDA 2013)

READ MORE:
Learn more about the social drivers of Gens Y & Z in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Research Guide to Mobile (Total Youth Academy members)
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)

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PRIVACY: A KEY DRIVER

64% of teens admitted blocking parents or

family from a post or a friend request
77% of Millennials said the #1 reason they used Snapchat was because it didn't store
messages (source Mobile Squared 2014)

88% of 14-17 year old smartphone owners said they preferred mobile to PC messengers
because parents tracked their PC usage. Only 57% said because it was more convenient.
(Source Portio Research 2013)

43% of managers said youth cared about privacy on social media but 82% of Gen Y said
social media privacy was important to them

59% of teens said they had deleted or edited a post on social media (Source Pew Research
2013)

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 52% of teens check their social media privacy settings once a week
64% of teens admitted blocking parents or family from a post or a friend request
61% of teens set their social media account privacy settings to share only with friends
Only 5% of teens shared their real relationship status on Facebook
59% of teens fake their age on social media to create an account
72% of teens said privacy had a major impact on their use of social media apps
63% of teens said they preferred eBook readers because others wouldnt know what they
were reading

57% of 15-25 year olds said the #1 reason they still used SMS was the ability to send in
private

75% of teens said they participate in interest groups anonymously

72% of teens wanted an option to use nicknames instead of real ones on Facebook
87% of 18-24 year olds want an option to post content on Facebook anonymously
92% of youth said they invite "close friends I trust to never share a message" to a group on
Snapchat (source Mobile Squared 2014)

Only 17% of Millennials said the shared Snapchat messages with people they didnt know
(Source Mobile Squared 2014)

READ MORE:
Learn more about the privacy needs of Gens Y & Z in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Snapchat (Total Youth Academy members)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Privacy (Total Youth Academy members)

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SOCIAL MEDIA: ALL ABOUT

EVERYDAY, CROSS-MEDIA
STORYTELLING

67% of Millennials said they shared

"random thoughts" on Twitter
47% of all teen content on Instagram is #selfies
56% of Millennial Twitter Users said they use it to document their lives in real time (Source
Twitter 2014)

67% of Millennials said they shared "random thoughts" on Twitter (source Twitter 2014)
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 38% of all how-to videos are created by 18-21 year olds (source Youtube and Ifixit 2013)
68% of youth said they chat with friends on their phone while watching TV (source Microsoft
2014)

71% of Millennial Twitter users said tweeting about an event made it more fun (Source
Twitter 2014)

READ MORE:
Learn more about how Gens Y & Z tell everyday stories in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Mobile Video Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Video (Total Youth Academy members)

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SHARED EXPERIENCE

67% of teens said

hanging out with friends
was their most important social activity
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 The more shareable the experience, the more valuable. If youth arent sharing your brand,
you might as well not exist.

92% of Millennials associated food with family, 81% with friends

69% of Millennials said they experienced FOMO Fear of Missing Out (Harris Interactive
2014)

65% of 18-25 year olds said they used their smartphones to call or message friends in-store
(Source mobileYouth 2014)

78% of Millennials would choose to spend money on experience rather than buying
something (Harris Interactive 2014)

90% of all youth communication is Passive

67% of teens in 2012 said hanging out with friends was their most important social activity.
The number has hardly changed, with 66% saying the same thing in 2011.

94% of youth said the most common reason why their tag photos of contacts on social media
was to maintain a friendship (Source Friendship 2.0 2014)

READ MORE:
Learn more about the power of Shared Experience and the importance of Passive
Communication in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Mobile Video Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to the Sharing Economy (Total Youth Academy members)

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PEER TO PEER INFLUENCE

75% of 18-21 year olds said best friends

influenced them to choose their smartphone
What youth say today is far more important than what advertising agencies say. Dialog is out
there whether you like it or not. Rather than ask how do we have a conversation with youth?
ask, how can we break down the walls that prevent them having a conversation with us?

78% of 18-25 year old who said they were loyal to a mobile brand said they recommended it
to others

77% of Gen Y said the fact their friends were using the new carrier was key to influencing
their own decision to switch

67% of Gen Y shared their phone purchase with friends

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 76% said "because other friends are on it" as the #1 reason to switch to a new social media
app

Word of mouth is #1 factor of influence point of purchase for 18-29 year olds
75% of 18-21 year olds said best friends influenced them to choose their smartphone
Millennials trust user generated content 50% more than traditional media

READ MORE:
Learn more about the dynamics of influence in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Marketing (Total Youth Academy members)

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YOU CANT BUY THEIR

TRUST OR ATTENTION

Only 1% of students said they

recommended a brand because of
incentives or rewards
You cant buy youth trust and attention anymore; you have to earn it. Youth no longer wake up
thinking about your brand; get over it. Traditional above-the-line marketing was born of an era
when youth trust and attention were abundant; that simply isnt true anymore. In youth
marketing today, attention is your biggest cost.

The Average American sees 170,000 marketing messages by her 17th birthday
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 The number 1 reason why youth used WhatsApp (77% of users) was no in-app
advertising (Source Jana 2014)

Only 1% of Millennials said they trusted advertising enough for it to inform their decisions
(Source Elite Millennial 2015)

Only 21% of 18-29 year olds said they discovered their mobile handset through TV or Print
Ads (source Accenture 2014)

Only 3% of students said they recommended a brand because they were recruited as a brand
ambassador

Only 1% of students said they recommended a brand because of incentives or rewards

Gen Y super-influencers recommend 3 times as many brands on a daily basis than average
customers

10% of young people account for 88% of all positive brand recommendations

READ MORE:
Learn more about how to earn youth trust and attention in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Marketing (Total Youth Academy members)

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EXPERIENCE IS THE BRAND

87% of Gen Y share brand experiences

with friends & family
We no longer control the brand. How youth experience the brand is the brand. What youth say
about our brands, is our brands. The official brand story is just one of the many stories out
there.

18-29 year olds are 50 x more likely to recommend a product based on good experience
rather than incentive or rewards

67% of 18-25 year olds said poor customer experience was the reason to switch mobile
carrier

76% of Gen Y said their old carrier could have prevented them from switching if they just paid
attention

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 87% of Gen Y share brand experiences with friends & family (compare with 65% of 30+
years)

68% of Gen Y said they stayed with a smartphone brand because of a positive experience
with a previous handset

READ MORE:
Learn more about brand experience in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Marketing (Total Youth Academy members)
Brand Love: How to Build a Brand Worth Talking About (Amazon EBook)

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OFFLINE: THE MOMENT OF

TRUTH

74% of 14-17 year old smartphone owners

said reliving memorable events of the
daywas the most popular subject for
their late night messenger chats
Offline is the moment of truth. Without offline, the online becomes meaningless. Be clear about
the direction of your communication - you need to be moving youth marketing from the online to
the offline. Use online to augment not replace the offline experience.

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 Gen Y recommend brands 15 times more offline than they do online

90% of Gen Y brand-related conversations happen at home
Blindfolded students could identify 7 emotions of other people through touch alone with 70%+
accuracy

31% of students unfriended people from their Facebook friend list due to an unpleasant
offline interaction. Only 1% did so because of an unpleasant online interaction (e.g. excessive
posting)

Asked how they liked to communicate with friends and family, 83% of under 35 year olds said
face-to-face (source Ipsos 2014)

74% of 14-17 year old smartphone owners said reliving memorable events of the day was
the most popular subject for their late night messenger chats (source Portio Research 2013)

78% of 15-17 year old smartphone owners said planning offline meetups was the most
popular use of SMS or messaging apps (source Pew Research Center 2013)

63% of 14-18 year olds Googled "how to kiss" (Source Google 2014)
41% of 18-29 year olds use social media to get dates. Only 30% of all ages said they did.
(Source Pew Research 2014)

Read More:
Learn more about the importance of offline, analog experiences for youth in The Total Youth
Handbook
The Total Youth Mobile Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Retail (Total Youth Academy members)

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LOYALTY: TRUST CREATES

THE EXPERIENCE

69% of Gen Y said they felt frustrated

when let down by their mobile carrier
The top 3 factors that contribute most to customer experience are Brand Trust (65%),
Customer Service (62%) and Earned Media (58%).

63% of smartphone owners said product experience was based on device quality instead of
features and price.

44% of Gen Y are considering switching carrier right now

Reliability is ranked as the #1 reason that influenced smartphone purchase for 18-25 year
olds

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 57% of Gen Y said a lack of transparency in monthly bills was key reason why they switched
The average switch takes 10 months for 22-25 year olds and 4 months for 15-17 year olds
69% of Gen Y said they felt frustrated when let down by their carrier
92% of Gen Y said that resolving their issues at first contact would prevent them from
switching mobile brands

21% of youth said that hidden fees and unexplained costs were the biggest concerns they
had about their mobile experience

Read More:
Learn more about the importance of trust in youth marketing in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Marketing (Total Youth Academy members)

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ANALOG OFFLINE RETAIL:

AS IMPORTANT AS EVER

73% of Gen Y visit a mobile store when it

was time to renew their mobile contract
74% of Millennials said they preferred offline to online retail because they could try out
products (source IAB 2014)

73% of Gen Y visit a mobile store when its time to renew their mobile contract
56% of Gen Y said a poor retail experience was the main reason they switched mobile
carriers

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 77% of teens said not having a credit card was the biggest barrier to them buying online
music (Source RIAA & Harris Interactive 2013)

64% of Gen Y said lack of employee product knowledge contributed to poor retail experience
84% of Gen Y said their top frustration with customer service is dealing with multiple people
52% of Millennials use comparison shopping apps in-store (Source AIMIA Inc. 2013)

Read More:
Learn more about the power of offline, analog retail in The Total Youth Handbook
The Total Youth Trends Report (premium content)
The Total Youth Research Guide to Retail (Total Youth Academy members)

Page 29 of 32

JOIN THE TOTAL YOUTH

ACADEMY FREE AND GET
ACCESS TO ALL THIS
h.p://www.TotalYouthResearch.com/Academy

Page 30 of 32

ABOUT GRAHAM D BROWN

AND TOTAL YOUTH
RESEARCH

Ive been in the youth space since I founded the mobileYouth research consultancy back in
2001. Ive worked with some of the worlds leading brands in this space helping them gain a
better understanding of the youth market.

http://www.TotalYouthResearch.com/Graham-Brown

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GET ALL THE STATISTICS,

TRENDS AND ANALYSIS OF
THE YOUTH MARKET

h.p://www.TotalYouthResearch.com/Reports

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