NEWSWIRE
- Summer youth unemployment has hit its lowest level since 1969. Despite low unemployment in industries that typically attract younger workers, Millennials are eschewing the summer paycheck in favor of long-term investments in their future like summer courses and unpaid internship opportunities. (The Wall Street Journal)
- NH: Since World War II, the share of teens looking for summer jobs peaked with first-wave Gen-Xers in the late 1970s to late 1980s at around 70%. The share thereafter dropped, especially when Millennials hit their teen years. Both parents and teachers increasingly worried about the safety of teen work, about the "commercialization" of kids, and about how menial work might be blighting kids' future job prospects. With Homelanders now entering their teens, the share is down to barely 40%. First-wave Xer parents--those who know more about summer work than any other cohort--apparently have no problem letting their kids stay home, go to summer camp, or get drilled at Kumon.
- Viacom and Turner took a revenue hit after cutting the number of commercials aired on TV. As ad-free streaming services continue to take eyes away from traditional television screens, networks are trying (and failing) to get ad executives to pony up for expensive TV ads. (The Wall Street Journal)
- NH: According to eMarketer, ad spending on "programmatic" (digital IT content) is rising faster than expectations--already surpassing total TV ad spending in 2016 rather than (as expected) waiting until 2017. By 2020, it is expected to exceed TV spending by 50%. Keep in mind that total ad spending is a historically fixed share of GDP. Keep in mind as well that TV currently suffers from a growing surfeit of content, devaluing its ad inventory. Bottom line: Linear TV is getting desperate as programmatic irons out its kinks. (See: "Who Watches the Ads?")
- Rich Cohen argues that Generation X is better suited to lead America into the future than Boomers or Millennials. His generational analysis is total Xer: While Boomers and Millennials tend to view society through a utopian lens, Xers’ overall sense of detachment and cynicism has prepared them for the dark days that have arrived. (Vanity Fair)
- NH: Eloquent piece. Excerpt: "Though much derided, members of my generation turn out to be something like Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca--we’ve seen everything and grown tired of history and all the fighting and so have opened our own little joint at the edge of the desert, the last outpost in a world gone mad, the last light in the last saloon on the darkest night of the year. It’s not those who stormed the beaches and won the war, nor the hula-hooped millions who followed, nor what we have coming out of the colleges now--it’s Generation X that will be called the greatest."
- T-Mobile is offering a special two-line discount for its 55+ consumers, whom the company calls “a generation of rule breakers.” Coupled with an ad campaign that trashes other carriers’ subpar senior plans, T-Mobile’s latest effort is yet another example of how brands are going all-out to cater to this massive generation. (T-Mobile)
- NH: It's an open secret that T-Mobile's target psychographic is extrovert adventure seekers and rule breakers age 35-60. The phrase "senior plan" (used by AT&T) is derided here with contempt.
- In a satirical op-ed, Millennial contributor Alexandra Petri apologizes for “killing everything.” One of the rare Millennials to strike back against Boomer-levied criticism, Petri writes that she wanted revenge on Boomers who “forced me to live in my parents’ basement, then mocked me for living there.” (The Washington Post)
- FX is now offering a low-cost, ad-free viewing and streaming experience—for Xfinity customers only. While cord-cutting continues to plague the industry, the network hopes that rewarding those who haven’t yet cut the cord will ease the pain, at least temporarily. (The Wall Street Journal)
- Luxury handbag upstart Senreve hopes that its logo-free products win over Millennial fashionistas. The company’s strategy is sound: While affluent Boomers wanted the world to know that they could afford Gucci, inclusive Millennial shoppers are motivated by quality rather than flash. (MIT News)
- NH: Every focus group I've ever seen shows Millennials squeamish about "luxury" in general--and especially about deluxe brands that announce themselves with a pecking-order insignia. Boomers grew into brands. Xers embraced them young. But Millennials are growing out of them. If Millennials are asked to name a positive premium product, they invariably mention something of indisputable quality that is plausibly within reach of everyone--like an iPhone. Ever see a logo on an iPhone? Not once you put its case on.
- Companies and individuals are turning to Surkus, an app that pays people to stand in line and actively engage in events. While “crowdcasting” may be a turnoff for Boomers and Xers who shudder at the thought of brands selling out, this tactic is a novel way to generate buzz—real or not. (The Washington Post)
- NH: Weird word shift here. Originally, "crowdcast" meant something like "crowdsource," as in getting a lot of people to collaborate on a common project. Often the connotation was "broadcast"--as in telling all your social media friends about a question your friend has. With Surkus, we're talking about "casting" as in the cast of a show. You are photo-screened as on Tinder. And then you are told to show up--at a restaurant, party, nightclub. For a small sum, you play a role for a few hours.
- New data show that Millennials are being scammed by online fraudsters who pose as job recruiters. Desperate for work and inherently trusting when it comes to Internet communications, Millennials present the perfect target. (The Wall Street Journal)
- NH: Yes, once you get hold of them (preferably by texting--they'll never answer their phones), Millennials are the most credulous of generations. (See: "Millennials More Likely to Fall For Phone Scams.")
- Fully 58% of Millennial travelers want to explore the world with their friends, 20% higher than any other age group. Millennials’ team-oriented mentality and their proclivity to spend money on experiences rather than things will be a boon to group travel for years to come. (Ford)
DID YOU KNOW?
Spa Resorts Get a Male Makeover. Spas have long been the exclusive domain of women who want to be pampered. But at a recent corporate retreat hosted by California’s Cal-a-Vie resort, the clientele was 90 percent men. What gives? Cal-a-Vie and others have gone all-in to attract the opposite sex with an expanded array of offerings catered specifically to men. It’s not just facials and manicures at Primland, a Virginia-based resort that offers everything from hunting to recreational tree climbing. The company’s push has worked: Fully 42 percent of Primland’s clients are men today, up from just 10 percent seven years ago. Even the spa offerings at these resorts are getting a testosterone boost: Cal-a-Vie’s Terri Havens says that visitors who want a mani-pedi now must ask for “a hand and foot sports conditioning.” While drawing men to the spa would have been an impossible task years ago, today’s men have fewer biases against self-care—a boon for the beauty industry. (See: “Beauty Gets a Makeover.”)
