GENERATION NEXT

A lot of time has been spent in identifying a target market. Baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, have been the most numerous cohorts in America for more than five decades. If I were to guess, I would say that most of today’s small business owners have this or some part of this group as their target market.

Pew Research Center reckons that 2019 is the year when baby boomers will be outnumbered. The group displacing them as the largest cohort, the so-called millennials is very different.

The following excerpt is from The Economist, The World in 2019: “Millennials, born between 1981 and 1996, grew up on a different planet. Traumatized by 9/11, the financial crisis and shooter drills at school, they have been described as pragmatic idealists: hopeful of making the world better, but without the boomers messianic streak.” The article went on to say that millennials expect businesses to be local, green and socially conscientious.

Other factors come into the picture; millennials were born in the current world of technology. To me, that means instant everything. They will be impatient and will want their products and services “NOW.” Another concern is that these millennials are on a path away from religion; religion and the morals surrounding it have been part of the trust relationship that used to exist in the world of business.

At the same time, these same millennials are not as active as the boomers are politically. Only about half of those eligible voted in the last presidential election. This tells us that the boomers may still be a major factor for a few more years.

All of us have to be aware of the coming changes as our current target market ages and a new generation, with different ideals and needs, takes over.

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Tips & Advice by Nick Petra, CFP – Founder of Strategic Duck and BizQuack