Youth culture by their very nature of entering into a new world of personal identity and awareness often comes with a huge dose of hopefulness despite the state of the global economy, environment, or even war. The main reason for this sense of hope and happiness comes from having really no other comparisons developed yet from which to build cultural blinders.
Understanding the youth marketplace and their State of Mind on a macro level sets the stage for what’s most important not only to this new generation of consumers, but also to gain knowledge for future forecasting about what concerns are of most importance shaping society’s future.
In our Spring Youth Culture Study 2012, the most unique aspect of this demographic’s State of Mind is based on a growing entrepreneurial spirit: Understanding where this DIY spirit comes from provides guidelines of how various paradigm shifts occur and why and where they’re headed next. For 2012, this marks the beginning of a significant shift across many different industries based on changes in the State of Mind of youth culture today. Their sense of Happiness, coupled with concerns for the future, are a unique dichotomy found often in young people, but it is something that fades the older we get. What’s also unique about young people today is their growing sense that they need to take care of their own future because no one else will. They push the speed of change in technology, redefining consumer control towards creating their own communication platforms, entertainment, creativity, and destiny. Therefore, starting with the future, which to a young person almost always looks bright, provides the starting point from which to build the story about today’s youth culture.
This begins with one of our key anchor questions which we’ve conduced for the past 12 years in all of our Youth Culture Studies across the United States about Future Concerns. By understanding how the marketplace thinks from a Macro level about their future, it can help industry experts across the board to better identify with what is most important to a new generation of 13-25-year-olds. It’s important to note also that there is an entire demographic of young people that have now gone through their entire teens within a recession. This has affected spending patterns and overall Future Concerns which has a ripple effect far greater than most people may realize. This generation of new consumers has a different way of thinking about what’s most important to them. In many ways, the direct impact of the recession has changed their way of thinking about their own lives forcing them to grow-up faster, beyond their years, with real-life concerns for their future.
By understanding key future concerns, from their state of happiness, to the environment, humanitarian issues, and the economy, brands can better align themselves with this new generation of consumers. The Study also delves into the results to the question, “Which of the following affects you in your daily life?” with a series of topics that look at music, sports, fashion, entertainment, and changes in spending patterns and why.
Overall however, it’s interesting to note that while many marketers may look at the surface of trends taking place, they may fail to grasp why and what lies underneath, which stems from the state of mind of this demographic.
For more information about Label Networks’ Spring Youth Culture Study 2012, email info@labelnetworks.com.
