A recent study from the data solutions provider Annalect found that the Millennial generation (those born between 1981 and 1995) have specific demands when it comes to the companies with which they conduct business that reach beyond the name of the company.

The six-month long (April through September 2014) survey of more than 3,000 Millenials who own smart phones, analyzed attitudes towards technology and how they think brands should utilize that resource. More than half (55 percent) think technology-based services are more important than having a social media platform (less than 40 percent), and 39 percent are loyal to those brands that employ technology.

Considering this demographic comprises some 80 million people within the adult population, their growing economic clout lends credence to these expectations.

According to the Director of the Primary Research and Insights team at Annalects, Dr. Pam Marsh, Ph.D., deployment of mobile technology initiatives provides “…a platform for developing and maintaining a relationship with a consumer… to not only express your brand’s message, but also be open to having the feedback and that two way communication that can go on between a consumer and a brand.”

The study also found that:

  • 42 percent expect a brand to offer mobile-friendly payments and to provide loyalty programs through apps;
  • 39 percent think technology increases the value of a brand;
  • 33 percent are more likely to recommend brands that deploy tech initiatives.

However, Millennials are not eschewing the human touch for impersonal technological resources as almost half (44 percent) value brands that provide access to human interaction.

Technology was also cited as a factor in how brands are discovered, with more than half saying app stores played a role in their finding new brands and more than 45 percent responded that they were introduced to a particular brand because someone else followed or liked it on a social media site.

References:

“How Smartphone-Owing Millennials Expect Brands to Use Technology,” MarketingCharts.com. February 5, 2015.

“Generation Tech: Millennials and Technology,” Annalect.com. January 2015.

Tadena, Nathalie. “For Millennials, Use of Technology Just as Important as Brand Name, Study Finds,” The Wall Street Journal. January 27, 2015.