Note that this article has been updated to also include some of the private discussions with thought leaders in the past. You can read my final overview of my research into the Millennial generation along with what I predicted and what happened as they matured at this link. While I still speak about Echo Boomers and iGenZ privately, I seldom add new articles to this specific blogspot site. If you're reaching out about a speaking engagement, you can contact me at the research firm SqlinSix.
If you read about Echo Boomers [updated link] and their behavior, you might have noticed that they don't tend to buy cars or like their own transportation compared to other American generations (No Vehicles Please. We're Echo Boomers.). Some of this may be related to the environment, the lack of financial resources, or the rise of oil prices making transportation more expensive. But if they do buy cars, what cars do they like?
According to a study, the top 5 brand winners of Generation Y are as follows: (1) Scion, (2) Mitsubishi, (3) Mazda, (4) Nissan and (5) Volkswagen. The bottom five losers of Generation Y? Infiniti, BMW, Chevrolet, Acura and Suzuki.
The Millennial generation is considering price in its purchase, so we shouldn't expect car makers, like Audi, to win over a large portion of the Millennial generation. However, if gas prices continue to remain high or climb higher, Echo Boomers may start factoring in gas mileage over price. That being said, you won't be able to price a car higher just off the basis of gas mileage.
Still, some Echo Boomers will opt out of transportation altogether. After all, they'll save money and won't have to worry about higher gas prices in the future. Car companies have failed with some of Generation Y mainly because they lack the sagacity to produce quality vehicles at a decent price, and have helped contribute to the American dependence on oil.
In a similar manner with housing, when auto executives complain that Echo Boomers aren't buying their vehicles, I answer, "You're building cars they don't want." Look at what's working along with the patterns and mirror these patterns with your own branding.
