Does McDonald’s need to try to change the world to win back its customers? Mickey D’s, still reeling from reporting its steepest monthly sales decline in 14 years, has been reaching out to ad agencies and media companies looking for advice on what kind of charitable partnership it can work up to help it connect better with its customers (specifically “millennials”), the Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.
millennials
It’s A Myth That Millennials Are Abandoning Fast Food
By 10.28.14
Millennials, as a generation, are roughly defined as “anyone younger than the senior Consumerist staff.” They’ve been the subject of hand-wringing in the fast food industry as industry experts fret that the young people just aren’t interested in traditional fast food, instead preferring slightly classier quick-serve fare like Chipotle or Five Guys. Is this true? Maybe not. [More]
Nearly 2 Of 3 Millennials Don’t Have Credit Cards
By 9.8.14
Millennials — those Americans currently between 18 and 29 years of age — never really lived in a world without debit cards, when the only way to make a non-cash purchase was to use a credit card or hope the store accepted personal checks. So it may come as little surprise to some that nearly two-thirds of the consumers in this age group don’t have a single credit card to their names. [More]
Shopping Healthier & Without Lists, Millennials Are Changing The Supermarket Game
By 8.29.14
Grocery shopping used to be a rather easy experience: you’d look in the cupboard, make a list and drive to the store to collect your goods. Simple right? Well, times they are a changin’ and it’s millennials who are pushing the supermarket industry in new directions.. [More]
Millennials’ Inability To Commit To Monogamous Fast Food Relationships Is Hurting McDonald’s
By 8.25.14
While it would be great for companies if all consumers agreed to go steady with just one of its suitors, choosing say, one fast food restaurant above all the rest and devoting themselves entirely to that relationship, that’s just not how it works. We consumers like to play the field, especially millennials, and that’s bad news for companies like McDonald’s. [More]
Report: Millennials Feel Overwhelmed By Debt, But They See A Bright Future Ahead
By 6.12.14
In news that is in no way shocking, millennials say they are overwhelmed by debt. [More]
Millennials Who Chose Not To Attend College Are More Likely To Live In Poverty Than Past Generations
By 2.11.14
The always rising cost of tuition and the number of students graduating college with significant debt might be enough to turn some away from getting a college education. But a new study by the Pew Research Center found that not going to college could be an even more expensive decision. [More]
Olive Garden Pursues Millennial Foodies With Tuscan Tapas
By 9.10.13
Traditionally, people have gone to Olive Garden when they feel like consuming theoretically infinite salad and breadsticks and miles of pasta. Portions are large enough to form at least two meals. Aren’t they? The chain is trying something new in some markets, and taking it nationwide: small plates for groups to share, instead of giant carb platters. [More]
Young Adults Not Eager To Take On Piles Of Credit Card Debt For Some Reason
By 6.24.13
Everyone has that one relative who was an adult during the Great Depression and hid boxes of cash all over the house because they didn’t trust banks. Someday, your own descendants might share tales of weird old Aunt Mykayla, who entered the workforce during the Great Recession and refused to get credit cards or even buy a car. [More]
Campbell’s Opens Pop-Up Hipster Soup Kitchens To Promote Soulless $3 Soup Pouches
By 11.14.12
Millennials, an age group roughly defined as “people who make the Consumerist editors feel old,” are a tough demographic to market to. How to reach them? “Free food” is usually a safe answer. That’s why Campbell’s is holding free soup events in big cities to promote their few products, $3 microwaveable soup pouches filled with the flavors foodies were crazy about in 2008. [More]
Today’s Young Adults: Home Ownership’s Lost Generation
By 7.18.12
The housing market is stalled, and the reason why is pretty simple: young adults aren’t all that interested in buying houses. It’s not hard to see why. Americans who are currently between 25 and 34 spent their formative years watching housing prices soar, then abruptly collapse, taking the entire global economy with them. Among those Millennials who haven’t already purchased and lost an underwater home…who wants to buy a starter condo after that? [More]
Study: Baby Boomers Are "Savvy Shoppers" Who Brand-Jump More Than Younger Generations
By 7.9.08
It’s time once again to play Categorize The Shopping Public, this time using a survey commissioned by TV Land to convince advertisers that its Boomer-centric programming is relevant. If you or someone you know is between the ages of 40-59, you won’t want to miss this very important message—but to summarize it for the ADD crowd, it seems younger folks are (slightly) more likely to choose a brand based on fashion and hype, whereas Boomers are (slightly) less brand-loyal and seek greater value. This runs counter to the conventional wisdom that younger consumers are savvier shoppers, and gives Boomers something to gloat over—before they forget what it is they’re gloating about. Ha ha! Old people are so old!
