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Affluent millennials are the most brand conscious group in Asia Pacific, BBC study finds

An online survey by BBC has attempted to show that only rich millennials in the Asia Pacific region are deserving of some of the stereotypes associated with the much-hyped group, and lower income millennials think no differently to any other age group regarding money, the environment and the media they choose to consume.

BBC study of Millennials

The study of the cohort of 616m people found that wealthier millennials are more likely to be brand conscious, consider themselves to be rich, buy green products, and think that money is the best measure of success.

Affluent millennials, who defined as the top 25% by household income, are also the most receptive to ads, the study suggests.

'I tend to buy brands I see advertised'

The richer sub-set of young people in the region is also more likely to consider brands to be an extension of themselves and have a strong emotional connection with brands, which is why this cohort cares more about the values and purpose of brands, the study suggests.

Affluent versus non-affluent millennials BBC study

Richer millennials are also the most likely sub-group to value trust in their relationship with brands, the study found. “Brands that are proven to fail the litmus test of trust are likely to fail,” commented Alistair McEwan, SVP of commercial development at BBC Worldwide APAC.

The trust factor has implications for advertising, McEwan said.

“It’s not just about the product, it’s about the back story and the brand narrative that is absolutely critical and embodies how we see a shift in brand advertising – from being commercial and display-oriented into content marketing and brand storytelling.”

The study also tries to show that rich millennials are more likely to go to news outlets such as the BBC than the likes of Buzzfeed and Vice for news.

According to the survey, millennials value trust in the news they consume above all, along with an “intelligent view”, followed by impartial coverage, a global view and in-depth coverage.

Coverage of funny or quirky events, which is to be associated with the lighter news found on the likes of Buzzfeed, ranked last in terms of what millennials want from news.

The study notes that since the beginning of the decade the use of the term has grown steadily, gauged by the number of Google searches for ‘millennial’, although its use has dropped off lately.

Google searches for the term millennial

Google searches for the word ‘millennial’

 

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