Walmart, Target, Coca-Cola and Pepsi are among the top 10 most beloved brands of Millennials, according to the 2015 Top 50 Millennial Brand Ranking Report released this week by Moosylvania, an independent digital advertising agency. The brand comparison study was conducted with Millennials in two separate surveys over the course of nine months.
The latest rankings, based on panel studies of 1,500 Millennials—defined as age 14 to 35—not only ranks which Top 50 brands continue to earn Millennial love, but why these brands are connecting so strongly with them. Participants in each survey were asked to rank their top three brands unaided—32 of the 50 brands mentioned were repeats. Eighteen new brands edged their way into the latest list.
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The 2015 top five “most beloved” brands are Nike, Apple, Samsung, Sony and Walmart. A few of the newcomers to the list included Pizza Hut (21), Chevrolet (23), Honda (31), Oreo (33), Sprint (42) and Chanel (43), among others. In spite of last holiday season’s security breach, Target rose from 27th to sixth in the 2015 rankings. Facebook, PlayStation and Old Navy were among 11 brands that lost favor with Millennials and dropped from the Top 50 list. Absent from either list were alcohol and spirit brands.
In addition to their favorite brands, Millennials participating in the latest study identified key media traits that transform a high-awareness brand into a beloved brand. Important brand characteristics that matter most to Millennials include High-Quality Products (75 percent), Would Recommend This Brand (61 percent), Fits Their Personality (53 percent), Social Responsibility (40 percent), Shares Similar Interests (39 percent) and Says Important Things (31 percent).
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Norty Cohen, founder and CEO of Moosylvania said.
“What these two back-to-back studies reveal is that a form of personalized communication has to be involved before a brand can get recognized. Make me look good, make me feel good and entertain me—mass communication has been supplanted with friendship marketing, 'Millennials’ curation skills allow them to consider new entities. Consider that in one year’s time 18 brands went from not one mention to placing in the Top 50, proving that Millennials will adopt brands that get into their zone.”
Cohen describes Millennial consumers as their own brand managers.
“This generation is looking for brands that help them become something more than their regular selves. Provide a high-quality product or service that helps them look cool, and Millennials will return the favor with their recommendations and purchasing power. They care about what’s happening on their street, in their neighborhood and beyond—and so should marketers. Brands that market with a strong, positive message and display a sense of social responsibility show they care about what Millennials care about.”
For example, Ralph Lauren, who went from 104th to 30th in the rankings, and Wendy’s (47), a newcomer to the 2015 Top 50 list, both created campaigns that included participatory TV commercials and music videos. The companies then micro-targeted consumers by speaking directly to them through their various social media platforms, Cohen says.
“Millennials are not just consumers—they’re friends. They trust friends who listen to them, are open and honest, remember their names, are consistent and stay true to who they are. Marketers who connect with them as friends on that level have an opportunity to break into the favorites list.”
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COMMENTARY: Wal-Mart's popularity among young people may come as a surprise to many marketing analysts who say millennials prefer convenient, smaller-format stores and online shopping over the big-box retailers where their parents shopped.
Even Wal-Mart executives have admitted they were surprised by the data.
Matt Kistler, Walmart senior VP-consumer insights and analytics, told Ad Age.
"Millennials now, as a generation, like Walmart the best, more so than Generation X, more so than boomers,"
Wal-mart Chief Marketing Officer Stephen Quinn said to Ad Age.
"That kind of shocks a lot of people, including inside the company."
But Wal-Mart's cheap prices are a big draw for cash-strapped millennials, many of whom are underemployed and working multiple jobs to pay off student loan debt. NOTE: Millennials also happen to be biggest users of discount coupons, even more than their parents.
The class of 2015 has the highest level of college debt in US history, according to CNBC. On average, students graduating this year will owe $35,051 in student loans, CNBC reports based on data from Mark Kantrowitz, a student financial aid policy expert and publisher of Edvisors.com.
Millennials are also spending more on technology and food than previous generations, leaving them with less discretionary income.
Kistler told Ad Age.
"The millennial customer grew up with a lot of hardship. They see Walmart as a place where they can save money."
Courtesy of Moosylvania.com's A Labor of Like: Millennials 2015 - Favorite Brands Ranking Report and an article dated June 16, 2015 appearing in Business Insider
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