Millenials and Social Media - Presentation

Millennials and
Social Media
2010

External Version

> Millennials and Social Media

About the study
• In-depth online survey conducted by MicroDialogue, June 2010
• 500 millennials (aged 18–25) and 100 “olders” (aged 40–55) in each of 5
markets (total n=3,004)
• Extensive secondary category research

China France India U.K. U.S.
n=600 n=600 n=600 n=600 n=600

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Introduction
• By whatever name they’re called—
iGeneration, Generation C, Gen Y, Gen
Next, echo boomers—the millennials are
“ Social media is changing our
lives and our society: It makes
us more sociable, more global,
the first true digital natives and more informed. These
digital communities are like a
• They have never known a world other than second world that each day
one of constantly improving digital
turns more important to us.”
technologies —Carla Lozano, Account Group and
Planning Director, J. R. Vallejo y Asociados,
• Yet what sets this generation apart is not Ecuador
so much the use of Internet technology
(everyone uses that), but their use of
social media
• For millennials, social media is as
seamlessly integrated into their lives as
their computers and cell phones; it’s how
they communicate and socialize, conduct
business and explore the world

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Social media is to millennials what rock “n” roll
was to baby boomers

• A shared phenomenon shaping youth culture and how the generation views itself
• A means by which to distinguish itself from earlier generations
• A tool for self-expression and sociopolitical change

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Key findings

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1. SOCIAL MEDIA IS TODAY’S
SOCIAL GLUE

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“ Young people and millennials think and
experience society through social media.”
—Luc Basier, Strategic Planning Director, Euro RSCG C&O,
Suresnes, France

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A global phenomenon

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SoMe keeps millennials in constant contact

• Unlike in days of landline phones and snail mail, SoMe connects people
instantly and constantly via message posts, instant messaging, VoIP, and
video chats
• Appeal lies not so much in connecting with strangers in far-flung places as with
staying in touch with family and friends
• SoMe is a new tool for satisfying very basic human needs: connection,
conversation, community

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“ Time is of the essence and people rarely have the time for elaborate
conversations. This means microblogging is here to stay. In the
present global village, social media is the lounge where everyone
knows your name. Through social media, the distance between,
say, Baltimore and Bangalore is one click, AND it’s free.” —Shourya
Ray Chaudhuri, Senior Executive, Brand Identity and Corporate Communication, Euro RSCG
4D Matrix, Bangalore, India

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2. MULTIPLE ACCESS POINTS

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The social media mix varies by country and
through time
• Facebook (FB) is an increasingly global phenomenon, having usurped the
once-dominant MySpace

• 500MM+: Active users
• 700BN+: # of mins/mo. people spend on site
• 90: # of pieces of content average user creates each
month (30BN pieces shared per month in total)
• 70: % of users outside U.S.
• 150MM+: Active users currently accessing FB through
mobile devices (mobile users are 2x as active on FB as
nonmobile users)
Source: Facebook.com

“ Facebook is the number one site in Lebanon, ahead of Google, Live, and
Yahoo. Because it is cheap and efficient, many marketers are using it. Fan
pages and groups and games are very popular. The Lebanese pressure
groups use it to shape and affect political, environmental, and social issues.
This is something that will stay; it is not a phenomenon that will fade away.”
—Nada Metni, New Business Development, Euro RSCG Beirut

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Microblogging platform Twitter is generating
55MM+ tweets a day
• 37% of Twitter users access service via phone
• Social networking is by far the fastest-growing mobile activity, reports comScore

• In June 2010, nearly 93MM visited Twitter.com, +109% from previous year
• In U.S., awareness has exploded from 5% of Americans aged 12+ in 2008 to
87% in 2010, but usage trails FB significantly (7% of Americans vs. 41% for FB)
• Nearly 2/3 of active Twitter users access social networking sites via mobile phone
• 51% of active Twitter users follow companies, brands, or products on social
networks
Sources: comScore; “Twitter Usage in America: 2010,” Edison Research/Arbitron Internet and Multimedia
Series; mashable.com

“ Today social media is strongly linked to the medium itself, but what about
tomorrow? Social media will be mainstream when it is no longer necessary to
master the medium, which still excludes some types of people. Twitter,
Foursquare are not available to everyone, but forums and opinions that reflect
the social media quickly expand through to all.” —Luc Basier, Strategic Planning Director,
Euro RSCG C&O, Suresnes, France

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Location-based services = next step

• Social media services based on
geolocation allow users to register
their physical location digitally, in
cyberspace, and connect up
physically, in “meatspace”
• # of users still small, but growing
– Google Latitude = 3MM active users
– Foursquare and Gowalla bring in
elements of game play and
competition

• These services bridge gap between
virtual online world and face-to-face
offline world

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3. MILLENNIALS SELF-IDENTIFY
AS THE iGENERATION

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Generational identifiers vary by market maturity

• In West, both generations agree being “more digital” is primary factor that sets
millennials apart
• In China and India, being “more global” is paramount
• Significant # of Indians in both generations consider millennials “more informed”
than older generations

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“ In China, it is mainly youths aged 15–30 who are using social
networking platforms—and, with this usage, the younger generation is
becoming more closely connected and engaged with each other.
People interact through the use of comment threads, games, pictures,
videos, notes, status updates, and live chats. They now live both real
life and virtual life on a single platform.” —Simone Zhang, Strategic Planning
Director, Euro RSCG Shanghai

“ Younger people (aged 16–25) are making e-mail démodé, since they
tend to use more instant messaging and consider e-mail as
something more formal and adult. Their use of social media will
reshape the way they meet people, since they can get to know
people outside their regular circle of friends and school. Their
intense activity online since the beginning of their careers is also
going to change the way companies recruit people; the CV will not
be necessary any longer. In general, social media will lead to a more
transparent society, where there will be little room to hide.” —Maria Jose
Lopez, Market Intelligence Manager, Euro RSCG Spain

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Millennials are mycasting specialists

• Creating their own news, stories,
and conversations
• Active participants and producers
rather than passive listeners and
consumers

“ Millennials don’t rely on established
experts. The age of the central news-
gathering spot is gone forever. Social
media threw that model out the window;
people everywhere now tap their personal
universe of contacts to swap advice, news,
and entertainment.”—Marian Salzman, President,
Euro RSCG Worldwide PR, North America

Image: www.ist-citizenmedia.org

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4. SOCIAL MEDIA FOR A CHANGE

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The development of social media is coinciding
with emergence of issues that hold particular
interest for young people
• For a time after social unrest of 1960s,
young people in many developed
countries didn’t have much to rally around
• No distinct agenda beyond pursuing
higher education and enjoying fruits of
consumerist lifestyle
• Now, several societal shifts are causing
youth to become more aware of
themselves as a group with common
interests, including:
– Being on wrong side of demographic bulge
(having to support huge #s of elderly)
– Climate change
– Massive debt in some markets

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Desire for change is in the air

• Huge majorities of both generations believe change is in order, including more
than 9 in 10 millennials in each market

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In the minds of many, social media will be a key
factor in creating whatever change there is to be
• 7 in 10 millennials believe social media is a force for change
• Similar % also agree SoMe is about entertainment, suggesting this generation is
perfectly comfortable with social media playing dual roles in their lives, both
playful and serious
• India stands out as market with more serious intentions/expectations for SoMe

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Millennials assuming responsibility for
changing world

• Despite a reputation for apathy among some of their elders, millennials
demonstrate a strong commitment to drive change
• Overall, 8 in 10 millennials (9 in 10 in China) believe it’s their duty to create
change
• In contrast, less than 2/3 of older sample are willing to place that burden on
youth; China and India most likely to count on youth for change

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“ How a generation uses social media defines its place in society
and its level of influence.” —Anthony K. Roxas, Strategic Planning Director,
Euro RSCG Manila

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But can millennials change the world?

• A resounding “Yes!” was heard in every market but France, where only around
2/3 of millennials consider their generation capable of changing the world
• Majorities in the Eastern markets and U.S. believe their power is even greater
today than that of their parents at the same age

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Everywhere but France, boomers agree
change is in the hands of youth
• Faith in the power of this new generation to effect change is particularly
strong in emerging markets of China and India
• Only in France is there a sense that change is equally likely to happen at the
hands of the older generations

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Source of youth empowerment: social media

• 6 in 10 millennials believe SoMe is a source of their power, with agreement
highest in China and India, and lowest in France

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Millennials wielding social media as weapon for
change
Tens of thousands of Chinese joined Friends of Tai Long Sai Wan on social
networking sites to protest a residential development being built on one of Hong
Kong’s most treasured beachfronts

“ We helped wake up
a giant. The quiet
majority of Hong
Kong people have
shown they will no
longer stand by and
let developers take
away their core
assets.” —Wayne Yim,
Founder, Save Tai Long Sai
Wan

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change
Ni putes ni soumises
(“Neither Whores Nor
Submissives”) was started
by teen girls in Paris who
mobilized to fight for rights
of women and girls facing
violence
They communicate with
international community
on website and via
Facebook

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change
In India, young people are using SoMe—personal Internet
pages, Facebook, Orkut, and even an anonymous community
page called I Protest—to oppose human rights abuses

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change
Run by young people for young people, U.K. Youth Parliament provides
opportunities for 11- to 18-year-olds to use their voice in creative ways to bring
about social change

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change
DreamACTivist: Multicultural social media club led by migrant youth, pushing for
passage of legislation aimed at mending “broken immigration system”

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As source of change, SoMe beats politics by a
landslide

• Even at a time when several recent elections were won on a platform of
change (e.g., Sarkozy in France, Obama in U.S., Cameron in U.K.), politics is
considered a distant second to social media as a force for change
• In the Western markets, combined power of corporations and consumers is
seen as potent mix

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“ Historical sociologists and philosophers [e.g., David Emile Durkheim
(1858–1917) and Karl Marx (1818–1883)] go as far as to say that our
social nature contributes to or even drives our morality and
consciousness. The social Web brings new opportunities for technology
to connect humans in ways never thought possible before, and that’s
the real power of it. People have always been social, and people have
always used technology as a means to enhance their ability to connect
and experience that connection in more meaningful ways.”—Kandace
Hudspeth, Global Strategy Manager, Euro RSCG 4D–New York

“ Millennials and Xers are more willing to use social media to create
their own movements. Two weeks ago there was a protest against a
thermoelectric company here in Chile. It started in a blog and was
viralized through Twitter and Facebook. ‘Termoeléctrica’ was a
Trending Topic in Twitter, which means it was one of the most
tweeted-about topics. There were online streamings right from the
protest. It was beautiful!” —David Oyarzún, Head of Planning, Euro RSCG Santiago

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In practice, forces of change are intertwined

• Politicians use SoMe to mobilize support and connect with voters
• NGOs and grassroots movements use SoMe to push their issues and opinions
into the political arena and onto boardroom agendas
• Examples of the use of SoMe to influence consumption choices and encourage
more mindful spending can be found across the Internet
• In a very short time, social media has worked itself into the social, political, and
economic fabric of our lives

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CONCLUSION: A PHENOMENON
WITH LASTING IMPLICATIONS

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Social media is integral to millennials’ lives

• In our increasingly globalized world, social media offers youth a shared
experience and powerful ways of interacting and working together
• Just as with boomers and rock ‘n’ roll, a teen or 20-something who’s not
plugged in to SoMe is detached from a fundamental generational experience

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Social media fulfills a special function
• Music provided the soundtrack, style, and ideology for baby boomers
• SoMe enables millennials, from anywhere, to interact, communicate, share,
learn, inform, congregate, create, mobilize, and/or play, seamlessly
• SoMe lubricates and energizes millennials’ lives at school, work, and home

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Social media shapes behavior and attitudes
• Rock ‘n’ roll was the vehicle for an
entire set of distinctive cultures still
visible today among aging boomers
• Among millennials, SoMe is so
pervasive that academics and
researchers are seriously
wondering whether it is “rewiring”
the brains of users
• Judging from the rapt attention
today’s youth give to their screens
(computer and mobile), there can
be little question SoMe is shaping
behavior and creating a different
view of the world and how one
interacts with it

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Millennials identify with SoMe
• Rock ‘n’ roll shocked pre-WWII generations
and, for that, was all the more embraced by
rebellious boomers
• Now, people of all generations recognize
that millennials have a natural affinity for
digital technology in general and social
media in particular
• Social media is millennials’ “thing”—and its
impact shows no signs of waning
• In culture and commerce, the implications of
social media on this newest generation will
be profound

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“ The world has changed, or so say my kids. The world has changed,
or so say my clients. The change has been caused by social media. It
has, through the empowerment of each of us, delivered the promise
of digital. We are connected. We have influence. We make things
happen. The impact of social media is far-reaching, well beyond how
we connect with our friends. It has changed how we work. It is
changing how we make markets. It has, critically, re-leveled the
playing field.” —George Gallate, Global Chairman, Euro RSCG 4D

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About Euro RSCG Worldwide
• Euro RSCG Worldwide is a leading integrated marketing communications
company and the world’s largest advertising agency by global brands. It enjoys
the unique distinction of being the only agency ever to have been named Global
Agency of the Year by Advertising Age and Advertising Network of the Year by
Campaign in the same year. Made up of 233 offices in 75 countries throughout
Europe, North America, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific, Euro RSCG provides
advertising, marketing services, corporate communications, and digital and
social media solutions to global, regional, and local clients. Its client roster
includes Air France, BNP Paribas, Charles Schwab, Citigroup, Danone Group,
Heineken USA, IBM, Jaguar, Kraft Foods, Lacoste, L’Oréal, PSA Peugeot
Citroën, Reckitt Benckiser, sanofi-aventis, and Schering- Plough.
Headquartered in New York, Euro RSCG Worldwide is the largest unit of
Havas, a world leader in communications (Euronext Paris SA: HAV.PA).

> Visit Euro RSCG’s Social Life and Social Media Site

• Go to http://eurorscgsocial.com/ for additional materials on the study (also
available to Euro RSCG employees through the Knowledge Exchange),
including:
– Millennials and Social Media white paper
– Social media background sheets on each market surveyed
– Global and market-specific press releases

Colleagues/clients: The complete data set is available for download from
the Knowledge Exchange on My.EuroRSCG.com.

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> Sample of Digital and Social Media Milestones at Euro RSCG Worldwide

• Launched Social Life and Social Media website and blog (www.eurorscgsocial.com), which incorporates
contributions from experts from around world, as part of Euro RSCG Social
• Created most-downloaded piece of commercial content in history, Evian Rollerbabies, with 128MM+
downloads to date (as of 9/10)
• Gathered 17MM+ supporters for digital-based Tck Tck Tck campaign for climate justice and ushered in a
global first: a digital music petition created by our in-house record label, The:Hours
• Gave creative, digital, and strategic advice to David Cameron as lead agency in his successful bid for
British prime minister
• Won IBM’s global digital business from Digitas in biggest digital pitch of 2009
• Landed biggest digital pitch in France’s history: global digital business of EDF, country’s largest energy co.
• Other big global wins incorporating social and digital include Akzo Nobel’s Dulux, Charles Schwab, and
Reckitt Benckiser, and being named to Unilever’s global digital roster
• Named digital agency of record and/or social media AOR for many large companies and brands, including
Clearasil, GSK, Heineken USA, Ikea, Lacoste, method, P&G, sanofi-aventis, Shire Pharmaceuticals,
Sprint, Volvo, and Woolmark
• Doubled digital business in China YTD with addition of major accounts such as Dulux, Hershey’s, Balabala,
and Sun Hung Kai Properties
• Launched The Sisterhood, a one-of-a-kind social marketing lab—using Web, YouTube, Facebook, and
Twitter—that’s by, for, and about teenage girls, at Euro RSCG Worldwide PR
• First agency network to publish social media guidelines for its staff

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Media Inquiries

For inquiries regarding Euro RSCG Worldwide’s studies, please contact:

Lisa Gruber
Global Communications Manager
Euro RSCG Worldwide
T +1 212.886.2018
E lisa.gruber@eurorscg.com

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For more insights from Euro RSCG research,
visit www.prosumer-report.com
And follow us on Twitter (@prosumer_report)

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