How can you figure us out when I can’t even figure myself out, says Marissa Trew
Upon entering the travel industry, I notice that there has been one question that seems to confound even those most experienced of professionals: who are these millennials and what do they want?
It is a perplexing thing to ask, but it seems to be the multi-billion dollar question. I am beginning to notice the slight note of exasperation in any speaker’s tone whenever they pose this clichéd question at seminars and conferences.
Being one myself, it appears that our tastes and preferences are perceived as being shrouded in mystery. It is a bizarre notion considering even we don’t know what we want, most of the time.
It is how I imagine a panda at the zoo feels. All around the world, people flock to witness you living your everyday life, leaving you more than slightly confused about what it is you’re doing that warrants so much attention.
To get a broader understanding of what people truly mean when they refer to the ‘millennial traveller’ in the travel trade specifically, I did what any self-educating millennial would do. I looked it up on Google. The sheer volume of articles, studies and analyses regarding millennial travelling habits, debunking myths and trying to identify our precise wants and desires are remarkably telling about how fixated and vested the industry is in figuring people like me out.
Millennials: Who are they and what do they want? (Image credit: AndreyPopov/iStock)
Generally speaking, a “millennial” is anyone born between 1981 and 2000 (though this age parameter is subject to debate). People born within this general timeframe have grown up using increasingly complex technology, shifting from laptops to smart phones and wading neck-deep in the increasingly interconnected world of social media.
We are essentially the ‘next generation’ to take over… and whatever else we may or may not be, there surely are a lot of us.
A recent article by Wego equates the term ‘millennial’ with “the second baby boom”, indicating that US millennial travellers alone will outnumber baby boomers by 18 million in 2020.
Furthermore, a report from the Asia Travel Leaders Summit in 2013 estimates that 60% of all millennials live in Asia with a third originating from China and India. With that, Wego estimates that by 2020, millennial spending on goods and services will reach US$1.4 trillion, which is no small change considering it was only US$600 billion in 2013. Simply put, we’re in our prime money-spending years and businesses are naturally in a frenzy to try and capitalise on us.
As a result, many businesses are quickly adapting to new findings to accommodate our perceived interests. However, many seem pre-occupied with vague stereotypes of the millennial generation i.e. tech-obsessed automatons that want to find all the best deals but without spending any of our own effort and money.
The G Brief (a digital magazine supposedly specialising in understanding the millennial mind) even goes so far as to say millennial expectations are governed by a trifecta of “Technology, Trophies and Trauma”, citing our obsession with counting “likes, favourites and retweets”, our need to be “rewarded for even the smallest achievements”, and our desire for stability following the 9/11 attacks and the recession.
The cynical undertone only conjures up images of a resentful group of cranky old men that cannot stand the state of ‘kids these days’ and have taken to their keyboards to voice their bitterness.
In actual fact, millennials are essentially each a bundle of contradictions. We are the generation that despise Donald Trump but cannot bear to miss a beat when his name pops up in the news. Our passion for social issues from feminism to systemic racism is paramount but we do little beyond posting daily doses of Facebook activism, to invoke discussion in a safe space.
When we travel, we want to be connected enough so that we feel secure but we’re desperately on the hunt for the path less taken. We want the comforts of home but a distinctly local experience (enter Airbnb). We are not willing to compromise on enjoying ourselves so are more than happy to spend money on things we deem worthwhile, but we still want to save enough to make the rent. Surprise, surprise, we look to trusted family and friends for recommendations on where to eat and what to see but if they can’t help us, we resort to public online consensus.
Nevertheless, that has not deterred companies from making attempts to cater to at least some of the interests outlined by various research findings. Wego’s report suggests that the birth of “Premium Economy” seats are an effort to target millennials into investing in slightly more comfortable but more expensive travel options, reflecting how millennials are not so much ‘budget-conscious’ as they are ‘value-seeking’. The same goes for their other cited example of Starwood’s Aloft Hotel’s ‘Style at a steal’ slogan, and substituting the conventional hotel restaurant with a “Starbucks-style” snack bar.
While I cannot speak on behalf of all millennials out there, I cannot deny feeling dissuaded against both of these meagre attempts to appeal to us as modern travellers.
“Premium economy” seats (when referring to low cost carriers) is synonymous with pretending that the extra half-inch of leg room was a worthy investment and playing a fun game of ‘Guess the Mystery Meat’ when staring at your supposedly upgraded in-flight meal. It is a faux luxury that I’d rather not spend my money on. If I was 6’4 however, that extra half-inch might seem much more appealing.
The substitution of a hotel restaurant with a ‘pay-and go’ Starbucks-style counter café over a proper restaurant doesn’t necessarily appeal to the millennial so much as it conveys itself as a ‘convenience’ option that suits our practical needs but not necessarily our wants. If I did opt for this hotel, it is not that I’d rather stay here as my first choice but if the price point was fair and it gave me what I needed, then why not?
From the outside looking in, it is no wonder that there is so much confusion. The ‘millennial’ demographic is built of so many diverse interests, backgrounds, relationships and age groups. It is so inclusive and all encompassing that it is hard to distinguish which subgroup under the ‘millennial’ umbrella much of the research is actually focusing on. When consistent patterns begin to form (if ever they do), it would probably be easier to determine whose interests are not being represented within the data set.
If we stopped stereotyping millennials for a moment and took some time to recognise the idiosyncrasies of various group interests – family with kids versus newlyweds; undergraduates versus corporate cogs; solo backpackers versus lads on tour – then maybe we’ll start getting somewhere.