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Unless your product addresses an age-specific demographic, like buyers of anti-wrinkle cream or family sedans, 18-29 year olds are the default bull's eye of most new brand targeting.
Driven by internet and music language, the everyday English of this age cohort is changing rapidly. These changes affect responses to product and service names today, and we believe they threaten the viability of existing brands in personal-identity driven categories like beverages, personal grooming, tobacco, and even automobiles.
What's going on? To see how language is changing among 18-29 year olds, check out the names of their children.
Like brand names, a child's name is a proper noun. The new names (as opposed to traditional names like Michael, Daniel, and James) an age cohort chooses for its children are powerful indicators of what they like and, far more important, how they identify "ours" as opposed to "theirs."
The phonetic and notational brevity that characterizes the language of young adults is dramatically visible in the minimalist baby names they choose. These days, Daniel, Michael, and Sarah play with Ema, Jaq, Kol, Kyl, Lu, Ty, and Zak in preschool.
As "short and tight" defines "my language" from "my parents' language," selling Maybelline eyeliner or Impreza sedans to this generation is an uphill battle. To young adults, a long, loose name like Maybelline or Impreza says, "It's not for me."
With consumer research or generational savvy, some marketers have figured it out. Honda has announced a model for this audience called Fit. Shiseido is fine-tuning a line of cosmetics for young women named ZA. Smart marketers will follow suit.
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