Older and Wiser, and Savvier to Boot

At the stroke of midnight on Jan. 1, 2005, Generation Xers will start to turn 40. The generation that followed the post-World War II fertility boom that ended in 1965 is about to cross a threshold that doesn't jibe with the slacker stereotype that the mention of Gen-X still brings to mind for many marketers. Indeed, these 55 million Gen-X consumers have long challenged marketers.

Gen-Xers have never been willing to accept things at face value, a skepticism rooted in the generational experience of coming of age during an era of widespread cynicism and distrust of institutions and traditions. While other generations have been able to hold out hope for the ideals they were raised on, Gen-Xers had no such fallback position. All bets were off for the generation weaned on deconstructionism and tabloid TV.

In response, Gen-Xers developed a sense of savvy that they have used to navigate their way through the last 20 years. Gen-Xers want to know what's behind the curtain. They believe that appearances are misleading, so it takes savvy to see what's really going on.

Different generations have grown up with different formative experiences about the value of information. Baby boomers are the Watergate generation — they learned that the more you found out, the more you knew about what went on. Gen-Xers are the Iran-Contra generation — the more you found out, the less you knew about what went on. (And the generation after Gen-Xers is the Monica Lewinsky generation — the more you found out, the less you wanted to know about what went on!) Gen-Xers learned that information doesn't automatically lead to the truth. Only savvy gets to the truth.

This carries over to marketing. Gen-Xers have always had an irreverent, derisive view of marketing. This has forced marketers to change tactics — more dependence on word of mouth, more ads with an anti-advertising posture, more reliance on sponsorships, etc. Yet, despite these efforts, too much marketing to Gen-X still relies on stereotypes and tactics that are off target and, hence, poorly received.

Now, though, with Gen-Xers on the threshold of middle age, marketers are breathing a collective sigh of relief, telling themselves that they know how to sell to 40-year-olds. After all, marketers argue, these are the same graying mortgage holders as all the rest of us. And while Gen-Xers may have been difficult to reach as young slackers, they will be easier to reach as mature middle-agers.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Gen-Xers won't lose their sense of savvy just because they celebrate another birthday. After all, savvy is the generational skill that has enabled them to thrive in the midst of the turmoil and uncertainty around them. Gen-Xers led the dot-com boom. They took sports and entertainment to new extremes. And they have now entered parenthood determined to avoid the sacrifices and disappointments of generations before them. From Gen-Xers' point of view, savvy has served them well.

In the years ahead, it will be no less important for marketers, especially direct marketers, to respond to the savvy that Gen-Xers bring to the marketplace. In the recent research about direct marketing fielded by Direct and Yankelovich (“The Whys Behind the Buys,” Direct, August), Gen-Xers are much more likely than other generations to say that they use direct channels to research a product or service. Whether it's direct mail, e-mail, infomercials, telemarketing or the Internet, Gen-Xers don't take direct marketing at face value or just use it to buy something. Instead, they use it as a tool for finding out what's really going on. Certainly, Gen-Xers know that it takes more than just additional information; they also know that being savvy enough to contrast and compare as many sources as possible is the best way to arrive at the right thing to do.

Marketers prefer that their messages be taken seriously, not dissected for what's between the lines. Yet this is precisely what Gen-Xers do. If direct marketers don't take this into account, they will have a tough time earning this group's attention and loyalty.

Marketing resistance, particularly to direct marketing, is at an all-time high. This is led by Gen-X, the generation that has always looked askance at marketing. Consumers are rejecting intrusiveness and saturation, and more than ever consumers have the knowledge, sophistication, technology and willingness to disconnect themselves from marketers. Especially Gen-Xers!

Direct marketing to Gen-Xers should provide more details, answer more questions and facilitate more comparisons. In particular, as Gen-Xers move into middle age, there will be a bigger premium placed on marketing integration.

Gen-Xers are very comfortable in a multichannel, multitasking world. Many will choose to use a marketer's preferred channel of response just for information. So, oftentimes, direct marketing to Gen-Xers will be nothing more than a way of building traffic for other locations or channels where Gen-Xers will go to make a purchase.

Gen-Xers are now the core of middle America. Yet, winning them over will require something beyond just more of the same. It will take a marketing savvy to match the consumer savvy of Generation X.

J. WALKER SMITH (l) is president of Yankelovich Inc., Atlanta.

CRAIG WOOD is president of Yankelovich's Monitor MindBase division in Chapel Hill, NC.