I guess my days are numbered. Why do I know this? Because I've just effectively been told that the travel industry is now focusing on the millennial market, not baby boomers. I'm no longer the target market for travel!
Talk about deflating your balloon! For a few years there, the boomer market was all the rage. Keynote speakers at travel industry conferences would tell travel agents and suppliers they simply had to focus on the boomers and their sales would grow exponentially.
It seems like only yesterday (well maybe it was 10 years ago) that I saw the same speaker extol the value of the baby boomer market at three different travel conferences. Indeed, he delivered almost exactly the same presentation with the same jokes. But he wasn't the only one to promote the value of boomers for travel agents and suppliers.
As boomers, we were told we were coming into our own, getting rid of the kids (off to college), and as empty nesters we had a lot of money (or so we were told). And what were we supposed to be doing with that money? The answer, of course, was book more travel.
Earlier this month I attended the 16th annual Vacation.com, where the wind was taken out of my sails a bit (or maybe I should say the sales were taken out of my generation). Jason Dorsey (@jasondorsey), known as the Gen Y Guy, gave a keynote address on how Gen Y, also known as the millennial generation, works and travels. Gen Y, of course, are those people age 19-37 who were born 1977-1995.
Dorsey, who is a Gen Yer, wasn't even talking about Gen X-those age 38-49 who were born 1965-1976. Suddenly the travel industry is supposed to target people who were born just 20-30 years ago! Now that makes me feel very old!
Dorsey quipped that his talk would be the "best session ever, if you're trying to date younger." Well, I certainly get that. But then he hit us with the number one trend that is changing the travel industry: parenting!
Apparently, parenting, or how you are raised, is the greatest indicator of how you are going to do in the workplace and also how you travel. Dorsey said Gen Yers were raised very differently than previous generations: They've traveled a whole lot more as kids and they feel entitled to travel. So now I guess as the parent of two Gen Yers, I'm to blame for how they work and travel.
The second indicator of how you travel and work is technology, or rather how you interact with technology. "Every one of us has a different relationship with technology that is largely driven by our age," Dorsey said. "It's invisible until we bump into someone who has a different relationship with technology."
Dorsey also hit us with the fact that for the first time ever there are four or even five generations working in the travel industry communicating with five generations of travelers-something that has created all kinds of new issues for travelers and those who serve them.
Dorsey presented yet another statistic that was even more salient: Gen Yers will spend $1.2 billion on travel this year. So maybe it would be good to understand more about them if we expect to sell them travel and hire them for our businesses.
More observations about the Gen Yers from Dorsey included the fact that they not necessarily tech savvy, but they very much tech dependent. He said Gen Xers are the ones who are tech savvy-they know how technology works because they often developed it. For their part, Gen Yers just want to have simple technology that works! I can relate to that!
In the "I knew that" category, Dorsey said the most important way Gen Yers like to communicate is text (real friends don't call since that's considered an invasion of privacy). The next most important way is email (though they only read the subject line). Surprisingly, given all the media focus on it, social media is just the third way they like to communicate.
[BLURB] "Every one of us has a different relationship with technology that is largely driven by our age."- Jason Dorsey[/BLURB]
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And if you've ever had a discussion with a Gen Yer about why they don't use Twitter or communicate seriously through Facebook, you'll understand. Facebook is how baby boomers and Gen Xers communicate these days. My 20-year-old daughter told me the other day that Facebook is just where you "goof" with your friends (in other words, it's not serious communication). And my journalist son, who is 24, only uses Twitter because he is required to for work.
My challenge with Gen Yers is when they don't reply to a phone message, an email, a Facebook or Twitter message, or a text. I mean, how are we supposed to communicate with them? Maybe there's some secret telepathic method that only Gen Yers are clued in about.
Dorsey also noted that you can tell a person's age based on how they text. Baby Boomers, for example, spell out all the words in text message, while Gen Yers and Gen Xers use partial words and single letters to abbreviate the message.
Dorsey also differentiated the generations in this way: A Gen Xer is naturally skeptical and is someone who believes actions speak louder than words. A Gen Yer believes everybody. A Gen Xer wants sources and data to support arguments. A Gen Yer is perfectly happy with citing Wikipedia.
A Baby Boomer defines work ethic in hours per week-and those hours don't count unless they can see you. Gen Yers, on the other hand, like to work when they have inspiration.
So now that the age of the baby boomer has passed, just how do we interact with the new Gen Y target market? According to Dorsey, these are five factors to consider:
First, separate yourself with millennials by recognizing that they are indeed unique (or at least make they think you believe it). "We need to hear you say that's a unique situation," he said. "We need to feel that we're one of a kind-that we're special."
Second, when you are talking with a Gen Yer, make a point to recognize when they ask a question, because oftentimes they don't know what to ask in the first place. "You should say, wow, that's a great question," Dorsey said. "We need affirmation!"
Third, according to Dorsey there will come a time when a Gen Yer has checked out of a conversation about travel, so the best way to get them back into it and move forward is to have your iPad at the ready. "Put it in front of them and show them," Dorsey said. "They will automatically look at the screen. It's default behavior…we have screen envy."
Fourth, according to Dorsey baby boomers have been taught a certain linear way of selling. Gen Yers, on the other hand, don't think that way. "We are not linear thinkers," he said. " We as a generation are completely outcome driven." So you can't sell to Gen Yers using the same seven-step sales strategy that has been successful with other generations. Dorsey's solution? Start at step seven and work backwards. "We will do every single step because we're hugely compliant if you show us where we are going," he said.
Finally, Gen Yers want to be able to quickly look up your background and expertise on Google. So make sure there's something in the Google index when they type in your name. Make sure you have a profile of yourself on your website or your agency or consortium website. Also make sure your LinkedIn entry is complete and highlights your expertise. Most important, have a photo of yourself attached to those profiles.
So maybe, as a baby boomer, my days are numbered as the top market for travel, if I'm not exactly yesterday's news. But at least now I can make an attempt to communicate with the new Gen Y market. Maybe they'll even humor me by texting back sometime!
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