Youth don’t rate ethics when making purchases
Ethics ranks behind good advertising and brand name, in a list of factors influencing the purchasing habits of 15 to 24-year-olds.
The latest research from ROAR, the consortium set up by Channel 4, Carlton Screen Advertising, EMAP, The Guardian and OMD UK, to monitor trends among the age group, has found that 14.9 per cent rated ethics as an important factor when choosing a brand. Some 82 per cent followed friends’ recommendation, 74 per cent went on brand name, and good advertising swayed 42 per cent. Price, product features and quality all scored in the mid-90s.
A sample of 15to 17-year-olds named Nokia, Levi’s, Sony, Nike, fcuk and Microsoft when it came to respect for a brand, while 22to 24-year-olds plumped for Sony, Heinz, Kellogg, Nokia, Levi’s and Boots.
Steve Armon, managing director of 2CV, the company that carried out the research, says: “The older age group, many of which have left home, want to be surrounded by brands that remind them of a more secure time in lives.”
The findings also reveal the birth of a “me, me, me” generation, with 67 per cent of the pool believing they are unable to make a difference to the world and wanting to focus on their own lives.
They also want technology that is better than that of their peers. Of those polled, 62 per cent have mobile phones – 16 per cent of which are WAP – 80 per cent have a PC, 42 per cent have digital TV and 11 per cent have a PlayStation 2, with 36 per cent looking to buy the console in the next six months.
