Strategically Communicating

At the annual Sunday Times Generation Next 2011 Brand Survey awards, brands that were selected by Generation Y (between the ages of 8 and 22) were recognized as the coolest in the local youth market.

With so many different forms of technology in society, this generation is able to voice their opinions and views on many different issues and topics across different kinds of social media. Enver Groenewald, GM of advertising revenue and strategic communications at The Sunday Times says, “Any brand, looking to strategically break through into the youth market, needs to know what this market ‘likes’,” . “As the buying force of tomorrow, youth need to be validated as consumers, as they have the potential to make or break a product or service.”

By polling 7200 young South Africans with their opinion on fast food outlets, cell network providers, celebrities and fashion brands, the survey can interpret what the youth is in to these days and what will ultimately sell and be consumed. It will show what they view as “cool” regardless of their financial constraints and give marketers insights in to trends. What they found when it came to cellular phones was very interesting, they survey named the BlackBerry the “Coolest Brand Overall” title as well as “Coolest cell phone and “Coolest high-tech gadget.” This surprised me because I really thought the Iphone would take the “Coolest cell phone” and “coolest high-tech gadget” titles. It seems like in America, they are so popular it’s interesting to think that they may not even be as available in other countries like South Africa. As for the “Coolest Brand Overall”, I noticed that BMW was second on the list while  Coke was third. This was really strange for me, because it seems like Coke would easily place first, it’s such a common brand, I wonder why Blackberry would ever trump both of those.

Craige Fleischer, regional director Southern Africa at RIM, the company behind the BlackBerry solution adds, “Generation Y’s choice of the smartphone for the coolest brand overall reflects the importance it has assumed in the increasingly connected lives of a tech-savvy generation. They have become the choice of South Africa’s youth because they are both aspirational and affordable.”