Marketing Research Chart: How millennials and baby boomers want to receive marketing messages on the go

by Dr. Liva LaMontagne , Editorial Research Manager

Last week, we discussed results of the MarketingSherpa Consumer Purchase Preference Survey showing the ways they want to receive marketing messages on the go. This week, we zoom in on the demographic differences in consumers' preferences.

Read on to discover how male and female millennials and baby boomers prefer companies to communicate with them when they are away from computers.
 

Methodology

As you may already know if you follow Chart of the Week, we conducted a consumer survey to help us build content for MarketingSherpa Summit 2016.

MarketingSherpa commissioned an online survey that was fielded August 20-24, 2015 with a representative sample of U.S. consumers.

We asked consumers, "Which of the following methods, if any, do you prefer companies to communicate with you when you are not at a computer? Please select all that apply."

We looked at demographic differences in their preferences, including at male and female millennials, defined as 18 to 34 years old, and male and female boomers, defined as 65 years old and older.
 

Click to see a larger, printable version of the chart

Age

Overall, millennials are more interested in receiving email on their smartphones (53%) compared to boomers (21%). Not surprisingly, millennials also favor other mobile methods of marketing communication more than boomers:

• Text messages (29% millennials vs. 15% boomers)


• Company's mobile app (20% millennials vs. 4% boomers)


• Push notifications (11% millennials vs. 0% boomers)


• In-app ads (10% millennials vs. 0% boomers)

While millennials prefer mobile methods, boomers are more receptive to print ads (61%) than millennials (36%).

Gender

Overall, print ads were more popular among women (51%) compared to men (43%). However, radio ads were more popular among men (29%) than among women (20%).

Male millennials vs. male boomers

Not surprisingly, boomers (57%) were more interested in print ads than millennials (34%). Male millennials were more interested in almost all mobile methods of communication compared to male boomers:

• Company's mobile app (17% millennials vs. 6% boomers)


• Push notifications (15% millennials vs. 1% boomers)


• In-app ads (13% millennials vs. 1% boomers)

Millennials were also more receptive toward transit ads (15%) compared to boomers (2%).

Female millennials vs. female boomers

Similarly to their male counterparts, female boomers (64%) were also more interested in print ads than female millennials (37%).

Also like their male counterparts, female millennials were more interested in mobile methods of marketing communication:

• Email on smartphones (59% millennials vs. 17% boomers)


• Text messages (31% millennials vs. 9% boomers)


• Company's mobile app (23% millennials vs. 1% boomers)


• Push notifications (7% millennials vs. 0% boomers)


• In-app ads (7% millennials vs. 0% boomers)

Interestingly, female millennials (21%) were also more interested in billboards compared to female boomers (13%), while there was no significant age difference here among men.

To sum up, millennials are more interested in receiving emails and other messages on their smartphones, while boomers are more interested in print ads compared to millennials.

Print ads are more favored by women, while radio ads are more popular among men.

Within the age groups, male millennials are more interested in an offline communication method like transit ads compared to male boomers, while female millennials are more interested in billboard messaging than female boomers.

Related Resources

Subscribe to MarketingSherpa Chart of the Week — Get data and discoveries delivered to your inbox

MarketingSherpa consumer purchase preference survey (Research report from MarketingSherpa)

Marketing Research Chart: How consumers prefer to receive messages from companies when they are away from computers

Marketing Research: Tactics marketers use to reach customers who are on the go

Ecommerce: Blurring the lines between online and offline experiences (From the MarketingSherpa Blog)

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