This assignment is in three parts and asks you to take a critical and balanced look at a topical marketing concept and explore what it may tell us about future opportunities to target new groups of digital consumers. You are being asked to compare media views with recognised academic sources to come up with your own evidenced perspective on the next generation of consumers.
The first part of the task asks you look at popular media and explore and map the sources they use, the evidence they offer and the validity of the argument that are used to describe digital “millennials”. Use this to build a customer profile of who a next-generation Millennial is or will be – according to your media sources.
The second task asks you to undertake research using peer group review journals to establish current academic thinking of this same new generation of consumers. You should begin by looking at different definitions, the different study approaches and the different meanings attributed to millennials.
The third part is “Reflections and Areas for Further Research”. You are now asked to compare and contrast popular media with recognised sources. Use this final section to conclude where the weaknesses in the argument are and to draw out how you would go about developing a future marketing opportunity. A key element will be for you to reflect on what the research and reading mean for you.
As a starting point for task one, you may wish to look,for example, critically at the articles as media examples to address the first part of the question.
Pew Research (How millennial are you?)
Goldman Sachs (Coming of Age)
The MeMeMe generation (Time Magazine)
The Deloitte Millennial Survey 2018 available from
Pew Generational Research 2018
A New Generational Contract Resolution Foundation
The 10 best places to work for Millennials, Fortune June 2018
What do we know about the generation after millennials? | Jason Dorsey | TEDxHouston
How Generation Z Will Change The World According To Experts (Time Magazine
This is not a conclusive list but you will find trends and you may also find common themes, some of which may be paradigms.
Your challenge is that these “established” sources may not relate to digital Millennials which might be deemed as a new and emerging field of study.
It is almost certain that the existing literature (journal articles) have yet to catch up with the media.
So who has the evidence; the practitioners or the academics? This is what is known as a troublesome concept (Meyer 2005)
This assignment is in three parts and asks you to take a critical and balanced look at a topical marketing concept and explore what it may tell us about future opportunities to target new groups of digital consumers. You are being asked to compare media views with recognised academic sources to come up with your own evidenced perspective on the next generation of consumers.
The first part of the task asks you look at popular media and explore and map the sources they use, the evidence they offer and the validity of the argument that are used to describe digital “millennials”. Use this to build a customer profile of who a next-generation Millennial is or will be – according to your media sources.
The second task asks you to undertake research using peer group review journals to establish current academic thinking of this same new generation of consumers. You should begin by looking at different definitions, the different study approaches and the different meanings attributed to millennials.
The third part is “Reflections and Areas for Further Research”. You are now asked to compare and contrast popular media with recognised sources. Use this final section to conclude where the weaknesses in the argument are and to draw out how you would go about developing a future marketing opportunity. A key element will be for you to reflect on what the research and reading mean for you.
As a starting point for task one, you may wish to look,for example, critically at the articles as media examples to address the first part of the question.
Pew Research (How millennial are you?)
Goldman Sachs (Coming of Age)
The MeMeMe generation (Time Magazine)
The Deloitte Millennial Survey 2018 available from
Pew Generational Research 2018
A New Generational Contract Resolution Foundation
The 10 best places to work for Millennials, Fortune June 2018
What do we know about the generation after millennials? | Jason Dorsey | TEDxHouston
How Generation Z Will Change The World According To Experts (Time Magazine
This is not a conclusive list but you will find trends and you may also find common themes, some of which may be paradigms.
Your challenge is that these “established” sources may not relate to digital Millennials which might be deemed as a new and emerging field of study.
It is almost certain that the existing literature (journal articles) have yet to catch up with the media.
So who has the evidence; the practitioners or the academics? This is what is known as a troublesome concept (Meyer 2005)
