The most admired brand in the world is Google. For providing knowledge, information and a way to finding truth, it is also the brand perceived to have made the most positive difference in people’s lives.
Following Google as the most positive brand are Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, Disney, Coca-Cola, Nokia, Sony, Amazon and Nike.
All this is according to the youth today in McCann Worldgroup’s study, “The Truth About Youth”.
“Anyone below the age of 30 counts as youth,” says McCann Worldgroup Philippines strategic planning director Mark de Joya at the PANA GMM this July.
“Now this is very important – the youth matter. The Philippines is one of the youngest countries in the world.”
Fifty-nine percent of the Philippine population is below 30, and the country’s median age of 23.1 is the age of a fresh college graduate.
The 25- to 29-year-old, 30- to 34-year-old and 35- to 39-year-old segments are the highest income earners in the country.
“Considering our population growth for the next few decades, it’s not hard to imagine that the youth will continue to drive and be the economic engine behind the brands here in the Philippines,” Mr. de Joya says.
The Truth About Youth looks into two questions: what motivates young people around the world today and what makes them different from every generation that has come before?
Globally, commune – the need for connection, relationships and community; justice – the need to do what’s right for society and the need to do what’s right for oneself; and authenticity – the need to see things as they are, motivate today’s youth.
In the Philippines, the top three motivations are authenticity, justice and gauntlet – the need to challenge oneself and to prove one’s capabilities. Commune comes at a close fourth.
“What we are seeing is, we have these things that unify today’s youth, and behind all of these things, we’ve found and discovered that technology is the great underpinning that makes the pursuit of all of these things possible,” says Mr. de Joya.
So technology is the great enabler, which brings us to four main insights into the lives of young people today:
Technology as a Fifth Sense
Filipino youth would sooner save their laptop or computer than their sense of smell. Technology gives them “super powers”, they say, and 50 percent believe mobile technology can help solve real world problems like crime and terrorism.
The Social Economy
Young people are increasingly defining themselves by their ability to connect with others. They want to be remembered for the quality of their relationships over power or influence. They also want to be sought out and valued for their knowledge.
The Truth Hunters
If authenticity is one of the youth’s key motivations, truthfulness is the most important value they seek in a friend. They state simple but meaningful aspirations: to always be healthy, to have a successful career and to find one’s soul mate. Filipino youth also aspire for a better life, which means higher income, peace of mind and many life experiences.
Justice Re-imagined
The Internet and social media are unifying young people around the world as they reinvent the idea of justice. The sense of right is especially strong among Filipino youth and justice is a strong motivation due to their numerous worries and concerns.
The brands that the youth believe in today are the brands that they believe could make a positive impact in the world. In fact, Filipino youth say brands are in a better position than government to help the country rise up again after calamity or tragedy.
Eighty-five percent of youth globally believe brands have the power to make the world better. In the Philippines, the figure is 90 percent.
For brands to be meaningful to the world’s modern breed of youth, they need to be useful, helpful, innovative, provocative, interesting and thoughtful.
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