Annual Generation Y Automotive Survey
Who is Generation Y?
Who is Generation Y and does this new group of consumers really matter to OEMs? Are they a unique customer segment that requires different market focus and investment, or will they ultimately acquire the behaviors and buying patterns of previous generations?
To investigate these questions and other themes, Deloitte annually conducts a survey of Gen Y, Gen X and Baby Boomer automotive consumers to compare and contrast perspectives on automotive brands, desired features, and the shopping experience.
Why Gen Y is important?
Gen Y is the largest generation since the Baby Boomers, estimated at around 80 million people aged 19 to 31.
- Gen Y is just starting to enter the car market
- Gen Y will buy an estimated one out of four new cars this year, and 40 percent in 10 years
- Almost half of Gen Y, or 35 million, will buy a new or used car in the next two years
- Besides being a large and innately valuable audience, Gen Y:
- Is critical due to their influence on their family and friends
- Has a higher standard and lower tolerance for bad experiences
About Deloitte’s Generation Y Automotive Survey
For the last four years, Deloitte’s Automotive practice has teamed with the Michigan State University Broad College of Business to develop the survey. Each year findings have been released during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan.
- Graduate students at leading universities across the country analyze survey results further and/or conduct additional primary research
- Over the years, student presentations have addressed diverse topics vital to marketing and selling to Gen Y, including:
- Marketing to Gen Y
- Why Gen Y is Gen Y
- Building Brand Loyalty
- The Customer Experience
- Communicating with Gen Y
- Gen Y’s Vehicle Preferences
- Since the survey inception, more than 4,500 Gen Y consumers have responded
- The 2012 survey, the results of which will be released in January 2012, includes global sampling with respondents from the U.K., France, Germany and China participating in the study
- National media coverage has included the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Detroit News, Wards Auto, The Dallas Morning News, CNNMoney, AutomotiveDigest.com, and CNBC
- Trends and changes include:
- Leading purchase considerations for Gen Y have changed each year Deloitte has conducted the survey; however, previous years’ differentiators are now “must haves”
- In 2011 “cockpit technology” and the shopping experience emerged as leading differentiators for Gen Y
- In 2010 overall value ranked as the primary factor when evaluating brands for Gen Y
- In 2009 vehicle safety ranked as the top priority for Gen Y
Participating Universities
- Boston College
- Carnegie Mellon University
- Clemson University
- Columbia Business School
- Gonzaga University
- Michigan State University
- Syracuse University
- Texas Tech Univeristy
- UCLA
- USC
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