Millennials, food shopping and smartphones: Are you up to speed?

By Elaine WATSON

- Last updated on GMT

Millennials, food shopping & smartphones: Are you up to speed?

Related tags Social network service

They’re addicted to their smartphones, big fans of social networking sites, and more likely than their parents to buy store brands. But what else do we know about Millennials - the 100 million Americans born between 1980 and 2000?

Here are some highlights from a nationwide survey of 1,500 US Millennials and primary grocery shoppers commissioned by the Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) and conducted by Surveylab:

THEY GET THEIR NEWS FROM THE INTERNET​ - In response to the question, What is your primary source for world, national and local news? ​Millennials surveyed said:

  • My computer: 58%
  • The TV: 22%
  • Smartphone 14%
  • Newspaper: <1%. (And of those who do still read newspapers, 38% do so less than monthly and only 10% are daily readers.)

THEY ARE ALL USINGSOCIAL NETWORKING SITES​ - 90% of Millennials surveyed said they used Facebook, 46% were on Twitter, 31% used Pinterest, and 26% belonged to Instagram, LinkedIn, or other sites. Only 5% did not use any social site.

AND THEIR ENGAGEMENT IS HIGH ​- 49% said they checked sites such as Facebook and Twitter “several times a day”​, while another 36% reported “daily​” patronage.

ADS ON SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES WORK​ - 83% of respondents were “aware​” of ads on Facebook and Twitter and 48% believed the ads were “helpful​”.

THEY LIKE SMARTPHONE COUPONS - ​A large number (41%) said they used smartphones to find coupons, compared to only 13% of all shoppers. 54% said they used online resources to find coupons, compared with 29% of all shoppers

THEY LIKE STORE BRANDS -​ When asked to compare store brands with national brands, almost two thirds agreed that store brands were as good, if not better than, national brands. When it came to what they would like to see from store brands, they wanted more variety, more new and innovative products, a greater variety of pack sizes, more organic products, and more trial packs.

THEY ARE LESS BRAND LOYAL​ - When a national brand they wish to buy is not available, four in ten said they would choose the store brand, one third would pick a different national brand and one in eight would look elsewhere for the national brand they want. Only 5% would delay the purchase if they still couldn’t get the desired brand. Half said they bought more store brands than their parents.

THEY ARE TRYING TO BE HEALTHY​ - Six in ten claimed to eat healthier foods and half said they used more organic products than their parents.

THEY SHOP AROUND​ - 56% said they shopped in a wider variety of stores than their parents.

Click HERE​ to download the PLMA survey: 

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