There's a difference between perception and reality when it comes to millennials and the products and services offered by financial institutions.
That's according to the first report from a new initiative by the Filene Research Institute that analyses how young adults discuss their financial problems and ways credit unions can better capture that market.
The report, titled “Money Chatter: A Guide to Millennial Financial Discourse," found that there is a discrepancy between the image of financial institutions and the perception of financial products versus how millennials' view these entities. In tandem with this, the study also revealed a disconnect between the language millennials use and the language financial institutions use when marketing themselves.
“The objective of this research was to look for significant and unique language markers to understand how millennials, in particular, deal with financial issues," said Hope Schau, professor of marketing at the University of Arizona and author of the study.
The report employs a concept called Netnography, which is described by marketingtechblog.com as a “branch of ethnography (the scientific description of the customs of individual peoples and cultures) that analyzes the free behavior of individuals on the Internet that uses online marketing research techniques to provide useful insights." The term was coined by Robert Kozinets, an expert on social media, marketing research, and branding.
“Netnography is an excellent way to truly understand how young adults talk about money as they don't think about their ‘responses' as responses at all," Schau added.
Credit unions, Filene explained, can use the new research to “enhance their marketing and communication efforts targeting millennials" — the largest generation in the United States, comprising more than 75 million people.
Money Chatter is the first research report from Filene's Center for Consumer Decision Making, sponsored by CUNA Mutual Group.
