Generation Y knows the coolest brands

With more technology at its fingertips, this generation, more than any before it, broadcasts its opinions and views on all manner of issues and topics across all the social media platforms.

"Any brand, looking to strategically break through into the youth market, needs to know what this market 'likes'," says Enver Groenewald, GM of advertising revenue and strategic communications at The Sunday Times. "As the buying force of tomorrow, youth need to be validated as consumers, as they have the potential to make or break a product or service."

Cool is in the eye of the beholder

This year, over 7200 young South Africans, from six provinces, were polled on everything from the fast food outlets to cellular network providers, celebrities to fashion brands and banks to tertiary institutions.

The survey illustrates what the leaders, movers and shakers of tomorrow are responding to today, as well as measuring the effectiveness of marketing and branding campaigns - aimed either specifically or not specifically at this particular target market - are being consumed and interpreted.

This year's survey includes an additional eight brand personality categories to serve as a gauge with which to measure the success of the growing trend of utilising celebrities to endorse big name brands.

Spanning 72 categories and unpacked into two studies - Coolest Brands and Lifestyle Habits - the survey illustrates young consumers' brand preferences based on what they deem 'cool', irrespective of their financial constraints. The survey also offers key insight into trends likely to shake the bottom line for some brands.

Technology is tops

Amongst various trends, the survey points to a prominent year-on-year increase in tech consumption amongst the youth and, although a given for some, it does denote this particular market's preference for products and services that are simultaneously functional, multi-purposeful and affordable.

For this reason, the Blackberry smart phone, with its widespread appeal, gained enough clout in the eyes of Generation Y to scoop this year's Coolest Brand Overall title. It also took top honours in the 'Coolest Cellphone', 'Coolest High-Tech Gadget' categories and BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) was named 'Best Cellphone Application'.

"BBM is the archetypal 'killer app' - it's one of the best examples ever of intrinsic functionality driving demand for a cellphone, or any device for that matter," explains Jason Levin, MD of HDI Youth Marketeers, which annually conducts and consolidates the urban youth market research. "The service turned the phone, originally a smartphone used for business purposes, into a cool tool for youth."

Craige Fleischer, regional director Southern Africa at RIM, the company behind the BlackBerry solution adds, "Generation Y's choice of the smartphone for the coolest brand overall reflects the importance it has assumed in the increasingly connected lives of a tech-savvy generation. They have become the choice of South Africa's youth because they are both aspirational and affordable."

Repeat winners

CAR has been voted the Coolest Male Magazine for the third successive year, recognising the magazine's initiatives in reaching SA's young movers and shakers where they play - in the new media space - said the magazine's publisher, Neil Piper. He cited the magazine's recent augmented reality cover and QR codes used in its pages as an example of its ongoing innovation.

"We realise how important it is for us to stay relevant to our large base of tech-savvy young readers. Using technology this way, allows content to come alive for this segment of our audience, enabling them to interact with their favourite motoring brand and establish brand loyalty from early on," he said.

Other repeat winners include ABSA as the 'Coolest' Bank, Pick n Pay as the 'Coolest' Grocery Store and 5FM as the 'Coolest' Radio Station. Newcomers in the top five rankings include Jay Jays, Avon, 8.ta and Top Gear in their respective categories.

Media consumption is bite-sized

Additional insights from the lifestyle and consumer behaviour segment of the study show how young urbanites consume media and how it influences their broader lifestyle habits. Living in a brand-cluttered environment, young urbanites have acquired the capacity to dismiss immediately branded content that doesn't appeal to them.

They tend to consume bite-sized portions of information as opposed to copy-heavy content. Though most might not yet be able to drive a car, they're almost certainly convinced they can take control of their media experience and marketers are ill-advised to connect with them in a way that undermines this.

Relevance, connections

Relevance is also very much top of the list, with the youth unequivocally demanding that in order for brands to entice them they need to really know them. "Youth demand irresistibility in a brand - and that's possible to do but it does require investigation, exploration, bravery and willingness," continues Levin. "It's worth doing though because only irresistible brands will have the necessary traction and stickiness to succeed with this generation."

With this advice comes the understanding that a 'spray and pray' approach to marketing will garner quantity brand awareness but does not guarantee quality brand awareness. "Connect with the people you want to have spread the word about your brand," advises Levin. "Make them the focus of your communication, keep them captivated and enticed and you'll undoubtedly reach their peers, and their peers."

Levin concludes, "Brands need to understand how to involve young consumers, which a survey such as this helps achieve. Bear in mind that over 50% of South Africa is under the age of 23 and spent in 2010 alone, R95.3 billion."

The survey will be available as a supplement in the 29 May 2011 edition of The Sunday Times.

Results of the survey

Category	Ranking	Brand	All Groups %
Coolest Brand Overall	1	Blackberry	21.1
	2	BMW	16.0
	3	Coca-Cola	11.6
	1	Ayoba! (MTN)	27.03
Coolest Brand Slogan	2	Just Do It (Nike)	19.86
	3	So Much More (DStv)	15.06
	1	BMW	21.37
Coolest Corporate Citizen	2	Woolworths	17.43
	3	Coca-Cola	10.61
	1	ABSA	51.88
Coolest Bank	2	FNB	47.17
	3	Standard Bank	42.89
	1	BlackBerry	64.6
Coolest Cell Phones	2	Nokia	44.5
	3	Apple iPhone	30.58
	1	Mr Price	21.98
Coolest Fashion and Accessory Store	2	Edgars	15.44
	3	Jay Jays	13.46
	1	SAA (South African Airways)	71.18
Coolest Domestic Airline	2	Mango	41.66
	3	BA (British Airways)	31.69
	1	Aquafresh	75.04
Coolest Toothpaste (New!)	2	Colgate	69.23
	3	Sensodyne	22.26
	1	Nike	20.64
Fashion Brand	2	Adidas	20.37
	3	Guess	14.9
	1	Protea Hotels	33.6
Coolest Hotel Group	2	Sun International	30.69
	3	Southern Sun	30.05
	1	Gateway Theatre of Shopping	19.2
Coolest Shopping Mall	2	Sandton City	18.88
	3	Canal Walk	15.7
	1	CEO (The Boss)	20.83
Coolest Job	2	Actor/Actress	12.99
	3	Own Business (Entrepreneur)	12.44
	1	Siphiwe Tshabalala	38.35
Coolest Local Sportsman (New!)	2	Bryan Habana	32.05
	3	Itumeleng Khune	29.9
	1	Natalie du Toit	43.79
Coolest Local Sportswoman (New!)	2	Caster Semenya	33.61
	3	Roxy Louw	29.88
	1	DJ Cleo	33.88
Coolest Local DJ (Radio and/or Club) (New!)	2	Black Coffee	30.39
	3	DJ Fresh	26.38
	1	Menzi Ngubane	24.39
Coolest Local Male TV Star (New!)	2	Zola	20.39
	3	Chris Beasley	15.4
	1	Bonang Matheba	17.92
Coolest Local Female TV Star (New!)	2	Charlize Theron	17.62
	3	Sophie Ndaba	15.95
	1	Liquideep	24.3
Coolest Local Music Star (Band or Person) (New!)	2	Big Nuz	24
	3	Black Coffee	21.41
	1	Big Nuz	27.63
Coolest Local Celebrities	2	Trevor Noah	27
	3	DJ Cleo	26.45
	1	Julius Malema	28.74
Biggest Local Newsmaker (New!)	2	Jacob Zuma	26.26
	3	Bheki Cele	17.68
	1	Trevor Noah	52.23
Coolest Local Comedian (New!)	2	David Kau	28.43
	3	Leon Schuster	24.25
	1	Uzzi	20.55
Coolest Alternative Fashion Brand	2	Aca Joe	12.95
	3	Jay Jays	12.6
	1	Vodacom	57.68
Coolest Telecoms Provider	2	MTN	54.96
	3	Cell C	33.95
	1	Lamborghini	37.35
Coolest Ultra Luxury Motor Vehicle (New!)	2	Ferrari	30.97
	3	Aston Martin	30.57
	1	BMW	37.47
Coolest Motor Vehicle	2	Audi	26.18
	3	Mercedes-Benz	24.21
	1	Cape Town	46.49
Coolest Local Holiday Destination	2	Durban	30.96
	3	Johannesburg	13.15
	1	Gold Reef City	37.7
Coolest Local Fun Destination	2	Sun City	34.92
	3	uShaka Marine World	28.34
	1	Engen	44.79
Coolest Petrol Station	2	BP	35.96
	3	Shell	34.85
	1	Nike	39.8
Coolest Sports Store	2	Adidas	37.07
	3	Totalsports	25.19
Coolest Hi-Tech Gadget	1	BlackBerry	33.23
	2	Laptop	25.99
	3	Apple iPhone	23.73
Coolest Cell Phone Application	1	BlackBerry Messenger (BBM)	43.14
	2	MXit	41.76
	3	Facebook	34.2
Coolest Computer Brand	1	Apple Mac	35.81
	2	Samsung	34.4
	3	Sony	25.54
Coolest Weekly Newspaper	1	Sunday Times	55.64
	2	City Press	36.16
	3	Sunday Sun	35.12
If you had 1 hour to watch what would you watch?	1	Movies	36.44
	2	Music	35.53
	3	Comedy	33.8
Coolest Daily Newspaper	1	Daily Sun	42.46
	2	The Times	22.75
	3	The Star	22.07
Coolest TV Channel	1	Trace (DStv 325)	19.9
	2	Disney Channel (DStv 303)	18.33
	3	VUZU (DStv 123)	15.83
Coolest TV Programme	1	Generations	19.95
	2	Dragon Ball Z	19.89
	3	Gossip Girl	11.77
Coolest TV Music Channel	1	Trace (DStv 325)	54.14
	2	Channel O (DStv 320)	36.82
	3	MTV Base (DStv 322)	34.36
Coolest Talk and Magazine Show	1	Top Gear	24.02
	2	The Oprah Winfrey Show	23.47
	3	The Tyra Banks Show	19.9
Coolest Cartoon Show	1	Dragon Ball Z	28.21
	2	Ben 10	21.69
	3	Tom & Jerry	20.66
Coolest TV Soap	1	Generations	49.24
	2	Rhythm City	33.43
	3	7de Laan	30.38
Coolest Kids TV Block	1	Disney	53.38
	2	Cartoon Network	44.84
	3	Nickelodeon	26.43
Coolest Reality TV Show	1	So You Think You Can Dance?	23.44
	2	SA's Got Talent	22.22
	3	America's Next Top Model	15.98
Coolest Music Retailer Online or Physical Store	1	Musica	50.99
	2	Look & Listen	23.94
	3	Nokia Music Store	23.53
Coolest Radio Station	1	5FM	40.54
	2	Metro FM	30.04
	3	YFM	17.6
Coolest Magazine - Males	1	CAR	39.37
	2	Speed & Sound	18.04
	3	FHM	18.03
Coolest Magazine - Females	1	YOU	19.11
	2	Seventeen	18.33
	3	Drum	17.86
Coolest Breakfast Cereal	1	Kellogg's Coco Pops	28.56
	2	Kellogg's Corn Flakes	28.45
	3	Nestlé Milo	22.27
Coolest International Celebrity	1	Nicki Minaj	17
	2	Drake	15.11
	3	Lil Wayne	14.39
Coolest Grocery Store	1	Pick n Pay	49.35
	2	Woolworths Food	41.38
	3	Checkers	24.01
Coolest Dairy Drink	1	Yogi Sip	44.64
	2	UltraMel Custard	27.46
	3	Nestlé Milo	27.29
Coolest Fast Food Place	1	KFC	34.18
	2	McDonald's	32.19
	3	Debonairs	26.09
Coolest Eat Out Place	1	Spur	27.77
	2	Wimpy	14.45
	3	Ocean Basket	13.16
Coolest Energy Product	1	Red Bull	35.42
	2	Bar-One	30.82
	3	Energade	26.11
Coolest Snack	1	Doritos	52.51
	2	Simba Chips	35.25
	3	Lay's	27.39
Coolest Cold Drink	1	Coca-Cola	43.65
	2	Appletiser	28.22
	3	Iron Brew	19.08
Coolest University or College	1	University of Cape Town (UCT)	33.59
	2	University of Johannesburg (UJ)	17.73
	3	University of the Witwatersrand (Wits)	16.85
Coolest Sweet	1	Jelly Tots	28.12
	2	Pin Pop	17.61
	3	Smarties	15.84
Coolest Chocolate	1	Bar-One	23.43
	2	Aero	19.57
	3	Cadbury Dairy Milk	15.38
Coolest Coffee Shop	1	Mugg & Bean	40.23
	2	Wimpy	37.77
	3	McDonald's McCafé	28.64
Coolest Animated Brand or Entertainment Character	1	SpongeBob Squarepants	31.65
	2	Ben 10	26.41
	3	Batman	17.82
Coolest Yoghurt	1	NutriDay	51.99
	2	Woolworths Yoghurt	34.63
	3	Danino	28.15
Coolest Fragrance - Males	1	Hugo Boss	30.6
	2	Puma	29.19
	3	Guess	22.24
Coolest Fragrance - Females	1	Guess	28.14
	2	Puma	25.59
	3	Dolce & Gabbana (D&G)	23.01
Coolest Male Deodorant	1	AXE	32.31
	2	Playboy	27.65
	3	Adidas	27.05
Coolest Skincare Product	1	Avon	24.43
	2	Nivea	22.85
	3	Lux	16.46
Coolest Female Deodorant	1	Pink Happiness	23.61
	2	Adidas	22.86
	3	Playgirl	22.56
Top 5 things you can't live without ...	1	Cellphone	46.5
	2	Family	43.47
	3	Parents	29.15
Coolest Feminine Hygiene Product	1	Always	56.69
	2	Kotex	29.37
	3	Lil-lets	24.84
Coolest Specialist Health and Beauty Store	1	Clicks	44.56
	2	Edgars	34.58
	3	Woolworths	34.52
Coolest Make-Up Brand	1	Avon	33.83
	2	Yardley	21.54
	3	Revlon	20.76
What social networking sites and websites do you most frequently use?	1	Facebook	61.84
	2	MXit	46.51
	3	Google	27.04
Coolest Soap Bar	1	Dettol	42.88
	2	Protex	32.34
	3	Lux	28.17
Coolest Hair Care Product	1	Dark & Lovely	31.43
	2	Sunsilk	17.55
	3	Soft 'n Free	15.59
Top 5 things you wish for your birthday?	1	R10 000 clothing voucher	40.67
	2	BlackBerry	35.47
	3	Laptop	30.54