How different are millennials when it comes to car ownership? And are car makers wasting their time catering to this sought-after demographic? Let’s look at real customer data; the results might surprise you. Remember how less than a decade ago, as automakers battled to recover from the Great Recession, millennials were the industry’s biggest bogeymen? At the time, many were showing little interest in getting a driver’s license or owning a car, while car- and ride-sharing services were emerging to meet their mobility needs without saddling them with more debt. Needless to say, fears of the car industry’s imminent demise have proved vastly overstated. Today millennials are the auto industry’s single largest segment, and they are expected to
lead a car ownership boom in 2021. While much has been made of this generation’s penchant for breaking with convention, when it comes to what drives millennials to purchase cars, they’re surprisingly similar to everyone else. As they start new families, more than
50% are heading to the suburbs, so they need cars to commute. And they share the same basic
beliefs that have always driven people to buy new cars, namely: cars are a necessity, your car choice enhances your image, and research is essential. The COVID pandemic might also be helping to renew interest in car buying, as many are reluctant about maintaining social distance while taking public transportation. However when it comes to how they shop for cars—and what they’re looking for in a vehicle—millennials couldn’t be more different, according to customer data analysis. They have a whole new set of expectations, which data suggests are increasingly common amongst car buyers across generations, from Gen X to Gen Z. Millennials are, in fact, leading the way to the future of car buying. And smart marketers would do well to pay attention.
