1 18 CHAPTER 5 EXTERNALCONSIDERATIONSINMARKETING
GenerationX GenerationX,alsoknownasthe"babybusters"orthe"shadowgen-
eration,"isthegroupofpeoplebornfrom 1969 to1980.Thisgrouphasbeenlabeledwith
a "slacker"stereotype.Imagine 45 miilionhumansthatarecharacterizedasculturallyillit-
erate,apathetic,anddirectionless.Froma marketers'perspective,theyhavea totaldispos-
ableincomeof:$125billion.Intunetothenewestrage,Xers-highlysteepedina culture
ofsoundbytes- seemtoknowinstinctivelywhattheywant.And,moreimportantly,what
theydon'twant.^8
Unfortunately,themoremarketerslearnaboutthisgroup,thelessit appearstobea
marketsegment.Forexample,Xers'lifestylesrangefromthe 10 millionwhoarefull-time
collegeandpostgraduatestudentstothe 15 millionwhoaremarried.Theyarealsothemost
radicallydiversegenerationinhistoryYettheiropinionsaboutlifeintheUnitedStatesmir-
rorthoseofthegeneralpopulation. Forinstance, 52%ofXersbelievethat"qualityoflife"
is goodcomparedwith53%oftheentirepopulation,and 64 %ofXersaremore" stressed
aboutmoneythisyear,"comparedto58%ofthegeneralpopulation.
GiventhediversityofGenerationX,whatarethepossibilitiesthatanintegratedmar-
ketingstrategycanbetargetedtothisgroup?Thekeywillbefindingsubsegmentswithin
this45-million-persongroup.Forexample,levelofeducationmightbea pointofdistinc-
tion.Thoseincollegeorwitha collegedegreearelikelytobecomputer-literateandcan
bereachedbyonlinemedia.Theiroptimismandgeneralconcernfora simplerlifesug-
geststhatnoncondescendingmarketingmessagesthroughpublicrelationsorcause-related
activitieswouldproveeffective.TheBabyBoomlet Justlikethebabyboomers,thegroupof 72 millionchildren
ofthebabyboomers,calledthe"babyboomlet"orthe"echoboom,"is creatingnewwaves
ofchange. Thisgroupspans 1975 tothepresent.In1995,theboomlethad 72 millionpeo-
pleunderage 19 .Itis 60 %largerthanthebabyboom.Evenif 1995 is!hefinalyearfor
boomletbirths, this generationwillgrowthroughimmigrationforseveralmoredecades.
By2015,thebabyboom1etwillagainoutnumbertheboom.
Thebabyboomletswillacquiretheirownattitudes,oftenshapedbynewtechnology
andglObalchanges.GlobalconversationsontheIntenetwillchangetheiroutlookonthe
world.AIDSwillchangetheirattitudestowardrelationship,marriage,andfamily.Real-
timeinformationandthecustomizationoftheinformationwillproducea verydiscerning
consumer.F;nally,theirattitudewillalsobeshapedbydefiningevents. Forinstance,it will
bea generationthatexpectsterroristsacts,suchastheOklahomaCityandthe 1996 Olympics
bombings.Memorableeventswillhavea lastingeffectontheiroutlook.CulturesandSubcultures
Allofusare partofa culturalfabricthataffectsourbehavior,includingourbehavioras
consumers.Cultureisthesumoflearnedbeliefs,values,andcustomsthatregulatethebehav-
iorofmembersofa particularsociety. Throughourculture,wearetaughthowtoadjustto
theenvironmental,biological, psychological,andhistoricalpartsofourenvironment.
Beliefsandvaluesareguidesofbehavior,andcustomsareacceptablewaysofbehav-
ing.Abeliefisanopiniontnatreflectsa person'sparticularknowledgeandassessmentof("Ibelievethat...").Valuesaregeneralstatementsthatguidebehaviorandinfluencebeliefs
andattitudes("Honestyisthebestpolicy").Avaluesystemhelpspeoplechoosebetween
alternativesineverydaylife.Customsareovertmodesofbehaviorthatconstitutecultur-
allyapprovedwaysofbehavinginspecificsituations.Customsvaryamongcountries,regions,
andevenfamilies.InA.rabsocieties,forinstance,usury(paymentofinterest)isprohibited,
sospecialIslamicbanksexistthatprovidethreetypesofaccounts:non-profitaccounts,profit-