About Us
 View our complete news listing.


William Blair & Company Releases Millennials Survey

CHICAGO, July 12, 2007 - William Blair & Company today published a media usage survey of the “Millennial” generation designed to learn more about this influential group’s media consumption habits and preferences to better identify investment opportunities in the media and marketing sector.

The Millennial generation, defined as those born in the 1980s and 1990s, typically to baby boomer parents, is estimated to include between 75 million and 82 million young people in the United States, about one-quarter of the U.S. population. Millennials are estimated to have $200 billion in discretionary spending power and to influence as much as half of all purchases.

William Blair conducted two surveys for its report: a survey of 500 college students nationwide to represent the Millennial generation, and a separate survey of more than 350 individuals over the age of 25 (the “Over 25” survey) for comparative purposes.

The survey of college students was conducted between September and November 2006. Respondents were asked 51 multiple-choice questions and 5 open-answer questions. The survey sample was 60% female and 40% male, relatively in line with 58% female and 42% male 2006 undergraduate enrollment, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

William Blair equity research analyst Troy Mastin, who provides coverage on 20 marketing, advertising, and media companies, wrote in the survey, “Survey respondents reported spending on average twice as much time online as watching television, with time spent on the Internet a more focused experience than television-watching…. Advertisers are spending approximately $70 billion annually on domestic television advertising. But since our survey respondents indicated spending twice as much time online as watching television, we see the potential for U.S. online advertising spending to grow to $140 billion by 2020 as advertisers shift their spending to match usage trends to reach the Millennials, who by then will make up the majority of the commercially important 18- to 49-year-old demographic group.”

Mastin also noted that for the Millennial generation, digital content is expected to be free (ad-supported), and efforts to convert this group to paid “premium” content will be difficult. In addition, college students do not buy the majority of the music they listen to, with 52% of respondents indicating they had paid for less than 25% of their music collection; however, survey respondents did indicate a willingness to purchase ring tones and seem open to both a monthly subscription model for purchasing music as well as buying tickets for live performances.

“Millennials consume a diverse mix of media, with newspapers and magazines more popular than we had expected; we believe these preferences will contribute to increasing media fragmentation,” Mastin wrote. Despite increasing fragmentation, the survey reveals that advertisers can still reach a broad audience through favored Web sites, such as Google and Facebook, and indicates that Millennials are more receptive to place-based and word-of-mouth marketing, since they watch less television than older survey respondents. “The volume of Millennial media consumption and the preference for ad-supported media provides significantly more opportunities for advertisers to reach this attractive demographic group,” Mastin concludes.

William Blair & Company, L.L.C. is a Chicago-based investment firm offering investment banking, asset management, equity research, institutional and private brokerage, and private capital to individual, institutional, and issuing clients. Since 1935, we have been committed to helping clients achieve their financial objectives. As an independent, employee-owned firm, our philosophy is to serve our clients' interests first and foremost. We place a high value on the enduring nature of our client relationships, the quality of our products and services, and the continuity and integrity of our people. William Blair & Company’s offices include Chicago, Boston, London, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, Tokyo, and Zurich. For more information, please visit www.williamblair.com

Additional information is available upon request.

THIS IS NOT IN ANY SENSE A SOLICITATION OR OFFER OF THE PURCHASE OR SALE OF SECURITIES. THE FACTUAL STATEMENTS HEREIN HAVE BEEN TAKEN FROM SOURCES WE BELIEVE TO BE RELIABLE, BUT SUCH STATEMENTS ARE MADE WITHOUT ANY REPRESENTATION AS TO ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OR OTHERWISE. OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE OUR OWN UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED. FROM TIME TO TIME, WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY, L.L.C. OR ITS AFFILIATES MAY BUY AND SELL THE SECURITIES REFERRED TO HEREIN, MAY MAKE A MARKET THEREIN AND MAY HAVE A LONG OR SHORT POSITION THEREIN. PRICES SHOWN ARE APPROXIMATE. THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN APPROVED FOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED KINGDOM BY WILLIAM BLAIR INTERNATIONAL, LIMITED, REGULATED BY THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AUTHORITY (FSA), AND IS DIRECTED AT, AND IS ONLY MADE AVAILABLE TO, AUTHORIZED PERSONS AND OTHER PERSONS FALLING WITHIN COB 3.2.5(1)(b) OF THE FSA HANDBOOK, AND MAY NOT BE PASSED ON TO PRIVATE CUSTOMERS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM. ANY UNAUTHORIZED USE IS PROHIBITED. “WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY” AND “WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY (SCRIPT)” ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY, L.L.C. Copyright 2007, William Blair & Company, L.L.C.


Back to top

Media Relations Contact:
Tony Zimmer, 312-364-8611

Subscribe to News Alerts
Statement of Financial Condition | NMS Rule 605 and Rule 606 Information | Site Map | Privacy and Security
Copyright © 2010 William Blair & Company, L.L.C.
"William Blair & Company", "William Blair & Company (script)", "R*Docs", and "A Tradition of Growth" are registered trademarks of William Blair & Company, L.L.C.
This site and the content accessible herein are subject to certain disclaimers.