I spent Sunday afternoon visiting with two young friends. The friends happen to be brothers that are members of the 9/11 Generation. This generation is the newest one to be identified. These are people born after 1990.Their life has been affected by war and uncertainty. They aren’t as optimistic about the world as the generation above them (Y, Millennials, or the Net generation). Some are quick to recognize this group, others lump them with the millennials. What they have in common with the Y is that they have grown up with technology and are very comfortable with it. Me? I’m a very young baby boomer that sometimes identifies more as an old gen X.
We talked for a long time about how we each use social medial. It was actually more of a discussion about how we communicate. Facebook gave us some common ground. I spend the majority of my time on Facebook keeping up with family and friends . . .many of those quick conversations you’d love to have on the phone but just don’t have time for. We even arrange times to have actual phone conversations on Facebook. I’ll check out a philanthropy or business someone is interested in. I’ll even look at the ads and what my friends like. But, it’s by no means my only source of information. The 9/11s are keeping up with friends, with no actual conversation. Facebook is a great place for them to ask questions about schoolwork or learn about new interests like bands. Interestingly enough, one brother had several Facebook friends while the other not as many. This is related to their personalities and interests. Facebook provided a reliable source of information to them. They trust their friends’ opinions.
Texting was the biggest difference between us. It’s their main form of communication. They don’t use the phone or email or have very many face -to -face conversations. They have the fastest fingers I’ve ever seen! Texting is great for a quick reminder. I prefer a real conversation so that tone and engagement is evident. It’s part of forging and nurturing relationships. While they admitted it was more difficult to have a genuine relationship through texting, it didn’t bother them enough not to text. I found myself wanting to learn how to text faster, to save time. I think there is a happy medium.
I was surprised the brothers still email; although, it’s used primarily for school or to have other on-line accounts. Most importantly, they use it to keep up with the older boomers and traditionals – aka their grandparents! I must admit, I find myself using email for work and business. It’s very rare these days to exchange email between friends. We leave that for Facebook.
Different generations will require different types of social media engagement. The 9/11s are taking in a much as they can through Facebook. The use of videos and YouTube is huge. It’s seems to be one of the best ways to connect with them. Young boomers are becoming the fastest growing Facebook users. The more places we are given to connect on Facebook and engage the more proficient and interested we’ll become.
While the generations are distinct, the technology gap is narrowing. Business will have to be smart in choosing the appropriate social media to reach their audience. Currently, Facebook is a place to reach multiple generations. The challenge comes with how it’s used. Posts focused on specific generations – perhaps kudos for jobs well done for baby boomers, opportunities for community involvement for Gen Y, and product and informational searches for Gen X. Because of different ages of friends, posts get exposure to multiple generations. Kind of the cross training of Facebook?! We all learn from one another and begin to close the technology gap – exciting!
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