Diplomatic, tolerant & ethical. How Canadians think the rest of the world sees our country.

In our latest national survey, we asked Canadians questions about a range of international issues and perceptions.

CANADA’S IMAGE ABROAD

Canadians think the rest of the world sees our country is seen as tolerant (93%) diplomatic (93%) and ethical (88%). The large majority think our country is seen as an example to replicate (79%), rather than to avoid.

We’re less sure whether we are seen as strong (56%), influential (55) or a leader (45%).

Opinion is divided on whether our influence in the world has been increasing or declining.

THREATS TO CANADA

Asked about a range of possible threats to Canada, the one that stands above all others is:

President Trump’s approach to foreign affairs (this poll was taken before the recent application of tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum).

Climate change also ranked very high, along with Islamic extremism and cyber attacks.

Korea’s and Iran’s nuclear ambitions were about equally threatening.

Relatively few see China’s emergence as a world power as a threat to Canada and the same is true for the prospect of the UK leaving the European Union.

As Canada gets ready to host G7 leaders in Charlevoix Canadians have a clear sense of what should be higher or lower foreign policy priorities for the country:

Protecting the country from terror attacks is rated as a higher priority than the other items we tested. Expanding trade opportunities, fighting global climate change and ending extreme poverty were close behind.

Fewer people attached high priority to improving women’s rights, equality and economic empowerment, strengthening the United Nations, and promoting and defending human rights in other countries.

Men put expanding trade opportunities at the top of the list, while women tended to attach more importance than men to almost all the other items tested.

Younger people put more emphasis on climate change, improving women’s rights and equality, promoting human rights and ending extreme poverty. Older Canadians were more focused on terror and trade.

Liberal and NDP voters are far more likely to prioritize climate change and improving women’s equality compared to Conservative voters. Conservative voters prioritize trade and protecting Canada from terrorism.

THE UPSHOT

According to Bruce Anderson:  Canadians feel our country is well regarded around the world, an example worth emulating the way in which we engage and conduct ourselves.

Even before the imposition by President Trump of tariffs against Canadian steel and aluminum, Canadians observe his approach to foreign affairs as a serious threat to Canada’s interests.  While Canadians have not liked every President the US has elected, it’s safe to say that there has not been another comparable experience with the leader of our neighbour and top trading partner.

In terms of the foreign policy priorities people care about, protection against terror risks is at the top of the list, but lots of people also want to see a focus on expanding trade, fighting poverty, and combating climate change too.

Younger people like a more expansive agenda and older people are focused on economics and security.  The results highlight once again that NDP and Liberal voters are more similar while Conservative voters stand apart from them, notably in their relative disinterest in climate change and gender equality.

According to David Coletto: We as Canadians tend to think the world views us quite positively and global surveys confirm this expectation. We see ourselves as appearing tolerant, diplomatic, and ethical and most feel that if more countries followed our example, the world would be a better place.

But we’re also realists. Many think we are often ignored and four in ten think we’re seen as weak as opposed to strong.

Most striking to me, besides Trump’s ability to focus our attention and concern on his behaviour, is how high global climate change is on our list of perceived threats to Canada. It’s a reminder that while Canadians may not put it highest on a list of priorities for government to act on when compared with health, taxes, or housing, we aren’t ignoring climate changes’ potential threat to Canada. Even one in three Conservative Party voters says global climate change should be a top or high foreign policy priority for Canada.

Methodology

Our survey was conducted online with 1,200 Canadians aged 18 and over from May 24 to 28, 2018. A random sample of panelists was invited to complete the survey from randomly selected Canadian adults who are members of the online panel Maru Voice Canada.

The Marketing Research and Intelligence Association policy limits statements about margins of sampling error for most online surveys.   The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of the same size is +/- 2.9%, 19 times out of 20.  The data were weighted according to census data to ensure that the sample matched Canada’s population according to age, gender, educational attainment, and region. Totals may not add up to 100 due to rounding.

Abacus Data Inc.

We offer global research capacity with a strong focus on customer service, attention to detail and value-added insight.  Our team combines the experience of our Chairman Bruce Anderson, one of Canada’s leading research executives for two decades, with the energy, creativity and research expertise of CEO David Coletto, PhD.

Media

NL residents support Dwight Ball’s management of bullying allegations

Earlier this year, we released polling that found Newfoundland and Labrador residents were feeling quite anxious about the future of the province. Almost half felt that life in the province has become worse over the past 10 years; about half described things in the province as pretty bad or horrible, and only one in four residents were optimistic that things will get better over the next 10 years.

This month, we wanted to take a deeper look at political attitudes in the province in the wake of allegations of bullying and harassment within the provincial Liberal caucus and cabinet.

Here’s what we found:

#1: MOST RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING NEWS ABOUT ALLEGATIONS OF BULLYING AND HARASSMENT WITHIN THE LIBERAL CABINET AND CAUCUS AT LEAST SOMEWHAT CLOSELY.

65% report following news of the allegations at least somewhat closely with about one in four following it very closely. More striking is that only 8% haven’t heard anything about it. Unlike other issues that often don’t get outside the political bubble in St. John’s, this issue has wide awareness, even among younger people in the province.

#2: ALMOST ALL THINK THE ALLEGATIONS ARE TRUE ALTHOUGH ABOUT HALF THINK THEY ARE LIKELY TO BE EXAGGERATED.

91% of residents think the allegations of bullying and harassment in the Liberal caucus and cabinet are likely to be true but 44% think they are likely exaggerated.  Only 2% think the allegations are likely to be false.

#3: DESPITE CRITICISM, MOST THINK PREMIER BALL HAS HANDLED THE SITUATION AT LEAST ACCEPTABLY.

51% think he has done a good or acceptable job handling the situation while 36% think he has done a poor or very poor job. Notably, those who are following the issues more closely are just as likely to think Mr. Ball has handled the issue at least acceptably.

#4: GIVEN THE RELATIVELY POSITIVE EVALUATIONS OF THE PREMIER’S PERFORMANCE, ONLY 33% THINK HE SHOULD STEP DOWN AS PREMIER AND LIBERAL LEADER.

When we ask whether the Premier should step down, 33% say yes while 47% say no. Another 21% said they were not sure. Those following the issue closely are no more likely to think he should resign. Troubling however for the Liberals, 27% of those who voted Liberal in the past provincial election think he should step down.

#5: DWIGHT BALL HAS THE MOST NEGATIVE IMPRESSIONS BUT HE’S ALSO THE MOST WELL KNOWN. BOTH CHES CROSBIE AND GERRY ROGERS ARE LARGELY UNKNOWN.

Over four in ten residents have a negative impression of Mr. Ball while 24% view him positively. A majority of residents have either a neutral or don’t have an impression of both PC Leader Ches Crosbie and NDP Leader Gerry Rogers.

#6: IF AN ELECTION WAS HELD TODAY, THE PCs WOULD HAVE A SLIGHT LEAD OVER THE LIBERALS BUT OVER FOUR IN TEN ARE UNDECIDED.

Forty-one percent of respondents said they are undecided about who they would vote for if an election was held today in the province. That’s down 7 from January but still quite high in our experience polling in jurisdictions across Canada.

The PCs led by Ches Crosbie have the support of 24% of residents statistically tied with the Liberals at 22%. The NDP is in third at 13%.

When we look at only decided voters, the PCs would get 40% followed by the Liberals at 38%, and the NDP at 22%. This represents a 6-point increase for the Tories and a 3-point drop for the Liberals.

Liberal support is stronger in Labrador and western Newfoundland while the Tories are stronger on the Avalon Peninsula and in east and central Newfoundland.  We also find that PC support is consistent across age groups while the NDP does better among younger residents and the Liberals do better among older ones.

#7: MOST FEEL THE PROVINCE IS HEADED IN THE WRONG DIRECTION

A majority of residents think the province is headed in the wrong direction while only one in four think it’s headed in the right direction. Most troubling for the incumbent Liberals is that almost a majority (48%) of those who voted Liberal in 2014 think the province is off on the wrong track.

#8:  BUDGET DEFICIT & FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE MAKE THE MOST ANXIOUS. INFRASTRUCTURE AND GOOD JOBS ALSO SEEN AS MAJOR PROBLEMS.

When we ask residents to diagnosis the problems facing Newfoundland and Labrador, majorities point to the provincial deficit and finances and future opportunities for young people in the province as “very big problems”.  In fact, except for the quality of schools, at least four in ten residents felt that all issues were very big problems.

UPSHOT

While the allegations of harassment in the Liberal caucus have received broad attention from the public, their impact on the political fortunes of the Liberal Party and Premier Ball specifically remain uncertain.

Most still think the province is headed in the wrong direction and concern about the budget deficit remains high but the Liberals remain competitive with the PCs largely because so many residents are undecided about how they would vote.

Mr. Ball’s negatives are high but not as high as we see among incumbents in other provinces and right now his rivals are largely unknown.

More time will be needed to really understand the impact of the allegations on the political system but there doesn’t appear to be a lot of public pressure on Mr. Ball to resign. But with one in five unsure, that could change in time.

METHODOLOGY

Our hybrid telephone/web survey was conducted with 800 Newfoundland and Labrador adults between May 18 to 27, 2018.  500 interviews were conducted online with panelists recruited from LegerWeb’s panel. Another 300 interviews were conducted randomly by telephone using both mobile phones and landlines.

The Marketing Research and Intelligence Association policy limits statements about margins of sampling error for most online surveys. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of 800 is +/- 3.5%, 19 times out of 20.

The data were weighted according to census data to ensure that the sample matched Newfoundland and Labrador’s population according to age, gender, educational attainment, and region. Totals may not add up to 100 due to rounding.

MediaPolls

Millennial Month Wrap-up

April has been a fun month for us here at Abacus. For the last 30 days we have been sharing our findings from Canada’s largest reoccurring study on Millennials, The Canadian Millennials Report. In our first week we learnt that housing affordability, access to good jobs, and student debt are the major concerns that are keeping Millennials up at night. Unlike their parent’s generation, where healthcare and the economy trumped their list of personal fears Millennials are hard pressed to find an affordable roof over their heads while their student loans and uncertain employment future has take its toll on their inherent optimism.

We also talked about the rising political power of Millennials. Millennial voter participation rose by 20 per cent in the last federal election and carried the Liberal Party to electoral victory. There’s no surprise why Prime Minister Trudeau appointed himself Minister for Youth. This follows trends in the UK where Labour experienced a huge upswing in support disproportionately coming from Millennials. Also in Italy with the rise of the Five Star movement, and it echoes the youth mobilization of the 2008 Obama Presidential campaign. Millennials have a different set of priorities than previous generations and they respond to different calls to actions, (e.g. more positive and direct). As they become the majority of the electorate, partisans will have to fight on a new battlefield for Millennial favour.

In week two we looked at Millennial concepts of identity. One thing we particularly examined was the Millennials’ perceptions of their own generation. The majority of Canadian Millennials are familiar with the term that describes their generation. Interestingly, the words they used to describe the Millennial generation were far from pleasant, “entitled, needy, and lazy”, were just some of the most popular words they used. And even more interesting, was that the majority (54%) of Canadian Millennials think that these words accurately describe their generation. So while most Millennials will answer to their generational name, they might not appreciate the negative connotations associated with it.

One of our pieces in week two got a little nerdy. You see, rare does a week go by where someone doesn’t ask us about the legitimacy of the claimed  significant differences between generations. So our CEO David Coletto, took to the cyberspace to explain the environmental and statistical differences of the Millennial generation. What we found that there are some relationships that don’t make sense unless you factor in generation. From news consumption habits to home environments, a Millennial, Gen Xer, and a Boomer have differences that can’t be explained away by life stage. If you don’t want to get blind sided by generational change, this one is a must read.

In our third week we shifted our focus to Millennials and technology. We looked at why Millennials stay loyal to new tech brands but so willingly break ties to news providers and even financial institutions. It turns out, that if you put in the effort and speak to Millennials where they are, it doesn’t matter if you sell burritos or iPhones, loyalty is accrued. Nevertheless, Millennials do seem to cling to the fresh new Silicon Valley start-ups with an unusual persistence. We also took a look at the halo effect that surrounds the Valley and the residence within. Despite contributing, in some cases, nearly half as much as the old economy firms to charities and humanitarian work, Millennials still perceive the Amazons, Apples, Googles, and Facebooks of the world (even despite Zuckerberg’s recent row) as almost twice as ethical. Although we discussed a number of reasons, simply being the newest player on the block might just be the key to their success.

These were just some of our findings and if you would like to review all that Millennial Month has to offer, visit our main site. While Millennial Month might be over we will continue to research and report on generational change and technological disruption. The next wave of the Canadian Millennials Report will launch in May 2018. The Report is Canada’s largest reoccurring study of Millennials, providing insight on their use of technology, financial situation, political priorities, and societal outlooks. If you are interested in the Report, don’t hesitate to visit the Canadian Millennials Report site where we house all things Millennial.

And while you’re here, why don’t you check out our work on ONPulse. If you want thoughtful up-to-date analysis and the most accurate data on the upcoming Ontario election you are going to love ONPulse. A partnership with Summa Strategies, Spark* Advocacy, and Abacus Data you’ll be in the know before anyone else about the nuances of the Ontario political environment.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

MediaTechnology

The Wearable Revolution: Millennials are leading the wearable movement

On our Canadian Millennials site we previously wrote a post on the #Selfcare phenomenon that has seized the Millennial generation -if you haven’t had a chance to read it I highly recommend you check it out. That post and your conversation got us thinking about how Millennial views on health and healthy lifestyles are unique as compared to other generations. Millennials, like every generation before them, have their health quirks and fads. From jazzercise to going paleo, the human race has tried everything to stay in shape. Today we will be looking at how Millennials integrate technology into their lifestyles in the hopes of becoming healthier.

With the advent of wearable technology and their corresponding applications it has never been easier to incorporate data into your regular workout routine. In the past, you needed the budget and resources of an elite Soviet athlete to get the level of statistical insights we now might consider trivial, not to mention all that clunky machinery.

Wearable tech like the Fitbit has been adopted by Millennials to optimize their exercise experience. It, with corresponding applications, informs the wearer of anything from how many steps they’ve taken to how many carbs and nutrients they have consumed. The modern-day personal trainer isn’t at the local gym but rather on your arm and in the cloud.

Alright, so knowing your heart beat per minute ratio is one thing but now what do you do with that? This is where the gamification of data makes things interesting. Gamification is a term first coined by Nick Pelling, a British computer programmer and technology philosopher. It refers to the incorporation of game-like elements into areas where they previously did not exist (Pelling: 2002). So data is great but what if you added daily goals, the ability to compete with your friends and family, and even obtain rewards for reaching certain goals? A study by PricewaterhouseCooper indicated that 64% of Millennials believed that they would be more likely to use wearable technology if it had some sort of gaming component to it (PWC: 2014). Additionally, 52% of Millennials in the same study said that they would use a wearable device if it had an in-app rewards feature (PWC: 2014). That being said, gamification has its limits. When asked if they would mind if their personal information was shared with friends and family on their behalf only 14% of Millennials said they would not mind (PWC: 2014). The other 96% were hesitant to share personal information without some level of control. Therefore, it is important to remembers that even though we might think of Millennials as these opensource digital natives, privacy is still a genuine right they value and they want to control the personal information they share, even in the context of a ‘game’.

Now, there are dozens of devices and hundreds of apps that are designed to track your exercise data and to improve your performance. Nearly every major sports retailer from Adidas to Nike to Under Armour has developed an exercise app of their own and has integrated corresponding technology into their apparel. So great is demand for wearable technology, specifically among Millennials, it is estimated that by 2018 the wearable tech sector will be worth between $6 billion (PWC: 2014) to $12 billion (Business Insider: 2014) globally with approximately 17% of the wearables market being devoted to health and fitness applications (Ogilvy & Mather: 2014).

Let’s take a look at two companies that are on the leading edge of this wave of wearable tech.

Orangetheory Fitness

Orangetheory Fitness combines the traditional experience of the gym with the personalization of wearable technology. Every gym-goer is paired with a Fitbit-like wristband which monitors their vitals as they participate in traditional gym circuit training. Orangetheory uses their clients’ personal data to create individual goals and exercise plans. Over the past four years the gym franchise has almost doubled every year. In 2016 alone Orangetheory opened one storefront for each day of the year.

Carrot Rewards

Carrot Rewards is an app the links to your smart phone. It records steps you take and sets goals to encourage healthy life styles. The major component of Carrot Rewards is that with every goal achieved the user receives points which can be redeemed towards monetary rewards. Developed by the Provincial Government of British Columbia in partnership with the federal government and other private partners it also acts as an information conduit for the province to relay pertinent personalized healthcare information to users directly. The information collected can also be operationalized to enhance healthcare delivery in the province based on the lifestyle insights the province gleans from user data.

Wearable tech has applications in both the private and public sectors and is successfully being used to enhance service deliver across fields. While the healthcare field is perhaps the largest wearable sector at the moment wearable technologies have the ability to revolutionize and enhance other sectors such as travel, entertainment, and administration and is set to perforate every area of our lives.

Millennials are embracing the world of wearable technology and the market place is happily obliging. All the trend lines are indicating and the markets are proving that Millennials will continue to adopt wearable technology into different facets of their lives. As Douglas Atkin, Global Head of Communities at AirBnB says, “In the distant future, we’ll forget the idea of engaging in technology at all. We’ll sallow it, absorb it, and wear it, without us really thinking we’re engaging it at all.”

Want to know more about Millennials views on tech? Check out the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

MediaTechnology

Digital Halos: The next generation of social license

“Silicon Valley start-up”

Now tell me, after reading those words what was the first thing that came to your mind? Well, if you’ve been watching the news you probably thought of Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg talking to the US Government House and Senate committees over allegations of misuse of user data. But once your mind travelled beyond that you probably reflected on Google’s playhouse/office space or Apple’s sleek cult of products. Generally, we have a vision of smart, innovative firms staffed by cool young people that are fantastically smart and build revolutionary products. They are generally ecologically conscious, treat people fairly, and give back to their communities.

When we ask Millennials to describe what an ethical company looked like, descriptions like the ones above were provided. So, it was no surprise that when we asked Millennials to rank a series of companies on how ethical they were that new economy tech firms held the top spots.

“The Four,” Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple were all at the top of our list. And despite the negative headlines some of them get, Millennials are simply enamored with these companies and their technological marvels. Covered by slogans like, “don’t be evil” –Google, “the everything store” –Amazon, “move fast, break things” –Facebook, or “think differently” –Apple; people, especially Millennials, are willing to forgive slip-ups and mis-steps and perceive these companies as sterling ethical actors.  However, if we were to quantify ethicality, say by how much each company spends on their corporate social responsibility initiatives, we find that perception isn’t necessarily correlated with money spent. Looking at education initiatives for instance, the area that we have the best data for and an area that is prioritized by all of “The Four”, we find that none of them are in the top ten education spenders. Those positions are held by: Banco Santander ($197m), IBM ($144m), Telefonica ($130m), Exxon Mobil ($116), Target ($95m), GlaxoSmithKline ($87m), Microsoft ($87m), Toyota Motor ($84m), Rio Tinto Group ($82m), Wells Fargo ($82m), as calculated by UNESCO and the Varkey Foundation.

This halo effect isn’t new nor is it a simply Millennial trait. Looking back a little over a century ago, we can find the same halos surrounding the early American industrialists like the steel enterprises of Carnegie and the assembly lines of Ford, and textile mills of east coast. These now “old economy” firms were once new, and generated similar excitement to our present-day technological titans. Carnegie’s steel mills were known for their hellish working conditions, Ford was known for his skimpy wages, and the mills were a congress of child labour. Yet, they were shiny, new, and an ocean removed from most critical Europe (not that conditions were any better there).

There is a quote from Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, in which he describes the 3 rules of human reaction to technology.

“Rule 1: Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural
part of the way the world works.

Rule 2: Anything that’s invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and
revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.

Rule 3: Anything invented after you’re thirty-five is against the natural order of things.”

This colloquialism, pretty well describes the generational difference in company perception. Even within the Millennial cohort we see that those born before 1990 have a slightly less paradisiacal view of these companies, scoring them on average 3 points less ethical than those born after 1990. And this inflection point coincides with those who can remember a life before the internet and those that can’t. To the younger half of Millennials, Facebook is all they have known, its actions that Boomers take so much offense to barely registers on the Millennials’ radar. To them, Facebook, Amazon, Apple, and Google are operating how they’ve always done. They are part of the natural order of things and their rhetoric and organizational culture acts as the baseline for how Millennials expect companies to act. These halos, fade with time but generally seem to follow generations as they get older. So will these silicon angels fall from grace? Save a major scandal, probably not. But will these halos fade? Most definitely. New becomes old and innovative becomes archaic these tech start-ups are enjoying the usual favour of all new companies without a history. Millennials who have grown up with them enjoy them because the make modern life possible, just as the steel mills and textile factors of the last century made modern life useful. The next generation will have its darlings, and well see how these Millennial companies fair in the eyes of the next generation.

The majority of this data came from the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

MediaTechnology

Generational change in the marketplace: A question of loyalty

We often hear how Millennials are disrupting traditional powerhouse brands with their serial disloyalty. For example, where the traditional choices might be Coca-Cola or Pepsi, Millennials are saying, “Neither, I’ll take the ethically brewed, organic kombucha that’s made at my local co-op.” This has been repeated in industry after industry, from financial advisors to publishing houses Millennials and the new technologies of today are leaving wounded multi-million dollar titans in their wake. There is however, one industry where Millennials show the loyalty once garnered by the acolytes PAN-AM or Marlboro. Brand loyalty can still be found today in the mobile phone industry.

There may be many reasons why Millennials have maintained their loyalty to their cellphone brand but they all have their foundation in the tumultuous period of the Mobile Phone Wars of the early 2000s.

The war to end all wars:

Many have suggested that the loyalty these cellphone giants enjoy were hard fought for in what has come to be known as the “Mobile Phone” or “Smart Phone” wars of 2008-2012. In 2008 Nokia, Blackberry, and Motorola were the largest players on the block. They won their market shares in the late 80s during the cell phone revolution and now were enjoying the fruits of their economies of scale. Sitting on their laurels, these cellular giants watched as a newly rebranded computer company, Apple, unveiled a peculiarly named but highly stylized mobile device. On January 2, 2007 in San Francisco the iPhone was unveiled to the world and the unbeknownst to the lumbering behemoths the first lines of the mobile phone wars had been drawn. Over the ensuing 4 years these and other mobile and technology companies, including Google and Samsung, would be involved in upwards of 4000 legal injunctions involving no fewer than 2 841 disputed patents. To put that in perspective, that means 3 new suits or legal actions were introduced every day in the 4-year time period. And besides these legal battles consumers can remember the battle for our hearts and minds. How could we forget the creative and iconic advertisements of that era? Whether it be dancing silhouettes, clever Mac’s and our doting PC’s or subway fisticuffs with our mobile devices we were drawn to a phone provider like a fly to a light.

When the dust settled in 2013 Nokia had fallen, Motorola was acquired, and Blackberry became the sick man of mobile. And where these forerunners once stood California’s Apple and South Korea’s Samsung lay triumphant. Both attained the largest market share but of the two companies, one has experienced a loyalty envied by religious leaders and politicians alike. And at whose alter do Millennials bow before as apostles of the brand the most? Apple.

Both Apple and Samsung have their brand ambassadors. You ask a Samsung devotee and they will tell you that Samsung’s are for the unpretentiously smart worker. The technological professional that does not want to be bound by limiting operating systems and hardware silos. Apples followers will tell you that their ilk is a cut above the rest. Valuing both design and functionality, an Apple bearer is ahead of the trends and is more creative than your average joe-Android.

In our latest survey of Canadian Millennials—the Canadian Millennials Report is the largest reoccurring Millennial study in Canada—Abacus asked them about their mobile devices. Today, Apple holds 51% of the Millennial cellphone market. This is highest among young Millennials born in 1995 and later (31%) and lowest among Millennials born in 1984 and earlier (20%). Samsung controls around 35% of the market share where as the rest of the mobile phone companies are left to fight over the remain 14%. The gender breakdown of these brands is unique. The iPhone loyalist are more likely to be women by a factor of 1.5 where Samsung has a greater balance between genders, about a 50/50 split. The interesting numbers come up when we look at third-party cellphones like Google, Lenovo, or Huawei. The third-party market is dominated by older Millennial men (60% of the market) particularly those in their late 20s and early 30s. We were also curious to see if geographical location had any effect on brand adoption. Overall, phone preference across Canada is pretty much the same. Apple and Samsung dominate in most provinces except New Brunswick where there is a three way race between the big two and third-party companies. Although we can’t be certain why this is the case, there is the possibility that the relatively high price points of the big two make attaining them more difficult in the depressed Maritime economy making lower-priced third-party phones seem more attractive.

But moving past New Brunswick’s non-conformist phenomenon we found that there were other surprising differences between the company faithful. For instance, somewhat to our surprise, Apple’s acolytes were more likely to believe in God than any other company cohort (54%). Samsung believers are more likely to be atheist with 56% stating that they don’t believe in the Semitic interpretation of an almighty being. Third-party devote were just as likely as Samsung users to be atheist. We’re not reading too much into this one. While we’ll keep an eye out for a trend as we survey more Millennials later this year, to say that an Apple user is literally holier than thou…you know, there might actually be something here, catch up with us in the fall when we publish the next wave of our Canadian Millennial Report. At any rate we also found that Apple was the product of choice for Canada’s highly educated Millennials. Those who have completed post-graduate studies were the more likely to have an iPhone than a Samsung. Samsung is the “working man’s” phone being on average two points higher than Apple for those Millennials that have completed college or some university or have lower educational attainment. The same can be said for income. Millennials with higher incomes tend to prefer iPhones where as Millennials with lower incomes tend to prefer Samsung or in the case of those that make less than $35,000 per year, a third-party phone.

So, while Millennials haven’t clung-on to old-economy powerhouses like Coca-Cola or IBM they are willing to be loyal to firms that grab their attention. Less we forget the Coca-Cola vs Pepsi advertising wars in the 70s and 80s or the Colgate vs Crest in the 50s and 60s. Firms in the market that compete for attention will get attention, those that sit back and lay on their historic spoils are likely to be found along the way-side of modernity as the connections forged with older generations fade into distant memory. If firms want to be relevant to the next generation they need to compete for their attention and link their product to what’s important to Millennials.

The majority of this data came from the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

MediaTechnology

Millennials – a unified tribe or disjointed mob: Millennial Self-Identity

Entitled, narcissistic, tech savvy, needy, immediate gratification, these were the top five descriptions that Baby Boomers came up with to describe their offspring, the Millennial generation. Lazy, entitled, spotty employment, tech savvy, educated, these were the top five descriptions Millennials used to describe themselves! More than half (53%) of Millennials agree that these terms accurately describe their generation. Despite the negative connotation of many of the labels Millennials themselves say that while negative, they are nevertheless accurate.

Now, often in research we witness the phenomenon of group disassociation. This is when a person describes the group they belong to (say Millennials) but removes themselves from that stereotype. Generally speaking, people don’t like to associate themselves with a negative reputation and recognizing that the majority of the labels associated with Millennial generation are negative we wondered if this phenomenon was occurring here. That is, while most Millennials agree that the terms are accurate to describe their generation, they themselves don’t count themselves as one of those stereotypical Millennials. So, we asked Millennials whether or not they personally identified with the label Millennial. And what we found was that despite the negative connotation, 68% of Canadians born between 1980 and 2000 still self-identified with the title “Millennial”. Looking at these audacious numbers we decided to dig a little deeper.

We wondered if age was a factor in self-identification, that is, if older or younger Millennials were more or less likely to think of themselves as a Millennial. Of those born at the beginning of Millennial age (1980-1983) we see that only about 1 in 10 actually take on the name Millennial. Yet, as we get to the younger cohorts we find this name adoption increases where more than double (28%) of 18-21 year olds strongly self-identify as a Millennial.

So, what does all of this mean? Well, for starters, much like the Baby Boomer generation most Millennials take on the name of their generation. Further, they accept that there are a number of negative stereotypes that come along with the title. Nevertheless, they feel like those stereotypes are pretty accurate. Perhaps this means that the taboo of marketing to Millennials is overblown. What our research also told us is that generation isn’t the strongest bond for this generation as it may have been for the Boomers. If you ask most Boomers who grew up in Western countries, you’ll find that they had fairly similar experiences. Typically, each belonged to a nuclear family unit, learnt similar skills in school, and can remember the same historic events which defined their time: the Cuban missile crisis, the moon landing, the death of Princess Diana or Kennedy, etc. Millennials haven’t had those historically uniting moments. For instance, in the cases of 9/11 the London bombings, or the middle eastern wars half of the Millennial generation was under the age of 11 when they occurred and for the majority, these events failed to directly impact their lives. While Millennials still agree that a generational label to describe common characteristics across their generation applies to them, they find that they can better relate to people of their same gender, members of their family, or those that share the same personal interests.

In practical application here are a few things to take away. First, Millennials, will answer to the name Millennial but know that it is accompanied with a lot of negative stereotypes. Second, Millennials for the most part haven’t had a common experience so messages that call back of late 80s and 90s nostalgia will only go so far. That contrasts with the Boomer generation who might be the most nostalgic generation since the survivors of the Great Depression, ask them to tell you how great the 60s were sometime. Millennials are more segmented. They unite along interests, their professions, and their familial upbringing. Targeted calls to action to motivate this generation, whether it be to buy a product or vote for a political party are needed more than had been necessary with the Baby Boomer generation. In sum, Millennials are a self-identifying generation, they are hard to reach, and are familiar with self-deprecation. You can reach them and mobilize them, but it takes a concerted effort.

The majority of this data came from the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

Generational ChangeMedia

Talking about my generation: Why a generational lens can help explain and anticipate behaviour

In February, I was part of a panel discussion talking about political marketing and the future of a certain Canadian political party. A fellow panelist at that session questioned the value of using generation as a tool for understanding political behaviour. To him, age was the least interesting variable that could be used to explain why people think and behaviour the ways they do. Those who have kids and own a home have far more in common, even if 20 years apart in age, than two people who are close in age but have different lifestyles or have reached different milestones in their lives. In some ways, I agree with him. A 50-year-old with children is likely to have different priorities than a 50-year old without kids. This leaves one central question – a question my team at Abacus Data has spent a lot of time exploring – do the circumstances shared by those born around the same time influence the way they think and act? If they do, then generational analysis can be a powerful tool in understanding personal and political behaviours.

If a generational lens is going to be a useful tool in explaining differences, then there must be clear differentiation between generations. So, let’s use the millennial generation as a case study and ask if those born between 1980 and 2000 are generally more similar to each other than those born in the periods before and after them.

In hearth and home

For starters, millennials were raised differently than previous generations. Think about the households they were raised in, their relationship with their parents, and the expectations bred into them. Millennials were the most planned generation in Earth’s history. For the most part the parents of millennials planned their children and prepared the environment they would grow up in. Millennials were raised

by parents who acted as their agents, curated almost every minute of their days, and encouraged them to follow their dreams and make every minute on Earth count.

They got regular feedback from those in positions of authority while the lines of authority themselves were blurred. They had access to decision makers, were far more influential in household decisions, and were regularly consulted to share their thoughts. The world was their oyster and their families and society generally were there to help make their dreams come true. It’s no wonder then that 85% of Canadian millennials agree that when growing up many people told them they could achieve anything. Optimism and hopefulness became part of their DNA. The experience during these formative years were far different from those experienced by Boomers or Gen Xers.

The environment

Now think about what was going on in the world and Canada from the early 1980s to the mid to late 2000s. While 9/11 was a seminal world event, millennials never really experienced an existential crisis experienced by earlier generations. There was no world wars, Vietnam or Cold War. The Great Recession in 2008 has certainly had an impact on their career progressions, but it didn’t influence behaviour and attitudes like the Great Depression did on my grandparents’ generation.

Instead, the big shift in our lives centred around the pace of technological change.  On top of a very different upbringing, which alone would account for the generational gaps in expectations and outlook, millennials were the first generation to fully experience and grow up with the rise of the internet and digital technology. While a decline in deference was well underway since the 1980s, it accelerated because consumers, employees, and citizens had unlimited access to information that was once controlled by a handful of experts and gatekeepers. Millennials are the first digital native generation but won’t be the last. How we communicate, access information, and become informed about what’s happening in our world is fundamentally different than older generations. When we ask Canadians in the surveys we conduct, to identify their top breaking news source, the generational gap is profound. Upwards of 40 to 50% of millennials say they rely on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for breaking news. That’s about 25 points higher than all other Canadians combined and almost 40 points higher than Boomers. Now that’s a generational divide!

Canadian millennials are more likely to have traveled to another part of the world by the time their 30 than older generations. Half say they don’t believe in a god or higher power and almost half of millennial men are the primary cooks in their household. More millennial women will get a post-secondary degree than millennial men, a sharp change from earlier generations. So, in response to my fellow panelist mentioned at the beginning of this article, do I think a generational lens is an appropriate tool to understand behaviours? My answer is obviously yes. These differences have an impact on our thinking and choices, controlling for milestones or individual circumstance there are differences that can only be explained by a generational lens. Generations are not all the same, from our family upbringing, to the societal, technological, and economic environments that we grew up in a generational lens is an essential tool in your kit of analysis that you can’t leave home without.

Identifying these differences and then making sense of them, is what our work is all about. A generational lens to your analysis provides deeper insight into what motivates cohorts at work, in the marketplace and at the ballot box.

Much of this data came from the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace.

Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

MediaPolls

What’s keeping Canadian millennials up at night?

Canadian Millennials have been coming of age in a rapidly evolving job market characterized by digitization, flexibility, and decentralization. More dynamic, but also less stable.

Gone are the days of long term, lifelong careers at big corporations with robust defined benefit pension plans. Enter the emergence of elastic, nimble, digitized companies with roles as flexible as they are precarious.

Along with the evolution of the marketplace comes greater accessibility to and expectations for higher education, which is in turn accompanied by greater post-secondary debt, and a mismatch between skills learned and skills sought by employers.

Couple this with an older generation of baby boomers sitting on a housing market that benefits existing homeowners and disadvantages new entrants, Millennials are coming of age operating in a new affordability paradigm. The protections and assumptions that educated baby boomer’s success and stability – go to school, get a job with benefits, start paying into a mortgage— and by extension what millennials were socialized to expect, are mismatched with present day realities when they enter the workforce.

These factors are a possible explanation for why there is a disconnect between an economy that Millennials acknowledge is healthy and growing, and tempered optimism when it comes to their feelings about their own personal future.

This finding comes from Abacus Data’s study of Canadian Millennials – Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadians born between 1980 and 2000 and raised around the turn of the millennium (4000 interviewed annually).

Among other things, our survey found:

70% of Millennial Canadians rate the economy as doing well, while only 16% describe themselves as very optimistic about their personal future (52% are at least mostly optimistic).

80% identify themselves as middle class, but only half or fewer have access to basic protections we associate with the security of a middle-class life: 55% have access to drug insurance, 53% to dental insurance, 36% to an RRSP, and only 29% to an employer provided pension plan.

While the share of pension plan and RRSP ownership may be expected to increase significantly with age, only 45% of Millennials over 30 have an RRSP and a mere 37% of this same group have a pension plan provided by an employer.

When asked what government could do to help them, Millennials are united in their clear desire for a solution to housing affordability. This is a big priority for Millennials regardless if they are living in suburban, urban, or rural Canada.  This priority breaks through the traditional “jobs” and “healthcare” preoccupation and is the focal point of Millennial discontent. In other words, this is a generation that is looking for relief on table stakes just like any other – fixing their unique economic pain points in their day to day lives, be it housing, cost of services covered by benefits plans, or making post-secondary education more affordable.

And they are looking to government to take big steps to fix their problems. This generation is more comfortable with big, interventionist government activism than allowing market forces to play their part, a reflection of how they feel this economic system fails to work for them.

Our study finds Millennials clearly prioritize spending over balanced budgets to tackle issues like alleviating income inequality. They believe corporations don’t pay their fair share of taxes and that government has a big role to play in redistributing that money.

Having lived through the 2008 Financial Crisis and a rise in housing costs, many are outright skeptical of the free market. When asked to indicate if they lean more towards one perspective or the other, only 46% suggested that capitalism is the best economic model we have, while 54% believe Canada would be better off with a more socialist system.

Housing affordability, cost of living, and an uncertain job market are the core worries of a generation that feel the current economic and political system leaves something to be desired. This feeling is so deeply held that upwards of one in three Millennials feel that their generation will not be better off than their parents’ generation. In particular, many Millennials believe their generation is more disadvantaged when it comes to attainable housing, retirement security, cost of living, and ease of finding employment, when they compare themselves to their parents’ generation.

While most Millennials want clear action on climate change, poverty alleviation, and more open immigration policies, micro-economic concerns reign supreme in their thinking and priorities, and these – like for generations past – will come first. Expect Millennials, now a major voting bloc to throw their considerable political weight around when looking to governments to solve these problems. The politics forged by their unique upbringing is ripe to disrupt the political assumptions of yesterday and change political norms that have for so long been catered to and shaped by baby boomers.

Media

China dolls, vodka bears, and grounded eagles: Shifting Canadian perspectives of foreign governments

In the latter part of 2017 we asked 2,000 Canadians their thoughts on several foreign governments. When we look at Canada’s wider community of friends there’s a constant narrative across generations. Both Boomers and Millennials agree that our post-war allies, like Japan and Mexico (who finished at the top of our list) are awesome. Honestly, what negative things can you say about the makers of Millennials two favourite things, avocados and shushi? And I mean have you been to Riviera Maya? And those Japanese Robots are really cool!

But in all seriousness, when we ask Canadians’ their awareness of the daily affairs in these particular countries we find that for most, they rarely enter their consciences. In lieu of consistent information, Canadians have founded their perceptions on what they infrequently see in the media and hear through their networks. So although Canadians might have positive perceptions of these countries we need to take that with a grain of salt.

But lets look at some of Canada’s historic allies and frenemies that have made regular appearances in the daily news cycle.

China: “Panda’s are cute and they made all my toys”

If we were to sum up Canadians’ thoughts on the Peoples’ Republic of China in one word that word would be, “wary”. By no means is the Peoples’ Republic near the top of the list. Looking at Canada as a whole, 52% of Canadians said that they have a “somewhat negative” impression of the Chinese government. However, when you look at the age breakdown we get a more interesting story. Over a third (36%) of Millennials have a very positive perception of the Chinese government while contrarily, only 9% of Boomers would say the same. Boomers are also more likely to have something negative to say about China than their Millennial offspring. There seems to be a generational pivot of perception here. Boomers who grew up thinking of the Chinese as the Red Menace Lite, to Millennials who think of it as the home of their childhood toys.

Russia: “A hungry bear that makes good Vodka”

Russia was the worst performer on our country government scale. Coming-in dead last with only 15% of the population having something nice to say about it, most Canadians have made up their minds on the Russian Federation. Nevertheless, when we broke-out the generational segments we were pretty surprised with what we found. Our young liberal Millennials were more likely than their Boomer parents to think positively of the Russian regime, 26% to 20% respectively. Now, overall both Millennials and Boomers really dislike the Russian government, especially Boomers. But we can see the differences between the Cold War generation and the Smirnoff generation. For Millennials their views on Russia can be summed up as, “Yeah Russia’s bad but they really haven’t done anything to me”.

United States: “Beware falling eagles”

This result may not surprise those of you glued to your televisions and computer screens watching the string of sensationally reported on crises that have followed the election of President Donald Trump. From trade wars to international security the historic American persona, as “defenders of the free world” has retreated to a distant persona non-grata in most conversations around the political dinning table. Only 19% of Canadians have something nice to say about the United States. And interestingly, that’s true even when we look across generations. Millennials don’t really know what to make of the US. Just as many approve of the United States government as disapprove. Boomers are much more vocal in their disapproval. Their narrative follows “This never would have happened under [insert Carter/Reagan]!” The American brand has definitely fallen from the days of the Reagan’s “Tear down this wall” speech. Due to a common language and geographical proximity Canadian Millennials interact with Americans more than any other nation. Part of the reason for their ambiguous response could be from the dualities they experience between what they see on their news feeds and their interactions with their American friends and family. Regardless of the reason we can say that the Millennial mind might not be as made up on the US government as we would suppose.

The Upshot

So what does all this mean? Millennials are less weary of nations that have traditionally been at odds with Canada (e.g. China and Russia). The United States government while generally disliked still has Millennials fickled. They’re open to liking the US government, but they have to have a reason to do so. Governments should also pay attention to the turning public opinion among Canada youngest voting demographic. Millennials will be more open to dialogue between countries like China and Russia and are less likely to see the necessity in maintaining preferential relationships with the United States.

The majority of this data came from the Canadian Millennials Report which is Canada’s largest reoccurring syndicated publication dedicated to understanding the views of Canadian Millennials. We survey 2,000 Millennials twice a year tracking their attitudes over time and their perceptions of current issues.

At Abacus Data we take understanding the next generation seriously. We are the only research and strategy firm that can help your business or organization respond to the unprecedented threat of generational change and technological disruption. If you want to know how your business or organization can succeed in the Millennial Marketplace Contact us to learn about our array of bespoke products and services that can make you an industry leader.

International Affairs

Leave a comment on China dolls, vodka bears, and grounded eagles: Shifting Canadian perspectives of foreign governments