November 21, 2008, 11:27 AM — Kudos to Martha Young and her story Leadership – The Millennials Impact on Business. As a parent of two Millennials myself, let me add one note to Martha's story about business impact. Many Millennials assume everything they use comes on a subscription model, and they'll carry that “lease rather than own†idea forward as they go into the workforce.
Phone service, which means cells only to them, focus on the service at $XX per month rather than the physical phone, which can be upgraded every two years. Internet access: paid per month. Music download services: paid per month. Radio, with Sirius/XM: per month. Those Millennials out of college now have yet to buy homes, so they live in apartments paid for by the month and changed every year.
One of the big reasons for the sub-prime real estate shenanigans was the push to create an “ownership society†and put people into homes with mortgages. This current housing hole will do little or nothing to create a positive image of home ownership for Millennials old enough to start thinking about buying. Why buy a home when it gives you so much pain? Use your subscription phone service to find your next subscription apartment and drive there in your subscription leased car.
Save your computer files on a subscription backup service, arrange your social life on subscription Facebook, your business life on subscription LinkedIn, and your dating life on subscription eHarmony. Where's the love ownership? Find someone you like? Move in together, the subscription model, rather than get married.
If your business caters to younger customers, the Millennials, think service subscriptions rather than sales. The upcoming generation seems far more used to dollars per month for everything than ownership.
