Echo Boomers In Canada

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Nearly one-third (Statistics Canada, 2004) of Canada's population consists of people between the ages of 13 and 24 – these so-called “Echo Boomers” are the children of the Baby Boomers. Echo Boomers are having a profound effect on the nature of Canadian society. In this research paper I will examine this effect by focusing on: how this group's attitudes and values are affecting everyone's technological habits from the internet to cell phones; how the tastes of this generation are affecting the fashion industry; and how the purchasing power of this segment of the population is creating a revolution in manufactures' marketing strategies through product placement.
Echo Boomers are driving the information technology craze. For example, in Canada,
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For example, Echo Boomers in Canada spend an average of $6 billion a year on clothes (Statistics Canada, 2003). Not surprisingly, jeans are still a hot item among this generation - especially the females; and, "The young consumer will spend more for a fashion silhouette just because she wants the newest and the best" (Canadian Consumer Reports, 2004, p. 17). According to one young consumer, "I try on a lot of different pairs of jeans before I decide because it’s hard to find the right fit, but price doesn’t really enter into my decision at all. I have eleven pairs, and I just keep buying more" (Patterson, 2004). Consequently, jean manufacturers are always re-inventing the stylistic, denim wheel, in order to create the latest craze, and cash in on the Echo Boomer's spending bonanza (2004). In summary, many Echo Boomers are constantly spending so that they have the latest and hottest …show more content…
Echo Boomers are not as easily reached by traditional advertising as their Baby Boomer parents: they spend less time listening to commercial radio, prefer the internet to television, and watch music videos - not commercials (Sharpe, 2004). Consequently, Echo Boomers are more readily reached by adroit product placement (CBC, 2004). For example, rap song lyrics and music videos now feature a variety of products, in particular, Buster Rhymes lyrics of Pass the Courvoisier and accompanying music video featuring P. Diddy, catapulted sales of Courvoisier - an ailing French cognac maker - to number one: the chief purchasers of Courvoisier in 2002 were 20-22-year-old Echo Boomers (2004). Therefore, retailers, interested in making sales to Echo Boomers, learned a big lesson from Courvoisier's successful marketing campaign, and product placement has become a chief tool for producers interested in sales to this new