Great signs ahead — the arrival of a new (and ageless) generation.
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We’ve all heard of Generation X, Y, the Millennials and the Baby Boomers. Which group you belong to does, of course, depend on the period in which you were born.

And each group has distinct characteristics — characteristics that the academics study and characteristics that the marketers embrace as they ‘target’ their products and services at particular groups.

But now a new group has emerged. It’s been given the tag of ‘Generation G’. Most significantly, Generation G is ageless — it is, if you will, a group that embraces each one of us.

Its bred – a new consumer, customer and client. It is, in fact, a movement; a movement unlike anything I’ve ever seen in a lifetime spent building great businesses and showing others how to do that.

And as the trend-watching experts at trendwatching.com pointed out, the G in Generation G doesn’t stand for ‘Greed’ — it stands for ‘Generosity’.

It shows itself in several ways, most notably in a huge surge in people volunteering and a significant ‘wave’ of people re-connecting with a basic human happiness trait — giving. And that in turn is deeply linked to finding a sense of purpose.

As someone put it recently, “Members of Generation Y are the first people to be born with everything, only to discover that they actually have nothing.”

And at the other end of the scale we have the Baby Boomers who’ve worked and worked in what was the ‘greed’ generation only to find that the money they earned bought them ‘stuff’ — stuff which when they looked around, had little or no meaning. So they too have become members of Generation G. They too had something missing in their lives.

And it’s not just that people are more giving, it’s that they want to connect with companies whom they feel really ‘get it’ too — companies who make a difference, companies who give back.

Authors John Gerzema and Michael D’Antonio put it wonderfully in their new book ‘Spend Thrift’ published by Jossey-Bass. “….the future face of capitalism”, they say, “will be defined by delivering value and values.”

And studies in 2010 such as the Edelman Good Purpose study quote some fascinating numbers:

• Social purpose (at 47%) ranks higher as a purchase motivator than brand loyalty (27%) and design and innovation (26%).

• If a brand of similar quality supports a good cause, 75% of consumers claim they would buy it and 76% claim they would recommend and share positive experiences about such a brand.
• Sixty-two% of U.S. consumers say they would also switch brands if a brand of similar quality supported a good cause.
• U.S. consumers’ willingness to actually promote a brand that supports a good cause jumped 19% from 2008 (47%) to 2010 (66%).

But don’t think for one minute that these are simply US trends. They’re not. Consider:

• The new British Government launched its ‘Big Society’ initiative and as recently as 29 December 2010, Ministers were suggesting that people could give to charity every time they use bankcards in shops or at cash machines. The Government even is working on a new plan to prompt people to give money when they fill in tax returns, or apply for passports and driving licences, according to proposals.

• India’s Parliament introduced a Bill to require largest companies to donate 2% of their net profits to CSR activities.
• 8 in 10 consumers in the India, China, Mexico and Brazil expect brands to donate a portion of their profits to support a good cause.
• Globally 71% believe brands and consumers could do more to support good causes by working together.
• And globally again 63% want brands to make it easier for them to make a positive difference.

The authors of the Edleman study were, in effect, awed by the numbers. So much so that they now suggest that it adds a new P to the traditional 4 P’s of marketing (Product, Price, Place, Promotion). And the new P is, of course, PURPOSE.

Once you get that right, everything falls into place. You connect not only with yourself, but also with your team and your marketplace — effectively you become part of Generation G. It’s knowing (and articulating) what gets you up in the morning. Stay tuned…

ABOUT THE COLUMNIST

Paul Dunn is now known worldwide as the ‘Wizard of WOW’. He’s a best-selling author, a creator of successful international businesses and his audio and video programs are now in use by over 156,000 businesses around the world. He is passionate about giving back to Social Causes to increase the level of joy in our world. He serves as Chairman of the revolutionary Buy1GIVE1 (www.b1g1.com). He gets up every morning to, as he puts it, ‘give businesses the power to change our lives.’

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