Don’t miss what made news in the world of Millennials this week!
1. A Rift in the Oculus Acquisition
We told you that virtual reality and “gamified neuroscience” was one of the big trends out of SXSW, so don’t miss news that Facebook has acquired VR start-up Oculus for a cool $2 billion. But the Oculus community is up in arms and has reason to feel slighted—the project was initially funded through Kickstarter by independent gamers and developers who are not thrilled that their money is going to a corporate giant.
2. Apple’s Fall in the Tech Rankings
When it comes to brand trust, many Millennials have polarizing views about the top tech companies. Though Apple was named the most trusted brand by Millennials, it was also the least trusted—so don’t miss its major decline in reputation, ranked 5th for brand preference behind Samsung, Sony, Microsoft, and HP. Apple’s drop in brand preference was especially apparent among “the younger demographic” who commends companies that innovate with entirely new product categories.
3. Break Me Off a Piece of Lego
Our Essentials highlighted the aspiring ad agency intern who cleverly submitted her resume in Lego form, so we don’t want you to miss the latest ode to the brand—a giant set of Lego chocolate bars from Kit Kat. Each bar houses a secret compartment with new pieces and figurines. Though the set is just a photo gallery at the moment, sources claim that Kit Kat plans to sell them in stores eventually.
4. Teens Ditching Malls for Mobile
This month’s Teen Mag Roundup featured apps like Shopkick that pays teens money just for walking through the doors of a mall store, but desperate retail tactics aren’t a match for mobile Millennials. Don’t miss the growing shift towards online shopping now anchored by standout online retailers like Shopbop and Revolve that offer consumers “higher brow” fashions. Flash sale e-commerce site JackThreads relies on mobile business and uses virtual to its advantage with female stylist “Jill” on-call to cater to its distinct Millennial male demographic.
5. Peeping Insta-Tom
So much passes through the internet daily that it’s becoming more difficult for Millennials to believe everything they see and keep up with every photo/video/article update. For those who are feeling extreme FOMO (fear of missing out) don’t miss a new mechanism called Instant Peeping that lets you view Instagram photo posts in realtime across five major cities. The constant stream of posts gives insight into the sentiment of city-goers at any given moment and could be used as a tool to track what’s happening at live events.
