Teens & young adults spread the Word.

Want to promote something? Enlist a Millennial.

Call them Gen Y or Millennials or just “people ages 13-24.” Whatever the name, this group spreads the word quickly on things it likes and enjoys user-generated content, according to the “State of the Media Democracy” report commissioned by Deloitte & Touche and conducted by Harrison Group.

Gen Y’s word-of-mouth aptitude comes partly from large lists of people to whom they send instant messages and text messages. Millennials averaged 37 people on their lists, compared with an average of 17 among people of all ages.

When members of the Millennial group found a worthy TV show or Web site, they told an average of 18 people, compared to only 10 people for all age groups. In fact, word-of-mouth was the main reason Millennials visited Web sites, followed by TV ads.

“Young people have always turned to their friends for the scoop on what’s cool and new,” said eMarketer Senior Analyst Debra Aho Williamson. “That part of the word-of-mouth equation isn’t new. But this generation is also completely comfortable using the Web to spread the word, and marketers need to understand that.”

So what are Millennials doing online?

More than any other age group, Millennials spent time online searching for and downloading music. More than half of Millennials also consumed user-generated content online, and visited online gaming and TV sites.

Select Weekly Online Activities* of US Internet Users, by Age, February-March 2007 (% of respondents in each group)

The pursuit of user-generated content sets Gen Y apart. They were more likely than other age groups to spend time on user-generated sites than company-generated Web sites.

Percent of Time Spent Online at User-Generated Sites vs. Company-Generated Sites according to US Internet Users, by Age, February-March 2007

However, Gen Y’s word-of-mouth aptitude belies its actual advertising preferences, at least among teens.

A May 2006 Harris Interactive study that surveyed teens up to the age of 18 found that they preferred known and proven types of product placement over viral marketing.

Some tactics drew a decidedly negative response, with 45% of 13-to-18-year-olds disliking the idea of getting someone to mention a product in online chat sessions and 44% opposing giving free products to popular kids.

Attitudes of US Internet Users Ages 8-18 toward Advertising Tactics, May 2006 (% of respondents)

Courtesy of http://www.emarketer.com