Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Overview
- The issues
- Debt is the most pressing financial concern consumers face
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- Figure 1: Attitudes toward personal finance, by generation, April 2018
- Lack of financial confidence is a serious issue, especially among women
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- Figure 2: Financial preferences, by age and gender, April 2018
- Consumers are not terribly responsive to brands’ marketing channels
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- Figure 3: Response to financial advertising, April 2018
- The opportunities
- Young affluent consumers are mobile-ready
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- Figure 4: Financial attitudes, banking on mobile devices, by age and income, April 2018
- Most consumers worry about having enough money to retire
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- Figure 5: Financial attitudes, concerns about retirement, by age, April 2018
- Social causes are an important loyalty driver
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- Figure 6: Financial attitudes, importance of supporting causes, by age, April 2018
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- An aging America
- Consumers are waiting longer to marry and have children
- Americans hold a staggering amount of debt
- Home ownership rate on the rise for the first time in 13 years
Market Breakdown
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- An aging America
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- Figure 7: US population, by age, 2015, 2020, 2025
- Figure 8: Number of births (in millions) by year
Market Factors
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- Consumer debt is at an all-time high, potentially delaying traditional lifestage progression
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- Figure 9: Household debt and credit developments, Q1 2018
- Figure 10: Outstanding consumer credit, revolving and nonrevolving, 1985-2018
- Debt is both pervasive and stressful
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- Figure 11: Debt as a source of stress, by age, August 2017
- Men and women are both marrying later
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- Figure 12: Median age at first marriage, by gender, 2006-16
- Consumers are delaying having children
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- Figure 13: Birthrates by age of mother, 1940-2015
- Fertility and birthrates are in steady decline
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- Figure 14: Annual births and general fertility rate, 2006-16
- Millennials spur uptick in homeownership, but rates are still low
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- Figure 15: Home ownership rate for the US (not seasonally adjusted), January 2007-October 2017
- Figure 16: Home ownership rate, by age, 2007 versus 2017
- Unemployment continues to drop, as gig economy changes perception of work and retirement
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- Figure 17: Unemployment and underemployment, January 2007-January 2018
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Consumers are taking more control over their own finances
- Many consumers do not prioritize saving for the future
- Hyper-personalized digital products make consumers’ lives easier
What’s Working?
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- DIY Financial Wellness
- Mint
- Passive investment revolution places consumers in control
- Robinhood brings free stock-picking and cryptocurrency trading to the masses
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- Figure 18: Robinhood email campaign, May 2018
- Financial brands offer added value in innovative ways
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- Figure 19: Chase email campaign, May 2018
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- Figure 20: Sofi direct mail campaign, May 2018
- Personal loans surge in popularity to combat mounting debt load
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- Figure 21: Personal lending direct mail volume, Q2 2016-Q1 2018
- Figure 22: LendingClub direct mail campaign, June 2017
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- Figure 23: Marcus by Goldman Sachs direct mail campaign, February 2018
What’s Struggling?
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- Many consumers do not prioritize saving for the future
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- Figure 24: Financial goals, by age, April 2018
- Consumers continue to rely on friends/family for financial knowledge
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- Figure 25: Sources of financial information, April 2018
- Consumers are not following industry’s marketing channels
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- Figure 26: Response to financial advertising, April 2018
What’s Next?
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- Student loan repayment as a job perk
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- Figure 27: Fidelity email campaign, August 2017
- Hyper-personalized digital products make consumers’ lives easier
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- Figure 28: PNC email campaign, March 2018
- Marketers set their sights on the iGeneration
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- Figure 29: Plans for the future, tween/teen iGens, March 2017
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Debt is the most pressing issue overall
- Most consumers, particularly women, lack financial confidence
- Consumers are worried about retirement but not seeking help from advisors
- Parents are more interested and responsive to financial marketing
- Young affluent consumers think and behave differently
- Social causes are an important factor for all consumers
Key Financial Goals
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- Debt reduction and elimination are the top priorities
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- Figure 30: Attitudes toward personal finance, by generation, April 2018
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- Figure 31: Credit card behavior, by generation, May 2018
- Short-term financial goals
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- Figure 32: Short-term financial goals, April 2018
- Student loan debt: a Millennial issue
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- Figure 33: Millennial financial goals regarding student loan debt, April 2018
- Consumers’ short-term goals center on escaping debt
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- Figure 34: Short-term financial goals, by generation, April 2018
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- Figure 35: Change in financial situation over the next year, by generation, February 2018
- Medium-term financial goals focus on paying off student loans and saving for the future
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- Figure 36: Medium-term financial goals, April 2018
- Medium-term goals are centered on saving for the future
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- Figure 37: Medium-term financial goals, by generation, April 2018
- Long-term financial goals
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- Figure 38: Long-term financial goals, April 2018
- Saving for retirement, children’s education, and buying a home are consumers’ key long-term goals
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- Figure 39: Long-term financial goals, by generation, April 2018
- Home-buyers place more emphasis on short-term goals
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- Figure 40: Short-term financial goals, Short-term home-buyers vs all consumers, April 2018
- Parents have their sights set on home ownership
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- Figure 41: Home buying as a financial goal, by Millennial and parental status, April 2018
Sources of Financial Information
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- Consumers continue to rely on friends and family for financial knowledge
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- Figure 42: Sources of financial information, April 2018
- Advice from friends/family is inversely correlated with professional guidance
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- Figure 43: Sources of financial information, by age, April 2018
- Income is a meaningful predictor of financial advisor utilization
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- Figure 44: Sources of financial information, by age and income, April 2018
- Young men are the most interested in podcasts
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- Figure 45: Sources of financial information, by age and gender, April 2018
- Those planning to purchase a home relied more on TV and the internet
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- Figure 46: Sources of financial information, short-term home-buyers vs all consumers, April 2018
- Dads are the most receptive to direct mail
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- Figure 47: Sources of financial information, by parental status and gender, April 2018
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- Figure 48: KeyBank direct mail campaign, February 2018
- Figure 49: American Family direct mail campaign, August 2017
Response to Financial Advertising
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- Consumers are not heavily utilizing industry’s marketing channels
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- Figure 50: Response to financial advertising, April 2018
- Home-buyers engage in more financial activities
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- Figure 51: Response to financial advertising, short-term home-buyers vs all consumers, April 2018
- Parents are marketers’ most responsive targets
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- Figure 52: Response to financial advertising, by parental status, April 2018
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- Figure 53: Response to financial advertising, by parental status, April 2018
Financial Preferences
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- Social causes are an important loyalty driver
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- Figure 54: Financial attitudes, importance of supporting causes, by age, April 2018
- Young affluent consumers are mobile-ready
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- Figure 55: Financial attitudes, banking on mobile devices, by age and income, April 2018
- Age and income are both determinants of digital adoption
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- Figure 56: Financial preferences, by age and income, April 2018
- Home-buyers prefer to have all financial accounts at a single institution
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- Figure 57: Financial preferences, by age and home-buying as a short-term goal, April 2018
Financial Planning
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- Lack of financial confidence is a serious issue, especially among women
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- Figure 58: Financial preferences, by age and gender, April 2018
- Most consumers trust brands to help them reach their goals
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- Figure 59: Financial attitudes, trust in financial companies to help reach goals, by age and income, April 2018
- Most consumers worry about having enough money to retire
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- Figure 60: Financial attitudes, concerns about retirement, by age, April 2018
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- Figure 61: Ameriprise Financial direct mail campaign, February 2018
- Only a quarter of consumers plan to seek professional retirement advice
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- Figure 62: Financial behaviors, use of a financial advisor for retirement, by age and income, April 2018
- Young affluent consumers feel investing is key to financial security
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- Figure 63: Financial attitudes, concerns about retirement, by age and income, April 2018
Financial Habits and Attitudes
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- Financial security is a concern for all ages
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- Figure 64: Financial attitudes, importance of financial security, by age, April 2018
- Younger consumers look beyond traditional financial models
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- Figure 65: Financial habits and behaviors, by generation, April 2018
- Consumers behave more responsibly at different lifestages
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- Figure 66: Financial habits and behaviors, by major life changes in next year, March 2018
- Soon-to-be married consumers have less financial confidence
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- Figure 67: Self-assessed personal finance grade, by major life changes in next year, March 2018
- Having children has a big influence on consumers
- Family and children are the primary motivators to buy life insurance
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- Figure 68: Reasons to purchase life insurance, provide for family, October 2016
- Figure 69: Gerber life direct mail campaign, December 2017
- Welcoming a new driver to the family
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- Figure 70: AAA email campaign, November 2017
- Figure 71: State Farm direct mail campaign, September 2016
- Figure 72: USAA email, July 2016
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Direct marketing creative
- Terms
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