We have all heard of hand-me-downs... Don't you remember when you finally got the chance to nab your big brother's awesome leather jacket or that dreaded moment when mom approached you with your older sister's totally-not-cool polka-dotted sweater?
But have you heard about the hand-me-ups?
In today's tech-driven world, it is no surprise that our tech-driven Millennials are intent on getting their hands on the most up-to-date pieces of technology -- whether it be one of the new Ultrabooks like Dell's XPS 13, new Skull Candy headphones or the latest Nook.
But then you might wonder what happens to the other pair of headphones and the other laptop.
Well right now, we at Buzz Marketing Group have noticed that these gadgets are being handed up to Mom and Dad, thus bringing about the current hand-me-up trend.*
Millennials are often enticed by constant updates and continual upgrades, but they seem to remain wary about the value of each and every purchase that they make. So despite their need to buy the newest gadget, Generation Y is not interested in throwing away or stowing away the older laptops, phones, and other devices. Instead, these things are instead handed up to older members of the family.
You see -- parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles are not necessarily as interested in getting their hands on the new-fangled stuff. Rather, they seem to be quite content to make use of the hand-me-ups, because these gadgets are still fully functional and extremely useful!
So what does this mean, exactly?
Well, first of all, the hand-me-up trend implies that the older generation is actually being exposed to newer technology faster than we had previously believed. They might not be as updated as the millennials (of course), but tech-saviness is definitely being facilitated amongst Generation X and beyond!
Also, we must keep in mind that many pieces of technology are going to be bought by the millennial generation but might very well end up in the hands of members of an older generation.
The bottom line: We all know that technology has been changing shape and changing size, but now we see it changing hands as well!
*The "hand-me-up" trend was listed as the #5 trend in Buzz Marketing Group's "Top 10 Trends of 2012" report. The "Top 10" report is a list complied by BuzzMG CEO Tina Wells and is based on a host of surveys, immersion experiences, and personal interviews with the buzzSpotter network, which currently consists of 9000 individuals from across the country.