Chevy Designs On-The-Go Office for the On-The-Go Generation

As Millennials come of age and enter the workforce and consumer marketplace as full-fledged, money-wielding adults, companies are left to piece together some semblance of a strategy to appeal to the masses. The bizarre deviation from tradition that Millennials have taken is throwing many for a loop, but companies like Chevrolet have tried to embrace the shift and adjust their marketing tactics accordingly. Cue the new 2018 Chevy Trax, whose design features play right into the always-on-the-move characteristics of the attention-deficit generation.

With enough features to make you never want to leave your car (and, let’s face it, it feels like some of us never do), Chevrolet is turning towards the future of vehicle innovation and design in the hopes of cornering the market on the next wave of consumers.

Gen Next

At more than 80 million strong, Millennials now make up the largest generation in America at a whopping 25 percent, surpassing that of the Baby Boomers who weigh in at just over 75 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Millennials are also more diverse than the generations before them, both in demographic and in preference.

Millennials are the generation everyone loves to hate. Over the past few decades, they’ve earned a bad reputation for being entitled, spoiled, social-media obsessed, lazy punks, among a long list of other not-so-endearing qualities. But, as cliché as it sounds, they are more misunderstood than they are tragic.

Greatist founder and CEO Derek Flanzraich says, “Millennials are a generation that is very much about owning and controlling their destiny in a way that other generations haven’t been,” and despite the perception that the idea of human connection has been lost on this generation, survey results indicate that it is, in fact, alive and well and more important than ever. What has shifted is the “idea that happiness is the outcome as opposed to wealth,” says Flanzraich, which is vastly different from previous generations. “[Millennials] define success in a different way,” and in doing so, are veering away from traditional lines or work and demolishing established ideologies.

Embracing this shift, Chevrolet partnered with the National Millennial Community, whose aim is to change the conversation and reverse the stereotypes surrounding Americas largest generation. Chevy extended an invitation to a group of young innovators from the Community to participate in a think-tank on wheels. Small groups explored the city in a new Chevy Trax while engaging in conversations about networking, developing a personal brand, entrepreneurship, and navigating the job market.

A Vehicle for Change

The 2018 release of the Chevy Trax was designed to serve as a mobile office centered around the concept of a collaborative workspace. The vehicle comes equipped with built-in 4G LTE WiFi that can sync up to seven devices, so there’s more than enough connectivity to go around. It also sports full mobile integration with Android Auto for native navigation and Apple CarPlay for Bluetooth music streaming. The Chevy Trax even includes features such as a printer and coffee machine, and flat work desk, all powered by a 12-volt outlet in the back seat. With a changing workforce culture pushing more and more people, millennials especially, into working well beyond normal office hours and, more often than not, from their mobile devices as opposed to a desk, an environment that can accommodate those needs has become more important than ever.

Beyond the technology built into the very essence of the car, it offers eight different seating configurations and more storage space and versatility than you’ll know what to do with. Surrounded by ten standard airbags and a high-strength steel safety cage, Trax’s active safety features are devised to keep you and your passengers safe.

With an impressive EPA-estimated 25 MPG city and 33 MPG highway rating and a distinctive exterior sure to stand out, Chevy Trax makes a statement wherever it goes.

Trax Gains Traction with Millennials

Trax signals Chevy’s shift away from the traditional design focus of capturing consumer attention simply based on aesthetics and affordability. Instead, taking stock of a generation of hustlers with an eye for the utilitarian, Chevrolet is investing in more functional vehicles that cater to the on-the-go generation. They are also focusing on strategic partnerships with organizations like the National Millennial Community with aspirations to trigger a change in the way vehicles are designed and marketed to Millennials.

Compared to their parents, millennials’ spending habits are perhaps a bit sporadic and their saving habits are atrocious. Millennials concern themselves with experiential expenditures over blowing money on “stuff,” therefore, in order to appeal to them, companies need to devise products, like the Chevy Trax, that feel like experiences. In addition, it is now possible to shop, not only across brands in one location but across hundreds of brands across the country simply with the click of a button. The online generation has taken to the internet for their car-buying needs, and it is serving them well.

The sheer size of the millennial generation makes them a force to be reckoned with. The collective buying power of more than 80 million people is a burgeoning market ripe for the taking, and with so many discounting millennials as overindulgent, those that embrace the generation and peddle their wares according to their needs are sure to reap the benefits.