A record 28,682 students are enrolled at Iowa State University this fall — up 2.6 percent from the previous record set a year ago. What’s even more impressive is the gains occurred in virtually every category: Undergraduate enrollment, international student enrollment, graduate student enrollment, a record number of transfer students and the most diverse student enrollment in the University’s history. And this year’s freshman class is the second largest ever at ISU.

All of this occurred in spite of a declining number of high schools students to draw from.

Lots of colleges and universities around the country are experiencing enrollment increases. The economy has played a big role. But for Iowa State, this year’s records are no anomoly. They continue a steady trend of enrollment increases that have been taking place during the past five years.   

We’re proud to have played a part in helping Iowa State achieve these milestones with campaigns that have invited teens to “Enjoy the Adventure at Iowa State.” These campaigns succeed year after year because they address teens’ anticipation that their college years will deliver the best experience of their lives, the chance to discover who they are and what they want to become, in an environment where they fit in.

One of the biggest factors impacting Millennials is the impact of a college education and financing that education.  Study after study shows that the college graduate is likely to make a million dollars more than the non-college graduate over the course of their lifetime.

Yet this economy has millennial graduates questioning the wisdom of their decision.  Jobs are scarce and student loan payments come due every month.  A COUNTRY Financial survey noted that 31 percent of Americans have borrowed money to finance their educations. Nearly two-thirds have paid off their obligation and only 16 percent said it had a significant impact on their decision making.

Forty percent of Millennials indicate that their student loans have a significant impact on their lives, a full 24 percent difference from the general population.  This differential is either an indication of the impact of the economy on Millennial mindsets, or an indication that pain mellows with time, or both.

Millennials have been described as the coddled, everyone gets a trophy generation and maybe some of that is true.  What certainly is not true, is that this generation is being welcomed into the workforce with open checkbooks.  The economic conditions may, in the end, be more formative on attitudes and work habits of Millennials than most other factors.

They have been forced to be thrifty and conservative with their dollars.  As a result, they may look more than most generations at the true value of the things they buy.  Cheap and good brands like Jimmy John’s and Chipotle Mexican Grill are well positioned to compete for the Millennial fast food dollar.

Cheap and good poses a wholly different challenge for higher education.   The four year university must build value in the four year experience to justify the cost.  It must realize that the college experience is much more than just going to Biology 101.  It is everything involved in helping a young Millennial grow into an adult with potential, dreams and ability.  The result of that experience is the reason students paint their bodies to cheer on their team.

Marketing to the Millennial generation may be as simple as helping them reach their goals through your products and services.  This is a generation that seems to be motivated by an inner conscience  that guides how they want to live their lives.

It occurs to us that many businesses could benefit by looking at their products in the light of the Millennial priorities pointed out in the Pew Research Center graph above.

The research suggests that being a good parent is a top priority.  This would suggest marketing products in a way that would help them feel that the purchase and use of the product in some way makes them a better parent.  Serving healthy food, investing for college, being earth friendly and being safety conscious are all part of being a good parent.

Products that save time or allow Millennials to spend more time with the family match their priorities as well.  If you can combine being a good parent with having more free time to have a successful marriage, you’ve rung their bell three times.

Millennials are often characterized as being coddled, soft and entitled.  And while it’s true that when they were ten and playing soccer they all got a trophy, their priorities suggest personal sacrifice and concern for the important things in life that many of us in the older generations often forget.  When “Helping others in need” is a high priority among the generation, it is very easy to see how a company with a good record of community support could find common ground with this valuable audience.

Whether it’s parenting, the digital world or the various crises that have happened in their lifetime, Millennials are one of the most interesting and compelling audiences for marketers.