• by Val Brickates Kennedy , March 19, 2014

Looks like Millennials have something in common with old folks.

A new study released by SDL's Wakefield, Mass., office found that the top two reasons why Millennials connect with brands through social media were to get discounts and free stuff.

SDL said that of the 300 Millennials surveyed, 62% said they interacted with brands on social media to get discounts rather than any "news" about a product. And fifty-six percent said they interacted to get freebies. 

But they're also skeptical, the survey found. Two out of three of the respondents said they had "little or no confidence that companies can market to them effectively." However, 54% said they would be willing to divulge more information about themselves if they got a better "experience" in return.

SDL took that to mean that companies shouldn't "abuse" the data they collect on customers, but instead use it to "build trust and relevancy."

And who, exactly, is a Millennial?

For the survey, SDL defined them as people born between 1978 and 1996, which would be about a quarter of the U.S. population. Where Generation X now fits into the scheme of things is unclear, given that the term "Baby Boomer" has been increasingly used to describe people born well into the 1960s.