The millennial generation is the generation of children born between 1980 and 2000; being a millennial myself I can understand just why it’s so important to reach out to this generation. This blog will explore some of the reasons why Millenial’s should be at the top of the list for marketers trying to promote their brand/product.
- Know who they are
It could be assumed that the Millinial’s are young teenagers/adults that are still dependent on their families or still living at home, nevertheless, little do they know that Millenial’s are currently aged 19-36. More than half are married, and half have children (Forbes, 2014), meaning that they have adult priorities and have more disposable income than many companies would think. The hefty size of them and their buying power makes them extremely attractive for companies. Research shows that half of all spending is a result of purchases made by Millennial’s (Marketing Breakthroughs Inc, 2008).
- Understand their values
Research done by Goldman Sachs (2015) shows that Millennial’s are dedicated to ‘wellness, devoting time and money to exercising and eating right’, along with ‘happiness, transparency, sharing and discovery’ within the workplace. Social media plays a very important role in Millennial’s lives as they value the role it plays in their community so much. When comparing them to the recent generations, the table below shows that Millennial’s value society and family more.
Source: Source: Monitoring the Future, 1976-2011; CEA calculations.
According to the study from Cone Communications Social Impact Study of 1,200+ U.S. adults, 89% of Millennial’s said that they would buy from companies that supported solutions to specific social issues.
- Know how to connect with them
Studies by Noise: The Intelligence Group shows that socially conscious brands tend to be three times more popular amongst Millenniall’s than luxury brands. The Millennial’s crave for a closer relationship with brands and the only way this can be the case is if brands get personal with them. This needs to be done through social media as studies show that 65% of Millennial’s in the US use their phone for social media and 57% in the UK constantly check their social networking sites to see if its updated. This shows that companies need to attract their millennial target audience by reaching out to them in a personal way over social media. According to Keller (2007) Word of Mouth has become the most influential marketing channel for millennial’s as they trust the thoughts and feelings of their peers so much. To them, WOM is more credible than advertising as it is perceived as having passed through the evolution of ‘people like me’ (Allsop, et al., 2007).
- Remember, they are digital natives!
Studies show that the Millennial’s are the first generation of digital natives and their knowledge of technology helps shape the way they shop. They are accustomed to instant access, price comparisons and peer reviews, which companies such as ASOS have mastered, with their graphics and products, which are aimed mainly at young adults.
References:
Allsop, D.T., Bassett, B.R. and Hoskins, J.A. (2007), “Wordof-mouth research: principles and applications”, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 398-411.
Keller, E. (2007), “Unleashing the power of word of mouth: creating brand advocacy to drive growth”, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 47, pp. 448-52.
Marketing Breakthroughs Inc (2008), “Five tips on successfully advertising to Gen-Y”, Marketing Breakthroughs Inc., November, available at: www.mar ketingbreakthroughs.com (accessed 28th April, 2016).
Spenner, P. (2014). Inside the Millennial Mind: The Do’s & Don’ts of Marketing to this Powerful Generation. Available: http://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickspenner/2014/04/16/inside-the-millennial-mind-the-dos-donts-of-marketing-to-this-powerful-generation-3/#4a1d90f371bd. Last accessed 29th April 2016.
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