At 80 million Americans and over a trillion dollars of disposable income, millennials are the largest demographic in the U.S. You may say it’s important to understand how to market to them!
Millennials are the digital age – They lived in the birth of the internet, cell phones and social media. They’ve also been surrounded by advertisements their entire lives, learning to tune out interruptive messages. They conduct a good deal of online research and talk to their peers before making a purchase decision.
What can this information tell us about marketing to this generation and how can you stand out to a group that every marketer is trying to engage? Let’s dive into the fundamentals of Millennial marketing.
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1) Millenials are Mobile Men and Women
It seems that everywhere you turn – on the street, at the dinner table or in the car (please drive safely) – everyone is on their phone. Millenials are most glued to their phones, getting their information from their mobile devices more often than they do on desktop computers. What does this mean for your business?
It might seem like common sense, but many companies fail to design their websites for mobile. A mobile-friendly website – one that’s intuitive and easy to navigate with your fingers – is even a factor in determining your SEO ranking. If millennials navigate to your site, you have to capture their relatively short attention spans. The second users encounter difficulty finding the information they’re looking for, they’re going to click away.
Of course, social platforms dominate mobile use, so make sure that you’re active on relevant social networks. You want to provide millennials a way to connect with you on a deeper level. You shouldn’t use social platforms to sell. Leverage social media to invite interaction, whether using fun and informative Facebook live videos, Instagram stories or posts that ask your audience important, conversation-starting questions.
2) Millenials Hate the Hard Sell
Speaking of selling, only 6% of millennials consider online advertisements to be credible. Trust is everything to the modern consumer, and a brand has to develop it before someone considers spending money. Before trying to sell a prospect, you should provide them educational resources – a fundamental of inbound marketing. Sharing helpful information helps you build trust and positions you as a thought leader.
Providing informative content also aligns with the millennial’s desire to conduct research before making a purchase. These prospects want to make informed decisions, knowing all of the options at their disposal. If you can provide them with unbiased resources that help them ultimately make a decision, you will become a natural consideration.
This information doesn’t always have to come directly from you, either. Influencers are an incredible tool in the digital age – people with significant followers who have earned the respect of their peers. There are many influencers who test and review products. There are many more creative avenues to engage your target audience, but you must make sure you’re not overselling.
3) Get in Front of Them Where They’re Least Expecting it
Because millennials are inundated with advertisements, expecting to see them at every turn, they’re conditioned to tune out anything that feels disruptive.
Many marketers spend use their budgets on channels they know millennials spend their time on, but this is the cause of oversaturation. Thinking outside of the box can be the key to getting in front of millennials. In fact, the one medium millennials are not bombarded in is direct mail.
The surge of digital marketing spending has left offline channels ripe for engagement. Without the clutter of online sources (and the ability to scroll past a physical piece of content), direct mail influences 92% of millennials to make an eventual purchase. With an educational focus, direct mail can be a integral component of an omni-channel campaign that captures millennials’ attention and develops their trust.
4) Be, Like...Human: Authenticity and Personalization
Authenticity is important to millennials – They know if you’re not being authentic. A great way to showcase your authenticity is through storytelling. Let your prospects learn about your team and their stories. Use storytelling to relay how customers use your product or service. The human element is the basis for creating connections.
Along those lines, millennials expect personalization, too. If information isn’t tailored to their interests or needs, they won’t have much interest. This generation especially is used to seeing their name in brand messaging (at the very least). It’s as important as ever that you don’t waste your resources on blanketed marketing messages. Consumers want to feel like a market of one, and if they don’t, you’ll be hard pressed to capture their attention.
5) Take a Stand and Shout It From the Rooftops
Speaking of authenticity, millennials connect even more with companies that are vocal and active about social and political issues as they are. Discussing important issues will help you build more loyalty with millennials who are also passionate about their views. These issues must be relevant with your brand and business, however. Millenials can see right through activism for the sake of engagement itself.
According to the Cone Millennial Cause study, after learning that a company is socially and/or environmentally responsible, consumers are:
- 83% likely to trust the company more
- 79% likely to purchase that company’s products
- 44% likely to actively pursue working at that company
- 74% likely to pay attention to that company’s message
Put Your Knowledge to Use
You might work for company whose target audience doesn’t yet include the millennial generation, but they’re coming. It’s important that from the outset, you understand how millennials consume information, navigate the buyer’s journey and make purchase decisions. By leveraging this knowledge, you can better attract your prospects, build trust, create deeper connections and guide them to their best decision.
As discussed direct mail can help you achieve all of the above, but video is another medium with significant potential. If you can bring personalization into this visual engagement, you can communicate extremely engaging and effective brand stories.
Click below to learn all about personalized video and download your copy of The All-Encompassing Guide to Crushing Personalized Video.
