The ultimate guide to marketing to millennials
WHO ARE MILLENNIALS?
Millennials are generally considered to be those born between 1981 and 1996. Often mocked through stereotypes like being selfish, having a sense of entitlement while also needing approval, they now make up the majority of the workforce.
WHY ARE MILLENNIALS VALUABLE?
Given their sheer size alone, this group of people is incredibly valuable to businesses and should be considered in marketing strategies.
They make up the majority of the spending power given their numbers. Now more than ever, they are selective as to who they will give their hard-earned cash to. With salaries plateauing and living costs rising, all generations have much less disposable income than in previous years. And so, targeted marketing is more crucial than ever, in order for brands and businesses to be in with a chance of receiving a healthy share.
MILLENNIALS ARE SOCIAL
Unsurprisingly, they are a social generation, spending hours online across various channels and platforms. With twice as many millennials on Facebook than Baby Boomers, millennials are very present across a whole host of social platforms.
If a brand or business is not already on social, then now is the time to do it. Selecting the right channel for your brand to reach millennials is crucial. But, luckily for marketers, millennials are the most active across the widest range of social channels compared to other generations.
MILLENNIALS ARE MOBILE
The Instagram app hit 1 billion downloads back in 2017, showing the power of the app store with a whole host of companies creating online apps for customers to get loyalty points and rewards.
Being present on mobile, whether through an app, social media, or even just ensuring your website is mobile-ready is vital for success when marketing to this generation.
MILLENNIALS ARE MONEY-SAVING
Although they are now starting to get onto the property ladder, lots of millennials are locked out of home ownership and left renting. From a business perspective, this means they generally have much less disposable income given that they are spending money on renting and likely also saving for a house deposit on the side. In many cases – the largest generation to ever attend university – they are also drowning in tuition loans.
This means that the millennial is much savvier when it comes to finances than other generations. They are always looking for a great deal and would rather put more effort into finding a lower-cost product or service than paying more for it to be done for them.
MILLENNIALS DO NOT TRUST ONLINE ADVERTISING
A 2014 survey, Engaging Millennials: Trust and Attention Survey, revealed that 84 percent of millennials don’t trust traditional advertising.
New marketing tactics, primarily strategies like influencer marketing are taking over more traditional marketing like banner ads and paid-for branded social adverts. Millennials more than any other generation trust word-of-mouth recommendations when they consider new brands or products. If you’re new to influencer marketing or looking for some tips, check out our guide to getting started with influencer marketing.
This is vital to consider when building your marketing strategy for millennials.
MILLENNIALS LOVE AUTHENTIC CONTENT
According to AdAge, this generation are spending an average of 25 hours per week online and they crave content-driven media.
Today, millennial shoppers’ attitudes and behavior are largely inspired by people they know in person or online, or even strangers who share their interests on social networks. They carry these “advisors” with them on their smartphones and everywhere they go and refer to them wherever possible.
In fact, 84 percent of millennials say user-generated content has at least some influence on what they buy.
These are our five top tips to consider when designing your millennial marketing strategy, but did you know that Generation Z has now taken over as the biggest consumers of content in the UK? Read all about how you can market to the younger generation.
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