Millennials & Marketing

Love them or live with them, Millennials are the most talked about generation in the Marketing / Advertising space today. In the upcoming years they are going to be even more important than they are now. It has been proven though that they play by their own rules and the traditional ways of selling are not going to work on the more than 75 Million Millennials around the world. So how do you reach this mystical group of consumers, workers, and rebels? What I have found is you have to make content that they care about; and while that may not be a new concept, there are a lot of companies that are missing the mark. In case you are unfamiliar with who Millennials are, here is a quick overview:

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Generally born in the early 1980’s and ending around the mid 1990’s mark.

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However, there is some discrepancy with those born between 1977 to 1983 who are deemed Xennials.

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While Millennials get a bad wrap of being Narcissistic and Entitled, I find that description is unfair. A better way to describe them is Confident and Idealistic.

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They care very deeply about culture, politics, and the environment.

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What they believe in, they believe in whole heartedly.

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They are not willing to accept “This is how it has always been done.”

I will say that there are the exceptions and the extremes. But that can be said about any generation. The big question still remains, how do you sell them on stuff? The answer, you don’t. Simple as that. What you do instead is cut the bullshit. You reach them on a level that connects with their ideals and you put that front and center. Big corporations can’t sell Millennials on a coupon, but a small company can sell them on their brand. And that is where you start. Be a brand that Millennials, and people in general, would be proud to support. Focus on telling a story and how your product makes life better, easier, for everyone. They don’t care if you spent $4 Million on a Super Bowl spot, but they do care if you run a program like Toms Shoes who offers to donate a pair of shoes when you buy a pair. I’m not saying that big brands are done, but it does require a shift in mindset. Visa is a brand that has successfully won the hearts of Millennials in a campaign where they partnered with StubHub. The focus was on experiences and connections. Eliminating the idea of using a Debit/Credit card to buy unnecessary material things but instead share unique in person experiences with others who also care about what you care about. In short, Millennials aren’t some crazed alien race that cares about how many likes their selfies get. (Don’t get me wrong they are more tapped into Technology and Social Media than any generation before them, but that is because they grew up with it.) They are a group of up and comers who aren’t buying it just because you told them to. So cut the bullshit and create content with heart, and you will reach far more than just the Millennial generation.