Tips for Marketing to Millennials

Warning—you are now encroaching on the home turf of the very territorial modern Millennial. Characterized by a lifelong relationship with technology, these “young” specimens (although some may be pushing their forties) are renowned for their fleeting attention spans and a discerning eye for quality. In any case, these guys are a tough nut to crack into—everyone wants a piece of their value, which at an annual spending power of $200 billion, is nothing to scoff at.

So, just how does one get into the business of marketing to Millennial’s?

Recognize not all Millennials are alike.

You can roughly identify Millennial’s from the rest of their kind based on how close their relationship is to technology. But the exact age of a Millennial can vary, and so can their preferences for social media. Most studies agree that Millennial’s are born roughly between 1980 and 2000—which means that the youngest of Millennial’s are still wading their way through the angst-ridden waters of high school while the eldest are old enough to be their parents.

Naturally, marketing for both young and elder Millennial’s will be different as their experiences on social media are not the same. Young Millennial’s grew up side-by-side with social media (platforms like Twitter and Facebook were launched when these kids were teeny-tiny) and are quick to hop on to newer, hipper apps and social media. Older Millennial’s, on the other hand, are more likely to stick to tried and true applications like Facebook—where they can interact with friends and family. Both generations of Millennial’s prove, in a study by the American Press Institute, that social media dominates how they receive news—88% of Millennial’s get their news from Facebook.

Use influencers to target social groups.

The McCarthy Group studied young Millennial’s and discovered that friends ranked the highest in terms of trust, while advertising and sales people ranked the lowest. In fact, 84% of Millennial’s said they don’t like advertising and 95% of them cite friends as the most credible source of product information. This is valuable information for marketers who can use this information to create content that is shareable between Millennial social groups. Sharing content among Millennial’s can be as easy as encouraging them to engage with products and services through Instagram or Facebook—or taking advantage of a social media influencers’ following to drive relationships for your brand. The key to creating shareable content is to make sure the information is informative, high-quality and coincidentally also advocates your brand.

Share their values and ideals

We now know what influences Millennial’s on social media. But did you know that these same friends and influencers also drive socially conscious issues? Think legalization—marijuana, same-sex marriage…and you’ll find Millennial’s at the thick of these issues. Millennial’s more and more are driven to brands that also identify with social values and ideals. In fact, 91% of Millennials say they would switch to a brand associated with a cause. While you don’t need to stretch your brand thin advocating for every single cause, it’s good to consider whether or not social advocacy will help your brand among Millennial’s or not. Supporting a cause can also help humanize your brand, effectively helping Millennial’s bridge a relationship with it.

Wondering how to market your services to Millennials? Kraus Marketing is a Branding and Social Media marketing company servicing businesses in the NJ & NYC area. To inquire about our services, call us at (973) 990-5742 or contact us at www.KrausMarketing.com.