Millennials: Marketeer’s Friend or Foe?
The need of the hour – Millennials!
The reigning age – Millennials!
The rising consumer power – Millennials!
Before we begin, let us first know about Millennials. Who are they?
Millennials today, occupy a large part of the world. They are individuals who grew up in the age of technological literacy, where Social Media is a way of life than just an internet platform. Millennials can also be called as Digital Natives, Netizens or Generation-Y, i.e. individuals born after 1980.
Like with any generation gap, where each individual is different from another, this generation is much more ethnically & racially diverse; since Millennials have grown up in an electronics-filled and increasingly online & socially networked world/environment.
Not only Millennials receive comparatively more marketing attention but, they’re also more optimistic about future as compared to the earlier generations, which often raises unrealistic expectations leading to disillusionment sometimes. Having grown up in an excessively high advertising era, Millennials tend to be skeptical about any promotional material of any kind, and rather find reliance in a brand name or a well-established name from the earlier times.
Millennials believe in a less hypocritical environment and buy products or avail services or consider employment options after consulting their peers rather than getting affected by marketing or PR materials. There was a time when multitasking was believed to be not an effective way and rather would result in either incomplete targets or not present within the given timeline. Yet, Millennials seem to pull-it-off pretty well.
Although the objective of earning money for Millennials is to enhance their living standards and fulfill their wants & desires other than needs, while the earlier generations had to earn to sustain a living which meant fulfilling the basic human needs as explained in Maslow’s theory.
Well, the good news for experiential marketers & event professionals is that Millennials crave experiences over things. So if a brand wants to increase or retain loyalty — the first step starts with providing & enticing these ‘new-age’ consumers with amazing experiences through experiential marketing, which is all about catering to your audience and giving them the experiences they want.
It’s been understood that marketers are struggling to reach Millennials and end up spending a lot on digital media than on any other medium, reason being, Millennials are tech-savvy and tune-out the traditional marketing methods, as they require something interesting & enticing.
Millennials are one of the fastest-growing consumer groups in the world, and with more entering the world of adult consumerism every day, there’s a lot of competition heading towards them. This means, marketing to Millennials will come with many challenges & pose new questions in marketing.
Now, a question pops!
How to communicate with Millennials without spending a considerable amount?
Answer is, through Experiential Marketing!
Reason: Millennials Love Experiences
Belief: “I would love spending money worth an experience, not on things.”
It’s been observed that Millennials love experiencing or trying new things in life, which is why they’re seen eagerly attending concerts, enjoying festivals & parties, and making sure a pit-stop at all-city events. Millennials are always eager to experience the latest of things & gadgets, where they get to become a part of the brand experience & engage in an interaction that they’ll recall.
Let’s Understand the Millennial Behaviour!
1. Millennials are Social Animals
Millennials are a social media indulgent generation, who love to share their experiences with their peers on every social platform, as if their life is on display. So, social media is a sure-shot way of increasing brand awareness and reaching a massive audience. If a brand engages with them on social networks, it’s more likely to increase millennial following & loyalty. They expect brands to be on social networks and engage them.
- Millennials Crave Authenticity
Millennials are drawn to brands that are original, transparent and authentic. They seek a brand-connect on a personal level, through a personalized communication. This two-way communication between the brands & the consumers is seen as authentic. It’s believed that all global consumers find genuineness of a brand more important a factor than the product uniqueness or popularity.A great way to be authentic in your marketing technique is to not only be transparent, honest, caring and communicative, it is also to educate and develop a campaign where consumers get the chance to interact with brand & its products. This is where experiential marketing comes in handy!
3. Free Samples to Consumers
Providing free samples works like magic for a brand, as it attracts & gives consumers a way to try the product without investing a penny but, only the consumer’s curiosity. Whether these samples are food items, vouchers, t-shirts, bottles or even a giant foam hand, Millennials love brands with which they get a feel of something extra by engaging with them.It was seen that after a brand event, when Millennials received free products, majority of the attendees shared photos on social media, posting with the event’s hashtag, and they followed the brand on social media, signing up to their email list; this resulted in a very successful campaign.
“Millennials are a paradox of generation, but a genuine consumer!” – Sudhakar Sharan
Although Millennials don’t stick to branded items but sharing their experience with the world is very important to them, as it helps in giving a reason to show off. Using something really unique and cool is bound to give Millennials a reason for wanting to share it with their peers. After all, a millennial feels like a celebrity & live like one too!
With Millennials, it’s all about creating a positive experience and creating enough impact, that it affects their lives, influences their social media life and has a hedonistic quality of life; the brands do not need to spend much on luring Millennials, but you do need to approach the consumer group in a different light, by creating an authentic experiential marketing campaign which is aimed at connecting rather than selling and building brand awareness.
So, it’s not hard to see just how different Millennials are from the generations that preceded them. Effective outreach is largely about recognizing these differences and being willing to update your strategies accordingly. Brands which are honest, forthright, sincere, and foresee to engage Millennials on their own terms, will have great success in their outreach.
“Now A Question For You: Is Your Marketing Campaign Millennial Ready?”
