Love them or hate them, millennials are now the dominant generation in the consumer market. It’s, therefore, more important than ever to understand what they like, what they need, and how to tailor your digital marketing strategy to reach them.
Ever wondered how to market to millennials? Below, we’ll cover eight strategies you can get started with right away.
Utilize social media.
This probably goes without saying, but millennials love their social media. Unlike older, more tech-averse generations, millennials have embraced social media and are active on the most platforms comparatively.
Millennials spurred the rise of Snapchat and respond well to transparency and a non-salesy approach. They also respond well to ‘behind the scenes’ videos and photos on Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram. Millennials don’t like being sold to and can see through thinly veiled sales pitches. Be sure to prioritize honesty over pushiness in all your content. Explore what you should post on each social media platform.
Get visual.
Millennials don’t have the patience for poorly designed sites or graphics. In fact, most will think your brand isn’t trustworthy if you don’t sport clean, consistent graphics. Be sure to use great visuals with your content and high-quality media.
There’s more to engaging visuals than just great imagery. Surrounded by technology and various entertainment options at every waking moment, millennials have short attention spans. Keep them engaged with video content.
Sharing video content on social media is a great way to reach new audiences. Video content is also a fantastic way to communicate a lot of information in a short amount of time. By watching your video, users can retain more information than if they’d just read it on your site.
Make your marketing mobile-accessible.
Millennials may have enjoyed a relatively tech-free childhood, but they’ve been surrounded by the internet, social media, and mobile technology for their entire adult lives. Since Google announced their Mobile-First Indexing back in March 2018, sites that function and display well on mobile devices are ranked higher on search engines than the desktop version. Embracing mobile marketing is, therefore, key to reaching the millennial market.
If relevant, creating your own app can be a key part of your marketing strategy. Millennials love interacting and getting involved with their product and service providers. Offering an engaging app is a great way of securing their commitment. Apps are also a fantastic way of gaining invaluable data on your customers which will allow you to monitor your success and adapt your services to suit their needs.
Make environmental and social sustainability a focus.
This generation cares about the people around them and their impact on the planet than previous generations. Not only do they expect companies to do the same, but they also actively seek out companies who support their values. For example, a millennial consumer is more likely to buy a beauty product that is ethically made from sustainable sources than its cheaper counterpart which is tested on animals.
When it comes to environmental and social sustainability, don’t just practice it - make sure you preach it too! If you’ve cut your office waste in half, highlight that on your website, your email signatures, and your social media content.
Make sure your audience knows that you’re doing your part to support and protect the planet. It’s fantastic positive publicity for your brand. Depending on your country, you may also find benefits by way of tax credits, discounts, and more.
Price competitively.
Millennials love a good bargain. They know how to shop around online for the best price and are not afraid to do it. Making sure that you’re informed about your competitors’ pricing is key to remaining competitive in the market. If you’re overcharging for a certain product or are being beaten at price by another company, you will most likely lose your customers.
On the flip side, pricing your product too much lower than your competition might mean losing out on revenue and could leave consumers wondering if you provide less value than other options. Stay competitive and retain your audience and customer base.
Forget about traditional advertising.
Traditional outbound marketing strategies like TV, radio, and magazine adverts don’t impress millennials. They prefer a personalized, more authentic marketing approach.
Rather than pushy product listings, millennials want informative blogs, articles, ebooks, videos, and podcasts that educate them. Better even if your content marketing doesn’t promote a specific product or service. Focus on providing value over anything else and you’ll begin gaining millennials’ trust.
Stop, collaborate, and listen.
Millennials love to feel involved and like they have a say. They respond extremely well to collaborating with brands and companies to design the products of the future. Don’t be afraid to open the door to your website visitors and potential customers for their opinions and input, it will most certainly be well received.
Your users can also be a great source for new content. Ask customers to share photos or videos using your product or sharing their thoughts. Then, you can use that content in your own marketing promotions. Your customers will be excited to be included, you’ll have more material to work with, and other potential prospects will get excited to see happy customers.
It also helps spread the word of your brand through various social networks. Everyone will be aware of how you enjoy sharing the way your customers are using the product you've provided, making others want to get a piece of the action.
Keep it snappy.
This generation won’t hesitate to click away from a website if it’s too slow at loading or is too difficult to navigate. Make sure your website content is succinct and engaging. Don’t lose customers over silly things like website loading time or a check-out process that is too long-winded or complex. Keep everything simple and easy to use or your customers will go elsewhere.
This doesn’t mean all your content needs to be as short as possible. Interested visitors will be excited to read more about your brand once you’ve gained their trust by providing value upfront. Really focus on getting to the point in your top-of-funnel sales content so you can pull in relevant leads and continue to nurture them with more information.
Watch out for Gen Z.
Millennials are growing up. They’re well into their careers, starting families, and more. While they’re a huge demographic to target now, and likely will continue to be for many more decades, the next generation is coming up fast.
Gen Z has grown up in the digital age and hasn’t known a world without cell phones and the internet. As you continue to optimize your efforts to engage with millennials. Keep in mind the next generation on the rise and know that they’ll have their own unique interests, desires, and way of viewing the world.
