Marketing is changing as customers change, which is why it is important to change your approach when you are targeting different age groups.
Connecting to baby boomers on Facebook is very different from speaking to teenagers on TikTok.
Where do millennials fit in? And how do you speak to them so that they like and trust you enough to make a purchase?
In this article, we’ll look at what makes millennials tick, and how you can market to them effectively.
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Who are “Millennials” and Why Does Marketing to them Matter?
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Millennials are the generation born between 1982 and 2000, which makes millennials between the ages of 22 and 40. Generation X refers to people older than this, who preceded the millennials. Gen Z refers to people younger than this, who were born after the year 2000.
Currently, millennials make up a hugely influential demographic, making up more than a quarter of the world’s population, and now outnumber baby boomers.
Although every customer is different, millennials have certain traits in common based on shared life experiences.
Millennials grew up with the internet, although it wasn’t in its “final form” the way Gen Z experienced it. They were also bombarded by TV and radio advertisements in the 90s.
If your business is targeting customers in this age range, you could benefit from understanding some of the generalized information we have about this generation.
Millennials Use Their Phones, Not Desktops
Smartphones make up the majority of internet traffic, in no small part because it is the millennials’ format of choice,
Millennials are frequently on the move, and usually have a phone within reach even when they are working on a desktop. Email marketing sent to millennials will likely be opened on a mobile device. Online purchases are frequently made on mobile devices.
If you haven’t optimized every part of your marketing process for mobile, this overhaul is overdue.
Millennials have no patience for websites that won’t load on mobile, landing pages that don’t resize properly, and desktop-only experiences. If you aren’t 100% optimized for mobile, you are losing millennial customers.
Millennials Value Experiences over Ownership
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As the internet came of age, physical copies of DVDs and CDs became worthless and everything moved to digital streaming services. The real estate market in urban areas where the best jobs are concentrated means that many millennials have written off the idea of ever owning their own home.
For millennials, owning something is not that important. What matters are experiences.
The classically cruel meme from several years ago, admonishing millennials for wasting their savings on avocado toast, is a perfect example of the way that this generation is misunderstood.
Millennials in all income brackets care more about experiences, like enjoying a nice avocado toast than saving a tiny amount of money to put away for retirement.
They understand that life is short and they live in the now. Even when they are planning for later, they are not willing to sacrifice in the present the way that former generations were.
You can be successful with millennials by offering services rather than purchases wherever possible. They will continue to pay as long as the service is worth it to them and remains available, increasing the lifetime revenue per customer for your business.
You can also market services and experiences to millennials that are more expensive than you might think, as long as the value is there.
Millennials Distrust Conventional Advertising
The 90s were a time of unprecedented advertising, and before the rise of streaming services, cable television and radio were channels that nearly everyone was tapped into. Millennials were exposed to more advertising messages than any generation before them.
This has left many millennials with a bad taste in their mouth when it comes to direct advertising. Most millennials have a negative view of advertising in general and resent it when they see it unless it comes paired with an entertaining or informative message that they agree with.
Using direct copywriting messages like “buy now!”, “limited time offer!” and “don’t miss out” might be less effective with millennial audiences, because they are primed to see and resist this kind of advertising.
Instead, it’s a good idea to slip advertising messages into content that millennials otherwise like and enjoy. Using memes and other social media content, along with games and experiences, will gain more traction with millennials than pushy ads.
Connecting with Millennials
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If your business is targeting millennials, you don’t need to make assumptions about how they act and behave. You can follow your data to see the choices that millennial customers make online and adjust your marketing efforts to produce maximal results by optimizing based on that data.
Digital marketing agencies like Digital Spotlight can understand millennial psychology in part because there is just so much data to produce insights from.
To connect with millennial audiences: go mobile, value experiences over products, and advertise with authenticity and value rather than pressure.