Millennials have created a participation economy which requires companies to re-think the old rules of marketing.
Wondering where the U.S. economy is going in the next 20, 30, and 40 years? Curious about who’s going to be fueling it and driving it?
Whether you’re trying to hire Millennials, manage them, or sell to them, you need to understand them in order to thrive in a Millennial-driven economy in the years to come.
Millennials, also known as Gen Y, were born between 1977 and 2000 (roughly, depending on your definition.) And they have quickly become, thanks to the proliferation of the Internet, smartphones, and social media, the most influential purchasing generation since the Boomers. They are 80 million strong and are estimated to have $1.3 trillion in spending power.
In their book, “Marketing to Millennials” Kansas City advertising executive Jeff Fromm and Christie Garton present compelling reasons and useful strategies to connect with these consumers. Fromm and Garton do a nice job of explaining not only how this generation differs from previous ones, but what makes them tick.
Characteristics of this very connected group include:
- They don’t just want to buy your brand, they want to be part of it.
- They want to participate and share their experience – the more the better.
- Interrupting, shouting, and making big promises are out; engagement, interaction, and personal gestures are in.
Fromm and Garton recommend three essential methods for reaching out and engaging Millennials:
- Technology – no surprise that digital and social are absolute requirements.
- Participation – look for ways to encourage co-creation of your product or service. They will help if you ask them.
- Content – meaningful and useful content that grabs attention and inspires action and participation will drive brand adoption.
Millennials are here and they’ve got the numbers and buying power to make giant waves. The question is how do you plan to ride these waves to the shore — and to the bank?
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