David Willey addresses a hot topic in marketing right now – educating brands on how to engage with millennials.

Sponsored: This article was commissioned by Growth Thank to let readers know about the upcoming Millennials Marketing Conference event.

 

 

Let’s face it, the word ‘millennials’ is over-used. It’s rarely perfectly defined and it seems to be a love hate relationship for marketeers. For those still unsure who millennials are they are broadly defined as those who had internet before they turned 18. They’re digital natives who grew up with social media and they share everything online desperately chasing likes, shares and the perfect selfie. To be more specific, age wise they are between 18-32. So that’s nice and vague, then.

In Australia, millennials make up 4.2 million of our population and they have a combined disposable income of $530 million per year. The good news is that they’re the biggest spending generation ever. However, lots of brands are losing out and failing to connect with these tech savvy Instagrammers. The harsh reality is that if you can’t work out how to excite and market effectively to millennials, the future doesn’t look too bright for your brand.

To help you reach this high spending generation we’ve come up with five short and snappy helpful hints:

 

1. Millennials do use email

According to new research from Adestra, email is the clear winner when it comes to how millennials want to be contacted by brands. They see email marketing as a great way to receive news and product info. Keep your social channels as a place for them to engage and to share exciting content, but use emails for the important stuff.

 

2. Authenticity is key

As the most connected and ‘advertised to’ generation, they know when they’re being sold to, and they don’t like it. Be authentic, trustworthy and transparent when you need to be, even if it’s uncomfortable. Show that you care about them and care about creating a great product.

 

3. Millennials love content, just make it great

Use content as a great way to inform, entertain or provide value to your customers. A very common mistake by brands is to spend too much time figuring how to get the attention of millennials, and not enough time thinking about what they do once they have it.

 

4. Millennials want to be marketed WITH

They hate the hard sell and rarely respond well to it. Definitely stop leading with a price message and have a think about what your brand can do for the customers and put them first and foremost. Make it win-win, don’t chase a quick buck.

 

5. Millennials are all about service

They love individualised personal service at a speedy pace. Communicate in a timely fashion, with passion and talk to them. Definitely, do not ignore them – they can be very vocal if you fail to even acknowledge communication.

 

These five points just touch the surface of where to start with effective millennial marketing; if you want to learn the most up to date research, marketing secrets and practical strategies of how to get the edge with them as consumers, Growth Tank are hosting the Millennials Marketing Conference in Sydney at the University of New South Wales on 29 and 30 November 2016.

Top experts from Facebook, Instagram, Yahoo7, VICE Media, Twitter, Network Ten, The Urban List, Hubspot, Junkee Media, Hello Social, Soap Creative, Campus Group, Outbrain, MKTG and many more will share their insights and strategies with businesses in Australia.

 

Click here for information and tickets

 

 

David Willey is founder of Growth Tank.

 

 

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