Commentary | Getting Through to Millennials

Getting Through to Millennials

Commentary by Jeevandran Raghavan

Millennials may be the world’s most love-to-hate generation at the moment. But is this disdain towards the youth a new dynamic? Far more surprising is that, throughout the century, the inter-generational criticisms have been remarkably similar. From complaints that the next generation are both too cautious and yet downright dangerous, too worried about the world and at the same time too self-absorbed to care. Most of these qualifiers aren’t distinct to millennials.

We can go on-and-on about how different ‘millennials’ are compared to the rest of the generations, but we can’t deny the fact that millennials are creating substantial change in how work gets done, as they work more in teams and embrace technology more. Their social mind-set, however, is also a significant factor. Coupled with the socially-minded millennial comes their desire to be creative. Millennials have grown up in a time where information has become available instantly, thus creating engagement strategies is one of marketing’s big goals.

Why can’t millennials gel with traditional marketing?

So for once, let’s admit certain tangible facts, this is the generation that is slowly taking over the workforce for the years to come, not only out-numbering ‘Boomers’ but they are also the largest generation of entrepreneurs. They are the one that has got us hooked onto the internet to get most of our daily things done. This generation is all about digital; considering almost three quarters of them have smartphones. Their interactive engagement through social media sets them apart as individuals.

With video being one of the more recent trends in digital engagement, millennials tend to follow brands that have earned their trust. Millennials trust influencers they follow, share their content with friends and most importantly, feel attached by the ability to engage with influencers directly through their channels, whether it be Snapchat, Vine, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

On the other hand, traditional media somewhat lacks the same level of interaction. Traditional media tends to be an advertising space for products and services, not an interactive space. Research tells us Millennials don’t spend time on these things either, perhaps in part because of the technology leap in the 00s, but probably because of that trust barrier. They rely on digital sources of information above all else. Websites and social media are the main sources online where TV is the main ‘traditional’ source.

(Source of information: https://marketinginasia.com/2019/08/03/why-millennials-and-traditional-marketing-dont-gel/)

How Millennials are Changing Your Marketing

For brand marketers and PR practitioners, millennials are increasingly becoming a priority target audience, and with good reason. According to Accenture, they predict that by 2020, millennial spending in the U.S. will grow to $1.4 trillion annually and represent 30 percent of total retail sales.

Social Media + Video = Winning Combination

Video marketing on social media isn't just limited to posting a simple clip on Facebook and waiting for your audience to see it. Social media and the video industry has evolved a lot recently and you need to be on top of your game to stand out from other brands in niche markets.

There are a multitude of ways to use video as a potent marketing weapon on social media. Video is the fastest content delivery method. Considering that 85% of millennials own smartphones and 46% use them while in stores to compare prices, read reviews, or find coupons, Millennials are online nearly twice as much as any other generation. It’s easy enough to see how. They might spend most of any given day with their eyes glued to their phone screen. Moreover, they spend nearly an hour a day on the Facebook app, which is why the social media giant can account for 78% of their revenue to mobile ads.

Sometimes videos alone may not be enough when millennials don’t necessarily trust everything they see. Cultivating a relationship with them can help to highlight a company’s expertise and earn their trust along the way. This group’s values and life goals are dramatically different than those of previous generations. Millennials as a whole prioritise happiness and life experience over material possessions and status. As we’ve seen, Millennials are considered the single most important generation for brands to reach. But any brand that treats all Millennials the same, does so at its own risk.

Nevertheless, understanding how millennials differ from previous generations has been and will continue to be of great importance to the practice of public relations. This shift has the potential to transform the public relations profession, open up new and meaningful kinds of responsibility and learning, and create exciting new career paths for communications professionals. These trends contribute to the opportunity Millennials have to significantly change the nature of the public relations profession as well as the leadership within in it.

In conclusion, the influx of millennials into the workforce has the ability to impact almost every industry. PR stands to gain a lot from the millennial shift, due to our affinity with the digital world. What’s more, by embracing this generation and as millennials grow up to become the consumer majority, PR stands to benefit more by understanding this generation.