If your business relies on being online to sell services and products, it’s important that you understand how to advertise to Millennials. This younger age group can potentially be your clients in the future. They are on top of their game digitally and are tomorrow’s CEOs. This generation is quite unique and completely different than any before it, so you have to shape your traditional marketing methods that have always worked in the past to cater for this crowd.
If you are interested in marketing to Millennials, here’s a couple of tactics I’ve used that’s working with my digital marketing campaigns.
No ad to show here.
Focus on trust
Millennials look up to influencers that they trust on various social media platforms for advice when they have questions or problems. They admire their influencers and these people are a key element that can make your campaign skyrocket. Influencers are not just impacting Millennials, but other crowds as well. I often look for influencers when I have a question, where to shop and their general experience with a certain product or service.
If you are using influencers to promote what you are doing, you will get noticed because these people are trusted and they have taken years to develop their own personal brand name. Trust is earned and when a reliable source recommends something, they are basically putting their stamp of approval on it that makes your business trusted.
Millennials look up to influencers that they trust on various social media platforms for advice when they have questions or problems
Social recommendations can also play a big part. Before I purchase a new product or service, I research trusted sources online for comments and recommendations about the product or service. Have a look at Amazon. It has nailed it. I search for the product on Amazon and then I read a couple of recommendations to get a feel of what others are experiencing with the product. This gives me a good idea of what I can expect before making the final purchase decision.
There are various ways you can reach out to influencers online and I will write a follow up article later on the methods I’m currently using to reach out to these key people in my marketing tactics.
Newsjacking and trends
Millennials are used to technology and rely on it. Unlike us, they have been exposed to technology their whole lives. With this they are always learning and checking out new platforms. This goes to say that if you want to get Millennials on board, you have to follow them and be where they are, follow the latest trends and how you can use this to your advantage.
One method I’m consistently using is newsjacking. Have a look at what is currently trending at the moment or what is newsworthy in their universe. Use this information and content in your own marketing content.
Many marketers are only focusing on the top channels like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram when marketing to Millennials, but there’s a huge opportunity with other platforms as well like Snapchat. This channel is growing and is used by Millennials worldwide. Get on board and use it in your marketing campaigns.
Related: More than a fad: the numbers behind Snapchat’s remarkable growth
Your ads should look natural
Millennials aren’t interested in traditional marketing so it’s important that if you are using advertisements in your marketing campaigns, they should look and act as natural as possible. Focus on creating native ads which are specifically tailored to fit in the social media channel or website they are on, but they don’t look like an advertisement.
Make your ads blend in and speak to them in a natural way so that you can get them to respond to what you are saying and doing.
Be authentic
Be genuine and authentic with everything that you do. Showcase who you are and what you do in a human way. Share pictures and videos of team events that show the personality of your employees and the culture of your brand. Reply to comments and answer any questions they might have on public channels online. The web is public and you can use this to your advantage.
