Marketing to Millennials: Five Must Know Marketing Tactics

The millennial segment includes those born around the region of around 1981 – 1996. This group are naturally big fans of seamless consumer journeys and instagrammable experiences.

Similar to all marketing customer personas, many of the themes are stereotypical, but are often very helpful when it comes to selecting marketing channels or creating campaign messaging. This guide focuses on marketing tactics, key topics, each with factual research points to help you with your millennial marketing.

Lead with Instagram

When you are planning your social strategy, consider making Instagram your leading channel. Evidence from Social Sprout shows 74% of this audience use social media several times per day and 51% would identify Instagram as their main social channel.

This group love to post, reshare and react to content on social. Create a narrative about your brand by using stories, influencers and even by incorporating user-generated content by resharing or posting. An overwhelming 90% of millennials say brand authenticity is important, proving that younger consumers prefer 'real and organic' over 'perfect and packaged' content.

Be Contactable

The expectation of an almost instant delivery or response is no different when it comes to social media. Consumers expect to be able to connect with their favourite brands on social media and communicate on these channels. According to a study by The Social Habit, 42% of consumers expect a response on social media within 60 minutes.

If you can’t guarantee response quickly, add an auto-response to the messenger tool. This will manage the user expectations on when they can expect a response, or provide the main contact email to help them find what they are looking for.

Plus, it’s not all down to social media. Don’t forget the constant advances with augmented reality and artificial intelligence. Over a third (35%) of UK consumers want to see more companies using chatbots to answer questions online.

Use Exclusive Promo Codes

Consider using unique promo codes to convert users as part of your acquisition and retention strategy. From research into this group, evidence shows 38% compare prices, 38% search for reviews and 37% look for coupons online. Searching for promo codes before a purchase is becoming part of the customer journey for millennials.

Make it easy for them and ensure they don’t bounce off to another competitor. Set up an automated abandoned cart email, or an instant pop up when they exit a page they have been viewing for a while. Add urgency with a limited time discount code to encourage check out completions. Using promo codes as part of your online strategy doesn’t mean you need to heavily discount. Even a small percentage off or an added value service like free delivery will encourage more users to convert.

Be Flexible

Along with quick response time and a seamless customer journey, it’s also important to be flexible when it comes to payment options. Many retailers are using payment systems such as Klarna and Clearpay, including all Arcadia group brands, ASOS and Expedia, to name just a few. Klarna allows users to pay in instalments for the purchase, the retailer then receives full payment and only pays a small percentage on the transaction.

From recent research, 44% of users said they would have abandoned their purchase if instalments were not available. That’s a significant number of potential conversions and revenue your organisation could be missing out on due to the change in consumer buying behaviour.

Showcase Instagrammability

Instagrammability doesn’t end on social media. Showcase this throughout other channels, such as email, online listings and most importantly your website. Research shows users in this group are searching for instagrammable experiences and are willing to pay more for products and services that deliver this.

Shockingly, recent research by Expedia found millennials are the most popular group to admit it is more important that friends comment on their social media pictures than having an authentic experience on holiday.

Additionally, a study by Harris Group found that 72% of millennials would rather open their wallets based on experiences rather than on material items. Millennials are prioritising their cars and homes less and assigning greater importance to personal experiences — and showing off pictures of them.

Written by Emma Degnan