Web marketing: 5 things to know to reach millennials

The term millennial is accompanied by an air of mystery: where did they come from and who are they? In Canada alone, this generation ranges from age 22 to 37 and holds a population of 9.5 million. Millennials came of age during the digital revolution. As a result, they’re tech-savvy and have a solid grasp on how to harness the power of the internet, embracing smartphones, social media and so forth. This translates to their gigantic influence on what’s considered popular, cool and worth paying attention to. So, how do you make this work for your business and market yourself towards an entire generation?

Of course, not every millennial is made equal but there are specific ways to approach and target this audience while understanding how to harness their buying power. We’re here to discuss the ways in which you can market to millennials.

Web marketing: 5 things to know about millennials

Who are millennials?

Millennials, sometimes also referred to as Gen Y, are people born between 1981 and 1995. Therefore, the only real prerequisite for being a millennial is age. However, the term itself is used to describe more than just the age of a person, and being a millennial seems to encompass a way of being. There are certain stereotypes that comprise the millennial persona and they are as follows:

• The need for approval and affirmation;
• Entitlement;
• A tendency to become technologically distracted;
• Selfishness as well as a focus on an individualized experience;

Although these might seem like negative attributes, millennials have plenty of good points too. In fact, this generation is loved by advertisers and online marketers for this reason. Not only are they of working age but the majority of millennials are less likely to own homes and pay mortgages. This translates to a wealth of disposable income. On top of this, millennials spend huge chunks of time online, browsing the web and social media.

For social media marketers, this is paramount. Since they spend so much time in these spaces, gathering information about how they think and feel as well as their interests are quite simple. Naturally, brands will look to large target market groups where they can channel new and potentially-trending products. For this reason, brands love millennials, there are plenty of ways to reach them and loyalty is encouraged for these impressionable buyers. Now, let’s discuss some of the easiest ways to reach millennials and make sure things stick!

How to reach the millennial market

If you’re interested in reaching millennials, there’s no magic marketing technique that will encompass it all. Instead, we're here to help you understand concrete ways to get in touch with this generation.

1- The medium is the message

We’re all aware that millennials are tech-savvy. They grew up with technology deeply intertwined into their daily lives. Therefore, it’s familiar to them; they know what works and what doesn’t. When it comes to enticing millennials to read your content or have them interact with your web presence, it’s important to remember that they’re picky. This generation is looking for a few specific things when it comes to an app, platform or website, these are:

• Fun: what can it do to make life more interesting?
• Utility: how can it improve their day to day activities?
• Affordability: where will it allow them to save money?
• Practicality: how can it make day-to-day affairs more effective?

Asking yourself the above questions as they relate to your business or product can help you curve marketing strategies as well as branding to better reach them. Make sure to be forward about your purpose, as well as how valuable you could be. For the millennial, these are appealing qualities.

2- Be mobile-forward

Millennials use their mobile phones an unprecedented amount of time, checking social media apps multiple times throughout the day. Research suggests that in most cases, they interact with their phone more than they do other humans. Although shocking, for the content marketer, this is a gold mine. When targeting millennials, it’s crucial to consider a strategy that is mobile-first. Especially true if you’re running an e-commerce site, you’ll need to find ways to make the path to purchase as accessible as possible while finding ways to personalize the experience.

3- Create socially-conscious content

Millennials are invested in the world around them and want to participate in making it a better place. They’re going to be looking for brands and businesses concerned with taking a position on current, cultural issues. If you’re running a business interested in social or environmental change, then you’re already halfway towards appealing to their interests. If not, we’d suggest making it seem you’re at least aware of what’s going on and prioritizing the values important to your industry. If you stand for something and present socially-conscious content, millennials are more likely to pay attention.

4- Personalize

Even though you’re running a business, appealing to the sensibilities of millennials will require you to show that there’s a human beyond the screen. Bear in mind, this goes for both ways. Your company and branding need to have a sense of humanity while appealing to the uniqueness of each individual personality. Not only will you need to appeal to the individual, but it’s further crucial to capitalize on trends that are hot for the entire group of millennials. This is because for this generation, getting the approval of their peers is important. Thus, find the right balance between personalization and the collective interests of the group, and this will allow your content to best reach millennials.

5- Visual, user-generated content

If you’ve spent any time online recently and are aware of the growing video content trend, then it’s likely you know how effective visual content is. It’s been said that millennials have short attention spans. However, it’s been widely noted that visual platforms have grown in popularity. Thus, visual communications and content work to grab and keep the attention of millennials. Not only this, but millennials are looking for authenticity. They want to see themselves reflected in the content they’re consuming. Working with user-generated content is the way to do this, it offers an authenticity that makes your content credible and relatable. Not to mention, working with user-generated content will show millennials that you’re interested in what they’re creating.