A wise person once coined this metaphorical phrase, “never judge a book by its cover.” When considering the changing marketing landscape and associated behavioral habits, millennials could easily encompass this statement.
It’s no secret millennials are the power behind the majority of the social media platform. Breaking the code on developing great content has become a mission for many businesses. Businesses need to understand the rules of engagement within the social stratosphere. Millennials like to be in the know, be constantly connected and feel empowered by social media.
They are building and changing identity based on the communities, socially, they are connected to. There are a variety of social tools which have diverse uses based on a given consumer’s identity of the moment:
- Broad social tools, such as Facebook, allows millennials to be in the know
- YouTube, as an example, allows millennials to feel visible. Plus, the sharing of comments offers anonymity from conformity
- Niche tools, such as Instagram, allows for snack-able content that provides bite-size access to the world
Here’s a look at marketing tactics pre- and post-social media eruption:
- Pre: Goal was to produce a message to distribute via mass media, like television
- It was assumed awareness would be gained
- Trial of product/service was hopeful
- Building loyalty was assumed but not often well thought-out
- Post: Goal is to organically insert brand into the conversation
- This presumes creating engaging content that the consumer finds of interest
- Showcasing the brand (company) as a person and not an entity in order to develop a relationship with the consumer
- Achieving reach via shared postings coupled with postings that are self-generated by the brand
- Brand content needs to be seeded via a variety of platforms
As you develop social campaigns, especially targeting millennials, it is best to adopt the aforementioned “post” social media explosion tactics. Key attributes to drive home internally within your organization is: be authentic, be transparent and develop content that reflects the attitudes of the consumer. Then, just maybe, you'll be able to judge that book by its cover.
Adele Lassere is a marketing/advertising consultant with 20+ years experience, freelance writer and author of “Elements of Buying” (self-help advertising guide), available at Amazon.com. Adele was listed as Black Enterprise’s 2011 Top Execs in Marketing & Advertising and Black Enterprise’s 2013 Top Women Executives in Advertising & Marketing. Contact: [email protected]
