Did you know that millennials and post-millennials combined make up almost 50% of the world’s population? That’s almost 4 billion people! This figure alone is reason enough to compel anyone into the business of marketing to young people—not to mention the power of influencers in today’s generation who can help boost your business in a big way once you have them on your side.
However, with globalization and constantly developing technologies that continue to influence the culture, preferences and thoughts of young people today, it is important to understand how to attract and keep the attention of this consumer group. The ‘buy now’ tactic which might have worked for older generations has little place in a world that places authenticity over traditional marketing. So if you are serious about marketing to young people, here are a few ways you can tweak your marketing strategy to help drive them to your business, and encourage their strong support.
Keep Content Short and Make it Instantly Rewarding
There are millions of businesses out there vying for the attention of everyone online and no shortage of videos, images, text and intrusive ads there to greet you each time you open up social media or visit a website. Top that up with a generation that wants everything right now and has no patience for anything that takes them longer than 5 seconds to consume.
With that, many young people have little interest in reading marketing ads, when there are so many other things vying for their attention. This is why you want to keep your content catchy—to stop them scrolling; and brief, so they have no time to lose interest. But even short content isn’t enough to keep your audience’s attention.
Adding instant gratification to your product or service offering is what will inevitably pull in your customers. How do you do this?—Stop talking about the features of your product; talk instead about how the customer directly benefits. It’s all about appealing to the emotions of your customers. So instead of talking about how big the burger is and its ingredients, use phrases such as ‘tasty’, ‘juicy’, ‘happiness’ and ‘on-the-go’ to create the image of what your customers get when they purchase.
Share Value; Not More Ads
Today’s culture is a ‘woke’ culture. Young people are increasingly becoming aware of various global issues surrounding them and are more likely to attach themselves to individuals and groups that openly share their values while boycotting or criticizing those in the public eye who refuse to take a stance on certain issues.
Young people today don’t ask the question, “What are you selling?” but rather, “What’s your purpose for selling this? What big goal are you trying to achieve?” Therefore, allow your business to share its bigger purpose with its audience. Stop pushing salesy ads, and start pushing the values that make your brand what it is. If youth align with what you stand for, they are more likely to support your business, even without being sold on how great your product or service is.
Be Human
The Internet, while it has opened us up to a world of opportunities and convenience, has also brought along with it, a world filled with hackers, scammers and other dishonest people. Young people are very aware of this and are therefore cautious of who they trust online. Therefore, to stand out online and make yourself trustworthy in the eyes of your audience, you will need to bring a high level of authenticity to your business.
That is, you will need to incorporate your unique personality into your brand by showing people your genuine self. One of the best ways to establish trust with your audience is to allow them to see and understand your journey.
Don’t be afraid to discuss how your business started, the trials you experienced and how you ended up where you are, today. Share the causes and interests of the brand and your team as well. Remember; people sell to people. So the more you can sell yourself as a person with real struggles, triumphs and feel-good experiences; the more people will get to know, like and trust you, and the easier it will be for them to want to support you.
Conclusion
Selling to the younger generation is all about building relationships based on shared values and trust. Even paid ads, while some try to be authentic, may soon be a thing of the past due to their salesy structure and the annoying way they tend to push themselves in front of everyone. Learn to embrace organic connections and practice simply being human in front of your customers, and business sales will follow naturally.
Need help putting together a marketing strategy that can appeal to younger audiences? Hop on a chat with me and I’ll help you get on the right track. https://tinyurl.com/2fcv8d2x
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