Page 281 - Social Media Marketing for Dummies

Interestingly enough, a Millennial’s reason for choosing a brand may be different
from what you expect. Millennials choose brands that enhance their own brands
on social media. They focus on their followers and are aware of which brands will
enhance their reputation. Among Millennials, brands are seen as an extension of
their own socially conscious attitudes. They want to associate themselves with
companies that demonstrate an interest in the community issues they care about.

More than any other generation, Millennials see themselves as brands. They often
develop their own content, images, and video. So, for example, when they choose
Nike as a brand, they choose it because it says something about them. They want
to be perceived as caring about such things as health, innovation, and trustwor-
thiness. Look at your Millennial audience to determine what they think your brand
says about them. If your audience is not responding, develop content and images
that speak more clearly to what your brand represents.

Appreciating the convenience

of subscription services

Are you looking for a business model that attracts Millennials? One to consider is
the subscription model. It’s a curated selection of items that arrives at your house
each month for a set fee.

One reason Millennials favor subscription services (more than other generations)
is that it allows them to return items without having to go to the store. They value
the convenience.
A new study by First Insight, “The State of Consumer Spending: Millennials
Flexing Their Retail Market Influence in U.S. and U.K.,” found that 25 percent of
U.S. Millennials subscribe to subscription box services and when asked about their
plans, 32 percent of those who hadn’t subscribed yet, intended to in the next six
months.

One such offering is Birchbox (https://get.birchbox.com/index-v7-pc.html),
a monthly beauty subscription service, as shown in Figure 17-4. (They also have a
Birchbox app that is available in the Apple App store and Google Play.)

Birchbox is attractive to Millennials because they allow you to customize their
offerings and create a sense of adventure — two essential keys to engaging
Millennials (https://artplusmarketing.com/how-to-market-to-millennials-
5-brands-who-are-doing-it-right-9273d35b43cf).

Many products and services lend themselves to a monthly subscription model.
Think about how you might customize a subscription offering for your target
audience.

CHAPTER 17 Marketing to Millennials 265