Millennials are a brave bunch. How many “doomsdays” have we lived through? Now we have learnt to live for the now. When techno gadgets abound, Millennials are looking for experiences to remember, even though our Snapchat posts about them will be gone in a, well, snap.
Eco conscious, needing just the right amount of community time and yet exclusivity, we seek connections with our brands.
Snap up social media opps
Snapchat has changed the face of social media communication. Sponsored Snapchat lenses by brands are a digitised, virtual reality way to put your brand out there and be on the pulse. Snapchat is über popular with Millennials, and geofilters and lenses are a great way to create hype around an event.
Snapchat is capitalising on the trend of providing condensed information for an attention-challenged target audience. Social media is so powerful that sharing tourism experiences via social media apps has blurred the line between travel advisor and tourist.
Experiential opportunities
Millennials love photo opps for social media. So it’s best you make marketing ventures as well as daily activities an aesthetically pleasing experience. For example boutique gyms are doing well for their stylish take on what would be a daily grind. Brands are also seizing opportunities to be part of our daily routines in other ways, with pop-ups appearing in commuter spaces.
Millennials are considered an anxious generation, so we seek escape and adventure. Experience-driven moments and social interaction take us away from a digital focus. Allow us to feel young and carefree again and we will reward you with great reviews and returning support for your brand.
Brands that offer milestone exhibitions worthy of an art gallery are an escape into a dazzling world of visual illusions and a photo opp fest. They make the viewer feel youthfully engaged. Offline publicity stunts have an ironic counter-effect of increasing online customer traffic.
Offline connectivity fuels online engagement
Takeovers are a key marketing trend. With a sense of urgency due to their time-sensitive nature, takeovers provide touch-points with the consumer. They are brand celebrations and memorable, experience driven opportunities.
Flagship stores are another opportunity to touch base with the consumer. They set themselves apart by offering the unexpected, like customisation booths.
Customisation allows an extension of yourself through the brand, and a feeling of connection to something in the material sense and the esoteric sense through what the brand represents. Customised health solutions lend themselves to this ideally.
In-store entertainment makes shopping an experience. A sense of community is fostered through communal shopping experiences which help the consumer learn more about the products and encourage personal growth.
Think group artisanal “how-to” experiences in stores. On the other end of the spectrum, members-only exclusivity is a climbing trend. High quality and one on one service lends a sense of intimacy in a globalised, expansive climate.
Self-extension
Brands releasing documentaries on their areas of expertise and knowledge likewise works with the trend of self-advancement and building on what you’re good at. Training and recruitment is approached by way of game set-ups, in a more lighthearted and less intimidating way. Brands are offering niche training and sponsored apprenticeships.
Brands are also asking consumers to prove themselves and thereby claim status in some way. Be it a yoga fest or triathlon, this striving for more and digging deep together cultivates community and collaboration. It is again an experience to write home about that generates plenty of hype.
Emotional, sentimental, behind the scenes ad campaigns show the work that goes into achievements, as with ads featuring the Olympians.
Wellness and Well-being
While keeping track of personal routines can be done digitally, wellness extends to extreme excursions like glacial picnics, and adrenaline holidays. The trend is to highlight wellness in extreme ways.
Futuristic food experiences like 3D printed food and human tear cocktails take the culinary arts to the next level. Workshops to gain artisanal knowledge show the self-development trend goes beyond your traditional cheese and wine evening. “Foody” cocktails to nourish, rejuvenate and offset the harmful effects of alcohol are becoming highly popular.
Brands with a conscience
We see the integration of nature into the urban and interior for tranquility and connection to the environment for well-being.
Billboards that double as community gardens serve an eco-purpose as well as being unusual and forward thinking marketing tools. Zero waste grocery stores are popping up, as the trend towards eco-consciousness and sustainability grows.
Outspoken fashion and play wins the day. We see toys aimed at equality and diversity. Gender neutral children’s products are allowing the youth to grow up naturally without being groomed into predetermined gender roles.
Teens are taking a stand against stereotypes and choosing brands that allow them to show their support for a cause.
Double Up
Co-branding means you are buying into a lifestyle, not just buying a car, and budget brands under the umbrella of a trusted bigger brand bring a sense of a reliable and established reputation.
Collaborations bring the benefit of more than one perspective and a greater outreach.
What now?
Schedule an adult play date style takeover for your brand serving health food infused cocktails, with lush, eco-conscious decor. Include some sort of extreme challenge in the experience.
Be sure to offer a workshop that helps the consumer gain insight into the background and motivations of your brand and/or production process of your product, and give them the opportunity to customise something to take home with them. Sound good? If not, turn your tears into cocktails and serve chilled.