Brand Communication to Millennials
On a rare occasion, I switched on the television and while channel surfing I came across a commercial for a car endorsed by a popular Bollywood actor. This actor definitely belonged to the millennial generation and hence it was safe to assume that the brand was targeting the millennial generation among it other target audiences.
Now the question was what are the millennial generation's media consumption habits? Of course, the writing on the wall is very clear. The millenials consume an array of digital media and the traditional media channels may be non-existent for this cohort. However, brands continue to invest in television advertising to cater to their other target audiences and to be visible on the medium, among various other reasons.
That brings us to another pertinent question. What is considered a credible message by the millennials? Can we continue to create brand messages the way we did a decade ago with done-to-death themes like emotions, hard-sell and celebrity endorsements?
It may be a good idea to understand the millennials foremost.
Let us have a look at the Deloitte's Global Millennial Survey 2019
Millennials and Gen Z are wired differently from the generations that were born during the Old Economy and hence their world views, tastes and opinions are interestingly different. So let's cut straight to the story and understand how brands should communicate to millennials. This generation values experience. Brands are required to amplify these experiences either physically or virtually. Wisdom says immersive experience can result into specific brand outcomes. And hence experience matters for the millennial customer.
The millennials do not really care about how great your product is. What they definitely are concerned about is how the product was created and in the process were any stakeholders at a disadvantage. They do not take cause campaigns seriously for they know that getting a celebrity and creating an appealing visual and using the digital medium will neither save tigers nor reduce pollution. They want brands to walk (back) the talk. Or rather they want brands to look into their value chain and rework on their business models to commit to a cause. This means sourcing of raw materials, vendor pricing, employing children by vendors, usage of scare resources, waste treatment, fair trading and ethical practices, employee practices and finally offering what is considered 'value' by customers.
Several companies in telecom service, FMCG, electronic consumables, passenger vehicles target millennials. It is essential to relook at what millennials want and address these wants through better products and meaningful communication.
