Collaboration is Key

Learn the values of your millennial audience

As a millennial, I resonate better with brands that know and support my values. I love when a brand is socially responsible or if they collaborate with a good cause. I then become more apt to buy products from them because we share the same values.

Collaboration marketing is a great way to reach the values of the millennial audience. Marketing Donut defines collaboration marketing as the co-creation of products, marketing campaigns or on-pack promotions between two or more businesses. Essentially a business can get together with another brand to promote each other and share each other’s products to expand their own reach.

You might ask: why is this good for the millennial audience?

St. Joseph Communications released a study that stated 50% of millennials in the U.S. said that the brands they use say something about who they are, what their values are and where they fit in. They also found out that 48% of millennials try to use the brands of companies that are active in supporting social causes.

What to do:

Figure out what the values of your millennial target audience are and use those values to create a collaborative marketing strategy. Make sure you have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and develop your campaign from there. Finding out the core values of your audience will allow you to find the perfect match for collaboration. In turn, your brands reach will grow and the millennial audience will resonate with your brand because your values match.

Collaborate with a brand that makes sense

Make sure you stay true to your brand. Don’t create a collaborative marketing campaign with a business or charity that doesn’t make sense to your brand. Why? You guessed it- it won’t make sense to your audience either. Make sure your co-collaborator matches your brands values or has a common cause. That will create a complementary relationship and will help you to achieve success in your collaboration marketing campaign.

Outbound on the Outs

What I got in the mail today

When I get my mail I quickly scan through it for bills and then I throw out the "junk". When I listen to the radio and a commercial comes on, I change the station. I simply don’t own cable because I can watch TV on the Internet without commercials. Everyday the human population is targeted by many outbound marketing strategies.

First you might ask: What is an outbound marketing strategy?

According to Wordstream, outbound marketing is a traditional form of marketing where a company initiates conversation by sending their messages out to an audience. Outbound marketing consists of TV and radio commercials, direct mail, print advertisements, email blasts, etc.

Then you might ask: What’s the difference between inbound and outbound marketing?

BoldThink Creative defines inbound marketing as targeting an audience by providing useful and quality content to entice them to find more information on your products or services. In short, for inbound marketing the consumer finds you and for outbound marketing you find them. Click here to find an info-graphic showcasing the different types of inbound and outbound marketing tactics.

So, how does this tie into millennials? 
Outbound marketing strategies don’t work on the millennial generation. We see outbound marketing as intrusive and impersonal. We see it as company-focused and untrustworthy. Our attention spans are short, but our demands are high. We want marketing efforts to be personalized because we like to feel involved in the purchase. Outbound marketing strategies cause clutter in our everyday lives which doesn't impress us. So, why waste your time and money?

What to do: 
Millennials make up 50% of today’s population. Change your marketing strategy so that it is driven by our generation. Start personalizing your approach and we will come to you.