If you aren't marketing to Millennials, you are missing out on the largest age group in America. This demographic makes up 72 million people in the US, and they have a substantial amount of spending power. But, the tactics you use for other generations, from Boomers to Generation Z, don't automatically apply to Millennials.
With all jokes about snowflakes and avocado toast aside, the more you know about Millennials, the more effective your campaign will be. Information about their engagement preferences, digital devices, and media consumption is worth its weight in gold.
New research commissioned by Bluecore in partnership with NAPCO Research illuminated some of these Millennial preferences. This report highlights intel you can use now to crack into the Millennial market with more effective marketing campaigns.
Don't believe what you've heard; email marketing isn't dead. It is not only alive and well — it is the key to targeting the Millennial market. According to the Bluecore research, when it comes to brand engagement, "Sixty-four percent of Millennials find email to be the channel that feels the most personal."
Roughly two-thirds of Millennial respondents said they prefer to receive brand information through email. Interesting, considering that this is often called the Instagram generation. Yet, only one percent reported enjoying getting brand information from Instagram.
Need more convincing about the power of email marketing to Millennials? Consider that 68 percent of this age group check their email up to five times a day. What's more exciting is they only get, on average, five promotional emails per day.
There is shockingly not a ton of inbox competition, and it represents a massive opportunity for your campaign.
It's no surprise that most people born between 1980 and 1995 have a cell phone. According to Pew Research, 90 percent of this group have a smartphone. So why does this matter for launching a Millennial-focused marketing campaign?
As the Bluecore report tells us, "59 percent of Millennials report using their smartphone for email." If you are still formatting your campaigns to look good on desktop rather than focusing on mobile, you may see low open and click-thru rates. Chances are, if it doesn't load properly or look good on their phone, your campaign will fall flat.
The takeaway here is that you always need to optimize for mobile to reach Millennials. Suppose your target audience is within arms reach of their phone at every waking moment and opening their inbox on that phone several times daily. In that case, you have a substantial opportunity to engage.
So what else do we need to think about with a Millennial-focused marketing campaign? Don't just think email, think Gmail.
As per Bluecore's survey, 61 percent use Gmail as their email provider, with all others (Yahoo, Microsoft) left in the dust.
Gmail inboxes require specific formatting, including title length, snippet length, and more. Plus, let's not forget the Promotions tab, which is an email categorization program specific to Gmail. When it was initially released, many marketers feared the end of email promos. But, if the Bluecore data is true, it has actually made it easier to grab a reader's attention.
Bluecore's survey indicates that most Millennial Gmail users — 70 percent — use the promo tab. But, do they check it often? Yes, 53 percent reported going into the Promotion tab daily.
As per the report, "When promotional emails come into a central mailbox, users are inclined to skip over them in the course of daily mailbox management." The Promotions tab means that "consumers are intentionally interacting with promotional content. Rather than skimming past it in a central mailbox, they are more inclined to fully consume and engage with it."
A clear picture is forming about the Millennial shopper. They not only prefer, but they want to engage with brands through their inbox. They largely use Gmail as their provider and regularly and intentionally look for promotions.
Transform this intel into your next marketing campaign to focus on how to grab attention in Gmail, and specifically within the Promotions tab. An intelligent email marketing strategy is how you will capture that Millennial market
Email marketing, unlike any other channel, touches every stage of the sales funnel. Whether you are B2B or B2C, email marketing is incredibly versatile—and it is the only channel you truly own.
Our lead nurturing campaigns are highly personalized, employing the power of four terabytes of up-to-date consumer data on 260+ million Americans and 25+ million Canadian adults. This unprecedented intel delivers consumer intelligence on an extraordinary scale.
Let WUNDERWORX help you cut through the inbox noise to increase open rates, click-thrus, and sales. Let's have a conversation.