Materialism helps explain the consumer behaviour of youth. They are interested in new products and more responsive to advertising and promotional efforts. Their parents view them as more expert with regard to products and they wield more purchase influence on their parents.
Global internet media and social media consumption among adults has evolved differently based on regions. The US tends to lead the way, followed with varying levels of adoption across EMEA (Europe Middle East & Africa), APaC (Asia Pacific & China) and LatAm (Latin America). But youth globally seem to be adopting social media and media consumption in a more uniformed manner.
We all know youth are uber multitaskers, so when you create campaigns, take multiple channels into consideration. ( https://tinyurl.com/anton-jhb-2011 <https://tinyurl.com/anton-jhb-2011>)
Media multi-tasking — such as simultaneously searching websites, emailing and talking to someone — is prevalent in all countries, particularly among younger consumers. On the web, the customer is no longer king. They’re dictator. They don’t give their loyalty easily. They do, however, get annoyed easily.
The youth don’t want experiences on websites. They don’t want to emotionally bond with a website.
When was the last time you felt delighted after you booked a flight? Did you have a great experience booking that cinema ticket or did you have a great experience at the cinema?
Forget social media and mobile as buzzwords. New media was originally just a promise and has morphed into an extra tool – not a marketing strategy. The question now is how are you going to put me into ‘your’ story? How do I fit in with ‘your’ brand?
Have you ever noticed, flicking through websites with pictures of you and your friends, that you are only ‘really’ interested in the photos that have you in them?
How do you as a brand engage with a billion ideas from customers across multiple channels and still get your message across? Maybe it is time to have a serious look at what, especially the youth are expecting in the ‘anti-world’.
Are you going to make me famous?
Consumer generated marketing like we’ve heard on radio, TV and even YouTube where creative collaboration is key to the driving a campaign has become ever more popular, reality TV being one of the results of this strategy outcome.
Are you going to support our community?
You are now selling the community, not a product. The community will decide what is important to them based on their collective interests as well as talks with their peers. Does your brand support the needs of the community? Can you make it an integral part of their existence?
Are you going to make me feel important?
Who has the pockets full of money, or at least can dictate to mom and dad to buy what to buy? Nuff said?
Are you going to give me something to care about?
Selling social values in stead of products in order to create a movement for people to care about something is an example of what companies like RockCorps do very well. Can you start seeing the trends?
Are you going to give me direct access?
The triumph of transparency leads to brand integrity.
Are you going to put me in the driver’s seat?
That is, made me feel important and have shown me that you care and given me direct access to your brand – brand ambassadors of the world, quiver or rejoice?
Are you going to help me get where I need to be?
Promote and reward the influencers. These are the people that you need by your side, to tell their stories and create a bond between your brand and the community.
Are you going to make my opinion count?
I’ll help you strengthen that bond if you do.
Are you going to give me room to create?
Consumers are the product development department; all you need to do is listen.
How am I going to remember you after your campaign has ended?
Marketing is creation, engage with your customers and start the collective conversation.
Start making your customers part of your brand, in fact, put them in the centre of your brand and build your brand around them.
Once young consumers were thought to be naïve and persuadable. Now they are savvy, fickle and cynical to brand messages.
The brands that are winning now have been allowed into an inner circle, one where they carefully manage very sophisticated and very considered relationships
