Brand Marketers Reveal the Secrets to Connecting with Young Consumers

That stat from Viacom Velocity39s quotBrands in Proximityquot study means that an increasingly valuable generation of consumers aren39t able to trust brands the way that they want These young audiences want brands to participate in ongoing cultural conversations to fill the void left by traditional institutions such as the government and politicians This dissatisfaction represents an opportunity for brands to build relationships with hardtoreach 18 to 34yearolds through authentic online personasThere are promising signs that brands are on the right track as demonstrated by the Cannes Lions panel quotYouth Marketing Building Relationships with Millennials ampamp Gen Zquot which I recently had the opportunity to moderate I was joined on the panel by Ryan Anderson vice president of global marketing at Marriott International GiGi Downs managing director of planning and strategy at Edelman Tim Leake chief marketing officer at RPA Jeff Tan senior vice president and managing director of product and innovation at Dentsu Aegis Network USA and Dooley Tombras president of The Tombras Group This talented group shared their insights on how to connect to and build relationships with young consumers in an increasingly mobile and fragmented media marketplacePart of the challenge is as Leake said that brands tend to act too quotsleekquot and quotsophisticatedquot in their messaging amp8212 which doesn39t always resonate with younger consumers who expect a brand to act more human amp8212 flaws and all For people ages 18 to 34 brands are people and people are brands as we found in our quotCulture of Proximityquot study Most importantly as Leake added the brand should quotfeel like a singular person not like a conglomeration of many people making a groupthink decisionquotAnd nothing creates and builds relationships between brands and younger consumers better than engaging in real life quotI found it to be incredibly valuable to spend three hours with 20yearolds telling me what their dreams are for the future of our productquot Anderson said when explaining a recent partnership with an institute of higher education focused on the hospitality industryOnly brands with a solid foundation are going to be able to evolve and survive in categories that are facing disruption These companies are usually able to see when things change amp8212 and when they don39t In both cases they ought to be able to as Anderson put it connect with their audiences around quotpassion pointsquot which create shared experiencesquotYoung men are still experiencing the same things they did in the 3990squot said Downs explaining that marketers tend to quotget trappedquot by a notion of generational change even when values and experiences remain the sameThough the panel agreed with the notion of quotunchanged connectionsquot as Downs described it generational values have evolved and shifted For example the luggage company Away has found marketing success by creating Instagrammable moments around sharing which is something Gen Z values more than ownership or consumption An example of a legacy brand authentically tapping on those fixed passion points amp8212 with a twist amp8212 is General Motors39 peertopeer ridesharing service quotThese brands are starting to focus on the experience first capitalizing on this whole trend particularly with young people not buying but renting because for them it39s all about the mobile and sharing economyquot Tan saidSharing breeds collaboration especially between brands As Anderson indicated these exchanges could be great opportunities for emerging brands quotto borrow brand equity from a more established entityquot When done correctly he said it39s an excellent way to build awarenessExperiential marketing is perfect for leveraging these types of partnerships and is especially appealing for consumers who are eager to share wellexecuted brand activations on social media Of note according to quotCulture of Proximityquot almost 50 percent of millennials say social media walls relieve anxiety In that regard the panel moved onto discussing how young audiences experience these types of live eventsDowns explained that while millennials were happy to snap a picture and post it on social media Gen Z audiences tend to capture assets and put an original spin on the content quotThey39re growing up with tools that facilitate creativity So they39re going to take part in your assets and redefine them to create their own storiesquot Downs mentionedThis coproduction of content between brands and their younger audiences presents one of the most significant opportunities with Gen Z Growing up in a world of internet trolls Gen Z is more reserved than millennials when it comes to expressing their opinions online That39s why when a brand reflects its own values they do not hesitate to amplify and endorse that messageThe bond between quotwokequot brands and their younger audiences allows for a closer relationship despite fragmentation It39s increasingly challenging to reach young cordnevers who use adfree content platforms and ad blockers but this forces marketers to think more editorially than advertorially to make lasting connectionsThe shrewdness these young audiences possess when it comes to media and technology can be a blessing in disguise for brands as one of my panelists concluded quotThis generation39s understanding about what brands are and developing a personal brand is fascinatingquot Anderson said He added that this is the ultimate passion point where brands and their younger audiences can connectClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Brand Marketers Reveal the Secrets to Connecting with Young Consumers

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Dario Spina

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Brand Marketers Reveal the Secrets to Connecting with Young Consumers

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