What Taylor Swift Taught This Non-Millennial About Engagement

The lionamp8217s share of my coworkers are Millennials and every brand I touch wants to figure out how to amp8220engage Millennialsamp8221 So irrespective of the hundreds of articles surveys polls and white papers Iamp8217ve collected and read on how to engage with them you can imagine my shock when I begrudgingly shook it off at the Taylor Swift concert this summer and unexpectedly found my amp8220ahaamp8221I went into T Swiftamp8217s concert kicking and screaming I knew one song and even that wasnamp8217t on my playlist Yet from the moment I walked through the turnstiles Taylor offered up a truly engaging experienceWe talk a lot about driving fanaticism with our clients and how fanaticism is the ultimate form of engagement But it can only happen when the right storytelling tactics are put into play to make the listener aka your target consumer want to continue the conversationWhat T Swift taught me is that there are really three simple rules of engagement1amp160 Make them ask amp8220Whatamp8217s nextamp8221 A glowinthedark bracelet was slapped on my wrist when my ticket was scanned ooh mystery I was intrigued I took my seat and was surrounded by screaming fans of all ages surprisingly that were talking about whom Tayloramp8217s surprise guests would be that night Boom amp8211 I was even more intrigued turned out to be Nick Jonas and Tayloramp8217s amp8220squadamp8221 of Super Models Then the stadium went dark the crowd erupted and suddenly there were twinkly lights as far as the eye could see It was magical I quickly realized they were coming from the bracelets and I couldnamp8217t help it amp8230 I started cheering too I couldnamp8217t wait to see what happened next And thatamp8217s when it hit me I was truly engagedHow can this translate to your brand Look at your annualized program and figure out how you can break down your larger story into chapters and then create some suspense For example if your innovation pipeline will unveil new products or services this year figure out a way to tease the release and involve your target in just how much information gets revealed based on social interaction tweets use of hashtags etc In the past weamp8217ve launched new flavor innovations for our food and beverage brands by releasing muted imagery and asked consumers to submit their guess as to whatamp8217s coming next This tactic builds a groundswell of buzz and creates conversations around new innovations before products actually launch2 Let go While Tayloramp8217s set may have been the same night after night across her world tour you can tell from her Instagram 62 million followers strong just how different each concert was Crowd interaction audience response and the volume of cheers led to how she revealed and brought her special guest stars to the stage Surprise and delight layers fueled realtime social sharing I saw fans posting feverishly to Instagram Snapchat and Facebook in the moment Taylor framed the narrative but then let the story unfold in a participatory twoway format It was living proof that if you allow your target to contribute to the story versus just asking them to listen you end up with a much richer more generative storyHow can this translate to your brand If your brand isnamp8217t currently leveraging usergenerated content figure out ways to involve the consumer through contests and rewardsbased initiatives that are more than simply offering free product Reward them with experiences at which your brand sits in the center3amp160 Be a part of their life not just a brand Tayloramp8217s diatribes between sets were a bit much for this GenXer however I watched in amazement as she waxed philosophical about owning independence and selfvalidation As many around me were crying and laughing or screaming amp8220I love you Tayloramp8221 I thought amp8220Wow how can a brand harness this poweramp8221 Then I realized that she commanded this reaction because most of the audience felt like they knew Taylor on a personal level that she was truly a part of their lives because of the media and her social footprintHow can this translate to your brand Craft your key messages and then support them with content and social posts that reinforce the role you play in your targetamp8217s lifestyle For example in our work for Bugaboo strollers all of our key messages ladder back to the emotional pull between a mother and wanting to do what is best for her baby We tug at her heartstrings by positioning Bugaboo not just as a stroller but as a babyamp8217s first set of wheelsNever in my wildest dreams would I have thought Taylor Swift could impact my thinking around engagement Where I netted out is that itamp8217s not something you can dictate or force You can strategize and plan and put a smart offering in place that has all the makings to stir engagementamp160 But real engagement happens where the head meets the heartI should have known as soon as those lights dimmed that girl was trouble when she walked inImage at top courtesy of Corbis The opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageMyersBizNet management or associated bloggers

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