The faces of the millennial generation. Photo by Bon Duke for the New York Times
A global hub for trend-setting consumption, New York City – the place where dreams come true and ideas flourish — is a mecca for the millennial generation. Born between 1980 and 2000, the millennials are currently entering the prime of adult life and correspondingly are changing the culture we experience day-to-day.
As a recent New York Times’ article, “The Millennials are Generation Nice,” reported, citing a Pew Research Center study of 50 million millennials, this complex group is “not an entitled generation but a complex and introspective one – with a far higher proportion of nonwhites than its predecessors.”
Having grown up with smartphones and an innate knack for technology, millennials are jumping ahead of previous generations in motivating brands’ marketing and advertising campaigns – generally valuing not self-promotion, but empathy and connection.
As the New York Times notes, “The do-goodish pitch is aimed squarely at millennials, who collectively favor companies that embrace the values of good citizenship. The Brookings report says millennials overwhelmingly ‘responded with increased trust (91 percent) and loyalty (89 percent), as well as a stronger likelihood to buy from those companies that supported solutions to specific social issues (89 percent).’”
As a public relations agency specializing in the travel and lifestyle sectors, we work to constantly track the purchasing habits of this influential group. It is our responsibility to guide and encourage our clients, whether an eco-lodge in the Dominican Republic or a fully solar powered yoga retreat in Rhinebeck, to highlight the ways in which they give back to the world – thus fostering the communalism of the millennial group.
What tactics do you find most effective in reaching the millennial consumer?