When you’re trying to promote a web site one of the first things you do is figure out your audience. You have to know how they think, how they feel, and what their struggles are.
If you’re marketing to Millennials, you have your hands full. This generation is unlike anything we’ve seen before. They’re smarter, savvier shoppers and they have different values than previous generations.
Millennials also outnumber baby boomers, making them a prime target for your marketing efforts. Your marketing writing has to be on point to capture their attention.
Read on to find out some of the top marketing tips to gear your content to capture the attention of Millennials.
The Psychographics of Millennials
Understanding how to market to Millennials requires a deep understanding of that audience. You have to know demographic information. You also have to know what drives them to make a purchase.
Let’s start with demographic information. Millennials are those who were born between 1981 and 1996.
They can multi-task and are tech savvy. They are bombarded with marketing messages every day and they’re not very likely to trust any of them.
They also have financial pressures that other generations haven’t faced. Student loan debt has prevented many of them from buying a home and holding off to start a family.
Marketing Writing for the Millennial Audience
The key takeaway for you as a content writer is that Millennials browse first before making a purchase. Your job is to nurture them and take them on a journey to drive a purchase. Here are some tips for doing just that.
1. Be Authentic
The very first thing that you need to do is to be authentic. Millennials have a way to tell if you’re trying to con them or not.
In your marketing writing, you need to have a voice that is what your brand is about. You don’t need to be edgy or drop a lot of F-bombs to get attention.
You do need to be honest and transparent. If you try to come across as something that you’re not, it will show and you’ll lose your audience very quickly.
2. Show Your Values
Millennials are very aware of the global impact that their actions make. In the wake of climate change and environmental disasters, they’ve realized that they can have an impact through their purchasing power.
That’s one of the reasons why TOMS Shoes has been so successful. They wear their values on their feet. Millennials have responded by supporting the company and buying their products.
You want to show what your company stands for in your writing. It could be for the environment, for social justice, for doing good in the community.
3. Make Your Points Quickly
There’s a myth the millennials have shorter attention spans than previous generations. That’s not true. They can actually concentrate longer, but you have to give them a reason to stick around.
You’ll want to make it clear right from the beginning what you’re going to do for them in your content, whether that shows them how to cook or make a DIY project.
You then need to follow through on the promise without any fluff. They’ll turn to something else because they don’t have the patience to wait for the promised result.
4. Engage Your Audience
One other thing that you can do is your marketing writing is engage them. Ask people for their opinions or input. This is easy to implement in emails, blog posts, and social media channels.
You can even take it a step further and ask your audience to contribute material to your brand. It could be pictures of them using your product and posting the image on social media with a hashtag.
5. Don’t Go for a Hard Sell
As you take Millennial buyers on a journey, you want to make sure that you don’t go for the hard sell. Trying to hit them over the head to get them to buy from you comes across as desperate.
It simply won’t work. You have to take the time to earn their trust, show your values and then ask for the sale.
6. Have a Purpose
Each piece of content that you write needs to have a purpose with a call to action. Your audience will take action, but you have to tell them what to do.
When someone first visits your web site, encourage them to look at other blog posts or to sign up for your list. Later on, you can encourage them to browse and buy products or services.
7. Write for the Medium and the Audience
You now have a lot on your plate since you want to reach Millennials. It’s not easy to write for that audience because they demand a lot from you and your company.
You also have to write for the medium, too. Writing a blog post and copying and pasting it into Instagram won’t cut it. The intent behind each medium is different.
You may be looking on Google to answer a specific question and find the answer in a blog post. You expect that answer will be in-depth and will solve your problem quickly.
The intent behind Instagram is different. People are on their phones scrolling through stunning images and then read the story behind those images. They’re being entertained rather than finding a solution to a problem.
Your marketing writing needs to keep these things in mind.
Marketing Writing for Millennials Can Grow Your Business
There are dozens of ways to market your business. If you don’t know your audience well, then whatever you do will fall flat.
With Millennials, your marketing writing has to do a lot and do it fast. You need to be authentic, engaging, and let them know what your values are.
You also have to write for the medium, too. Otherwise, your message will get lost.
If you want more great marketing tips, be sure to check out our blog today.