Photo by Shakirah Shakirah

Jim Nichols (aka @catalystjim) is an expert marketer and Senior Partner  at Catalyst SF. On Monday, Jim  gave me a flattering ’shout out’ on iMediaconnection. Now it’s my turn to return the favor. His insightful article, “Digital Demographics: 11 Brands That Are Doing It Right” spotlights eleven campaigns, six of which are targeted to Millennials.

Here are highlights of his descriptions and critique of the six Millennial-targeted campaigns:

(Hint: Jim included lots of video in his article, to see the campaigns, click on the numbered brand names)

1. The U.S. Military

“No organization has a greater interest in appealing to teens than the military. It’s certainly no accident that the imagery in many armed services ads shows great similarity to that of a first-person shooter game. Gaming might be a keystone in military marketing, but so too are social networking, video, mobile, and tailored peer-to-peer experiences that enable prospects to speak directly with soldiers and hear firsthand accounts of life in the military.

Believe it or not, values and ideals are the central themes in all of these executions. In the sponsored games, virtue triumphs over evil. In daily activities, soldiers are more likely to be shown as relief providers after tsunamis than street-to-street fighters. You might disagree with such portrayals for moral or political reasons, but make no mistake — they are central to virtually all of these communications. And that’s because they are central to the sensibilities of today’s teens.”

2. Axe

“I am now going to talk about Axe, for no other reason than to see if iMedia Connection will let me discuss a viral effort called “Clean Your Balls” on these hallowed pages. There’s certainly a seminal idea here..Some 200,000 people are also fans of Axe and the campaign on Facebook. Axe has heavily integrated mobile into the mix as well, most notably in its “Hair Crisis Alert” SMS campaign.  Overseas, the Axe brand has appealed to teens with an IM-delivered spin-the-can game that encourages teens to reveal sex secrets. Since few teens have a high privacy threshold, it offers the brand a prime opportunity to get intimate.”

3. Ford Taurus

“Ford’s Taurus effort in partnership with car lifestyle magazine Dub reflects many of these characteristics. By talking to real millenials, not actors, Ford honestly addresses past image problems, thereby making the ultimate family car relevant to the new family values of millennials. The nice rims didn’t hurt, either. But that’s part of being a millennial too: Family? Flash? Doink! Let’s have both! There was a lot more than video to this effort, with digital outdoor, social media, and brand integration on the Dub site, to give just a few examples.”

4. eHarlequin.com

“Yes, Virginia, Harlequin romance novels are definitely not just for Grandma anymore. There are still pirates with hearts of gold and dusty but decidedly unstinky cowboys on some of the covers. But Harlequin is working hard to evolve and be culturally relevant to millennials. According to Book Business, Harlequin is at the forefront of e-publishing and “enhanced editions” that combine updated potboiler text with rich content, websites, and interactive experiences especially for Gen Y. Harlequin is a leader in ebooks, offering titles on all the major platforms. In addition, the publisher offers blogging support, widgets, and badges, and extensive online marketing programs designed for the demo. Now, there’s nothing to say that all this interactivity isn’t relevant for all ages, but its success at attracting millennials is getting significant attention.”

5. I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter

“From where I sit, I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter’s new campaign is genius. How do you do health product news for a not-health-obsessed target, on behalf of an irreverent brand? Cue Gloria Estefan song! This seems quintessentially Gen X to me both because of the vintage of the song the brand parodies, and the surreal nature of the whole darned thing. There’s also the ironic fun. A thankfully non-jail-baity boy band behind our faux everywoman female lead, Megan Mullally. Majestic lyrics to boot.”

6. FreeCreditReport.com

“The ad campaign for FreeCreditReport.com, based on the fear of mundane, menial jobs, seems to be pointed squarely at Gen X. I mean, the idea of having a McJob as a result of a bad credit rating — Douglas Coupland couldn’t have written it better. While the reality of low-paying jobs is sadly known to far more people than just unlucky Gen-Xers, one of the ads comes straight out of “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”

In Conclusion….

The article goes on to cover five additional campaigns each targeted to older cohorts, then draws this conclusion about the differences (or similarities) to the Millennial-targeted efforts:

“There is certainly evidence of demo-specific targeting across age cohorts in digital. But having witnessed hundreds of examples in the course of writing this article, I am struck by how the medium is less central than the messages and values. Which is as it should be. It’s apparent that digital has matured to a medium that begins with an idea rather than an executional form…. Teen campaign ideas should be different than senior campaign ideas. We should talk to millennials differently than we do to Gen X or boomers. But the tools we use can come from a common list.” – Jim Nichols

Amen.  Generational marketing has a tendency to focus on the question of media choices and ‘how’ we reach each age group differently. But with the rapid adoption of social media by all ages, the question becomes less about the target-appropriate platform and more about target-appropriate content. It comes down to ideas.

The idea that the idea comes first, media second (what we used to call media-neutrality)  is not new. Whether we were talking about radio, TV or billboards, or are now talking about Facebook, FourSquare, or text, the idea should come first. (Perhaps this should be called platform neutrality?)

Thanks for the shout out, the terrific article and especially the reminder of what’s most important, Jim.

Related posts:

• Why Digital Media Hasn’t Replaced TV Yet
• The Gen Y Digital Divide: Natives vs. Immigrants
• Will 2010 Be Digital Media’s BreakOut Decade?

Either purchase intentions are less than a sure thing or other factors are at play. That factor is  called Parents.

I have noted before that when targeting Millennials, it’s wise for markters to “Meet the Parents”. They are unlikely to make major decisions without parental input. And in some cases (especially when they are underwriting the cost), the parents’ vote is the only one that really matters. Computers are perfect example of why that advice is worth considering. According to Ypulse:

“Understanding the apparent disconnect between current use and future intent among college students requires a better understanding of who’s doing the buying and when. Laptops are largely paid for by Mom and Dad just before a college student’s freshman year. Only one third of collegians report paying for their laptop using only their own money – the other two-thirds get help with a portion of the price tag (10%) or have it purchased for them entirely (56%). While deciding what to buy is more often within the student’s control, more than a third (36%) are being influenced by the advice of others.” — YPulse Report, July 2009

“Dell is the laptop brand most often used by high school students at 30% current ownership while Apple trails dramatically at 4% current ownership. Future intent is nearly at parity with 22% intending to buy an Apple and 20% intending to buy a Dell. Merely one out of eight (13%) of high school students paid for their own PC and merely one-third (33%) made the decision as to what they would purchase.” — YPulse Report, July 2009

Related posts:

• Role Reversal? Marketing to Millennials Through Their Parents
• Millennial Parents: What Hath We Wrought?
• Millennial Parents: Hopelessly Devoted to You

There’s a reason why Zappos has been so successful in utilizing social media.  It’s not because they’re smart or because they work hard at it.  It really has nothing to do with in-depth market research or hours spent attending “How To Engage Customers Through Social Media” business conferences. I’m also pretty confident they never required employees to read “Social Media for Dummies”.

So, what’s the deal with Zappos?   Authenticity.
It’s who they are.

Zappos–unlike many aspiring copy-cat companies–hasn’t struggled to gain footing in social media.  That’s important, because the very act of struggling turns-off savvy consumers who can smell a worked-over social media campaign a mile away.

Tony Hsieh, Zappos’ CEO, tweets because he wants to.  That’s obvious to anyone who follows him on Twitter.  You don’t feel like you’re listening to the pontification or sly sales pitches of a CEO worth hundreds of millions of dollars.  Although Tony has made hundreds of millions in online business deals, he also refers to himself as a “monkey” and I’m pretty sure he has a tattoo on the top of his head.

Seriously.

And that’s just it.  Tony has built a company that–like him–is comfortable in its own skin.  That’s why Zappos has found so much success in social media, and that’s also why most companies haven’t.

What’s the Lesson Here?

It’s simple.  If you aren’t Tony Hsieh, then don’t try to be like him.  You would really make a terrible Tony, anyway.  You’re much better off being yourself. That’s what customers want, and hopefully you’ve seen by now that authenticity is one of the core values Gen Y has fully embraced.

There’s something attractive about a person who’s comfortable with who they are.  The same goes for brands.  Oh, and the opposite is true too.  You don’t want your brand to be like that person–you know who I’m talking about–that one person who’s always trying too hard to impress you.  The message communicated may be somewhat unconscious, but it’s still crystal clear. It goes something like this:

“I don’t really believe I have anything of value to you, but I’m still going to try to
convince you that I do anyway.”

Yuk.

Don’t Lose Hope

If you don’t have a tattoo on your head, that doesn’t mean you can’t blaze crazy trails in social media.  Here’s a way that just might help you unleash the power of social media for your company’s brand:

Lose the agenda. Yes, I did just say that.  Take a deep breath and try to forget all those strategic goals and profit-maximizing obsessions that dominate your thinking like ruthless dictators.  Allow yourself to wander mentally from the dollar-driven agenda you’ve learned to focus on.  Now exhale.  Feel any better?

Think about your brand.  Who is your brand?

I didn’t say what is your brand, I asked ‘who is your brand?’  Your brand should have personality.  If it doesn’t, it’s dead. If your brand doesn’t have personality then it has become disconnected from the people who, together, make up the brand. It’s lost.  Rigid.  Cold.  It’s a lot like the corpse in the movie Weekend at Bernie’s.

That makes you and the rest of your company like those guys who kept propping up Bernie’s lifeless body to make him seem alive.  It’s all just illusion.  You don’t really have anything to offer your customers, do you?

Once again, yuk.

Find the Who!

Have you ever read the book (or seen the movie) Horton Hears a Who!?  Doctor Seuss wrote about how Horton the Elephant managed to save an entire population by hearing the tiny voice of a Who living on a planet no larger than a speck of dust.  (I’m not so sure this is actually a true story, but the lesson is great anyway!)

Every brand has a Who.  Every company can answer the question “Who is your brand?”  I say that because behind every corporate brand there are people.  People with personalities.  But sometimes the loud noise of cutting costs and focusing on the bottom-line can drown out the life behind a brand.  You’ve got to find your brand’s personality because until you do, you can never be authentic.  Without it, your a ‘poser’ striving to convince customers you have what they want.  That’s enough.  Put Bernie’s corpse down and find the Who.

Now You’re Ready

Once your brand has found its personality, it’s ready to make its way back onto the social media scene.  After all, that’s what social media is all about: relationships between a whole bunch of Whos.

Get online and let your brand’s personality shine.  And alright, for those of you still holding your breath, it’s now safe to bring your “agenda” back into the mix.  But hopefully it won’t feel as much like an agenda.  Hopefully it’ll feel more like you’re just living out the nature of who your brand is.  You’ll be confident, comfortable in your own skin, and a heck of a lot more attractive to all the other Whos you encounter online.

Related posts:

• Social Media: More Social than Media
• Word of Mouth: Millennials Talk About Social Media
• Connecting Millennials to Causes with Social Media

Notre Dame Leprechaun Tattoo

Some of the most widely reported facts from the report on Millennials from Pew Research involved the prevalence of tatoos — and more personal body decoration — among  Gen Y.

“About half (54%) have done one or more of the following: gotten a tattoo, dyed their hair an untraditional color, or had a body piercing in a place other than their ear lobe….Gender is not a factor in either tatooing or untraditional hair-dyeing — men and women are about equally likely to have done either — but body piercing is more common among young women than among their male counterparts.”

The incidence of tattoos among Millennials as well as Gen X’ers is so widespread as to be almost mainstream.

Thirty-six percent of Millennials and 40% of Gen X have at least one tattoo and many have multiples.  (The reason this comes as a surprise to those of us who have never even contemplated the option of body art beyond ear piercing is that many are in discreet places.)

Tattoos are  one of the few evidences of a true generation gap. Just 10% of those over 40 years old admit to a tattoo.

For us on the far side of the tattoo divide, it makes little sense to pay money (sometimes a lot of money, I am told)  and endure pain to create an indelible mark. So it’s worth contemplating what marks Millennials find compelling enough to wear permanently.

A Google search of ‘tattoo designs’ returns over 2.3 million sites, so it’s hard to say what is most popular. The idiosyncracy of a tattoo appears to be part of its appeal. Nothing is quite as personal or individual.

Adam Di Stefano writes in The Next Great Generation blog that tattoos are a ‘Defining Mark’. He agrees that tattoos say a lot about a person, but what they don’t say is that the wearer is a ‘rebel’ or is trying to make any particular statement. According to Di Stefano, there is no single ‘type’ of person who wears a tattoo:

“Tattoos are an art form.  Some people like oil paintings, others like ancient sculptures. I think there’s nothing more beautiful than a well inked tattoo. I love the stories behind tattoos.  Most tattoos have meaning, and generally it represents an important moment in a person’s life. There’s something compelling about the permanence of a tattoo.”

Tanner Maluchnik, who blogs at Life Destiny, observes that sports brand tattoos are a sign of a particular affiliation, that of a fan for a team:

“I associate and branded myself, with ink, of the Penn State Nittany Lion brandmark (not unlike quite a few Notre Dame people I know either subway alum or not inking themselves with the Leprechaun). It is more based on the brand “Penn State Football,” instead of being a student and future alum of Penn State. Over 100,000 wearing white to a football game does not get any more “brand cult.” …Last summer when I was working on the beach with my shirt off everyday, it was so easy to speak with other “associated” people who saw my brandmark and went out of the way to get to know me.”

One of my more embarrassing moments came a few years ago in an interview I was conducting for a youth pastor position for our church.  My daughter had tipped me off that he had a tattoo, and I was feeling uncomfortable with this as a role model.  So I asked about his decision — what symbol would be so compelling as to wear for the rest of your life?  His reply? Jesus Christ.  Needless to say, he got the job.

Related posts:

• Millennials More Upright than Kids 20 Years Ago
• Why Don’t Millennials Feel Grown Up?
• Marketing to Millennials: Lessons from the Classroom

One of my favorite branding books is “The Culting of Brands: When Customers Become True Believers” by Douglas Atkin. The book explores the relationship between brand choice and identity. Atkins concludes that brand choice is about individual expression, not conforming. Atkin calls this the ‘central paradox of cult belonging‘.

“The common belief is that people join cults to conform.  Actually, the very opposite is true. They join to become more individual. At the heart of the desire to join a cult, in fact any community to which you will become committed, is a paradox….As one cult member unequivocally put it, ‘Belonging allows the individual to become more himself.” – The Culting of Brands, page 4

Millennials know that the brands they choose to associate with telegraph who they are.  As cultural ‘artifacts’, brands form a clear ‘language’ for Gen Y. It’s a language they understand and accept.

In November, Jason Potteiger wrote a post for The Next Great Generation Blog, titled, “15 Ways Millennials Think About Brands”. He begins with this observation: “For our entire lives brands have been everywhere and everything. The device of branding has become so pervasive in our lives that we now filter most things through that framework”. The last five ‘ways’ he lists speak directly to the symbolic meaning of brands and the importance of that meaning to the Millennial ’subculture’. It could be right out of Atkin’s book:

10. My brand associations are important to me, but ultimately a just one of many variables in my daily life/ equation of personal meaning and value. I dislike brands that do not understand their place in this equation.

11. Brands are used to self identify and create personal meaning. We seek out brands that represent who we are, or wish to be.

12. Individuals and groups identify similar people via their similar brand associations; this commonality creates a de facto community.

13. We are fluent in brands. We know the symbols, their messages, and the communities associated with them.

14. We speak a language of brands, we can easily construct other and larger meanings through the combination and layering of brands. (eg. Someone wearing a Red Sox hat, Converse shoes, North Face jacket, Starbucks coffee – add or subtract any element here and their brand equation or association map changes, and so does my understanding of them).

Marketers who want to appeal to Millennials need to ask themselves if they ‘Speak Brand’? This means more than just understanding image attributes; it means decoding the symbolic language of a generation.

To relate to Millennials, marketers need to be ‘culture sleuths’. Is your brand a cult? What does belonging to that cult mean to the participants? Do you understand  how Millennials relate to brands in general. Do you understand how your brand and its strategic associations (celebrities, music, media, retailers) fit into this entire constellation?

Related posts:

• Millennials: What is Their Iconic Brand?
• Pepsi: The Choice of the Millennial Generation?
• Who’s Next for a Millennial Brand Makeover?

By this definition, Millennials are a subculture.

While they share many of the myths, customs and rituals of the larger culture, they have language, preferences and customs that are distinct to their generation.  They have a unique set of reference groups and opinion leaders.  These cultural factors exert enormous influence over Gen Y buying decisions, and are crucial for establishing relevance.

Learning about Millennial culture can be a tricky business if you are not a Millennial yourself. Even within the Millennial subculture, there is diversity. In fact, this generation is notable for it’s multi-culturalism.

Two of the best Millennial culture sleuths I have discovered are Tim Stock, Head of Planning at scenarioDNA, and Kevin Walker of Culture Labs Creative.

I found both Stock and Walker on Twitter and have spoken with each of them ‘live’ (proof Twitter works!). They are both passionate about understanding cultural influences on consumer behavior among youth.

ScenarioDNA describes itself as a ‘consumer insights think tank.’ Stock, who is also adjunct faculty at Parson’s School of Design, urges marketers to think in terms of ‘culture networks’ and ‘culture codes’. This philosophy is based on the idea that “values are shaped at critical points of the maturation process”, and that “our image of what products mean is dictated by this imprinting“. In other words, generations are shaped by common experiences peculiar to that point in time.

Stock has developed a strategic methodology for segmenting consumers based on their ‘culture code’ and for  ’mapping’ the corresponding networks. He offers a fabulous lecture on culture networks (via slideshare), and another look at one particular network, the ‘Transformer Generation”. Both are well worth viewing.

Culture Labs Creative is a research-focused digital agency with special expertise in urban youth culture. Walker, who comes from a marketing communications and research background, emphasizes immersion techniques. 15-20 members of the target audience are invited to share their experience and ideas in a live workshop that is part event, part research.  Sample output from a Global Trends event is provided on the Culture Labs site.

To identify the ‘Top 10 Trends, Culture Labs ‘monitored social media chatter during the last quarter of 2009′ and conducted in-market explorations in Houston, Atlanta, Los Angeles and New York as well as a ‘Trend Summit’ in Dallas in December. Among the 10 Trends were these observational ‘gems’ I haven’t seen anywhere else:

Vans Sneakers

“Take note of the Classic Americana fashion trend developing. We also predict that Vans sneakers will be the hot brand of 2010. Vans are classic, inexpensive and are offered in many colors and styles….  As times remain challenged and serious, people are going to dress up more in 2010. The era of sloppiness in dress and casual Fridays is so ’00’s. Young people are rediscovering “dressing up” and it is driven by a new pragmatic sense that to make progress, get a job, and be taken seriously you have to look the part. As one of our speakers at the Trend Summit, Michael Hastings-Black, mentioned, it is the “grown ass man” syndrome that is inspiring people to dress up more.”

Related posts:

• Millennials: Mapping Their “Culture Code”
• For 1 of 4 Millennials The Old Time Religion is Not for Me
• For Millennial Women, Undies Are ‘Hot’ Apparel

Jason Young is a Gen Y speaker and consultant. He asked me Three Questions for his blog on Gen Y called Jason Young Live. The questions were great, here are my answers:

Q1: What do you see as the top three brands Millennials respect?

Just three? That’s hard. It’s much easier to talk about what makes brands Millennial-friendly. Ironically, Millennials have the most respect for brands that seem to do the least marketing. Brands that are perceived as being ‘true to themselves’ or ‘authentic’ resonate the most with Gen Y values. Brands that try to hard to be irreverent, trendy or cool end up being exactly the opposite.

Gen Y responds to brands that stand for something meaningful and act it out, rather than just talk about it. This includes some older brands that might surprise you like Vogue magazine, Coca-Cola and In N’ Out Burger. It also includes newer brands like Google, Under Armour, Trader Joe’s, Jet Blue, Facebook and Zappos.  Personality brands that resonate now for their authenticity are Conan O’Brien, Neil Patrick Harris, Shaun White and Lady Gaga.

The brand named most often when asked for brands they admire is, of course, Apple. Steve Jobs symbolizes much of what Gen Y aspires to be. The PC guy / Mac guy commercials create a clear ‘be yourself’ identity that Gen Y responds to.

Pepsi seems to have captured spirit of optimism and altruism that Gen Y aspires to. I am particularly interested to see how Millennials are responding Pepsi’s “Refresh Everything” social media campaign, where consumers nominate and vote for deserving causes.  The students I have talked with about the campaign are strongly positive about it.

Q2: How can a company or church utilize marketing to engage Millennials?

Millennials are spiritually hungry and even consider themselves more spiritual than their parents. But they are the group least likely to attend church regularly. They have a ‘consumer’ orientation to spirituality; they shop around and select from among the ‘choices’ available rather than simply adopt the ‘faith of their fathers’. (Which is strange because they adopt their parents brand of bank, car and education quite readily!) Twenty-five percent consider themselves ‘unaffiliated’, yet two-thirds of those were raised in a religion. What a ‘marketing’ opportunity!

To reach Millennials, a brand, church or organization needs to make them feel as if they made a ‘discovery’  – it can’t be shouted at them. The values of churches and synagogues are very much in alignment with Gen Y values. They need to see how a church’s values fit with theirs. Once engaged, make it easy for them to share their discovery with others. Millennials love to share. They are connected communicators and they are always looking for ‘social currency’ to spend with their network of friends. Churches can offer that currency. Give them something to talk about and a way to act out their deep need to make a difference in the world. Give them a way to participate in their faith, not just talk about it.

My 16-year old son recently became involved with a small group of high school boys his own age led by a dynamic young adult. He didn’t even realize at first that it was sponsored by our church. He thought he had been ‘invited’ to participate in a special group of athletic, smart boys. They meet every week and he never misses it. It immediately led to participation in a retreat, Sunday night fellowship and finally worship services. He’s going on a mission trip this summer.  He is now inviting others. I think this is a good model for churches to reach young adults.

Q3: Can you sum up the Millennials in three adjectives?

Just three again? I’ll rely on the three words I use on my blog to summarize marketing to Millennials: Be Quick. Be Meaningful. Be Shiny. Millennials are all about efficiency, making a difference and creativity.

Carol Phillips is President of the consulting firm, Brand Amplitude, LLC and adjunct professor of Marketing at The University of Notre Dame.  She consults with clients on strategies for engaging Millennials, as well as conducts market research and creates brand strategies on behalf of Brand Amplitude’s clients.  Her clients include JC Penney, Blockbuster, Whirlpool, and the YMCA.

Related posts:

• Conversation with Millennial Marketer, Carol Phillips
• Young Adults Will Embrace Local News on Social Networks
• Why I Love Teaching Marketing to Millennials

Emma Watson for Burberry

I admit it, Millennials had me fooled.

I used to think they were uninterested in luxury brands. They are famously savvy shoppers who know how to squeeze a nickel.  Their tolerance and eclecticism suggested overt status appeals would roll off their hoodie-clad backs.

Boy was I wrong.

Yesterday, my guest blogger, 21-year old Kristin Dzaidul, counted Coach among her top three favorite brands.  My fashion-impervious 16-year son knows that fashion conscious girls at his Chicago-area high school all sport Coach bags.  I should note that he never fails to notice the expensive luxury cars parked in the garage of our apartment building.  Even his fondness for all things Apple suggests a taste for premium quality.

My first hint that luxury might mean something to Millennials in the world of fashion was when Burberry selected Emma Watson, who plays Hermione in the Harry Potter movies, for their ads. This seemed an odd choice to me. My second clue was when I blogged about teen fashion bloggers. Web site hits for that day hit heights I have not seen since. Today’s Special Report in the New York Time’s Fashion & Style section, “Marketing to the Millennials”(March 2) clinched it.

“Finding a way to reach a generation that is eager to be entertained and informed, yet resistant to the familiar, in-your-face 20th-century approach, is the focus of every smart luxury and fashion brand. As the fourth and final round of the international collections opens in Paris on Wednesday, the buzz is more around live-streaming shows and 3-D technology than about seasonal trends.”

According to the article, I may not have had it completely wrong, however, as they are concerned about how to market ‘luxury‘ without relying on the appeal of ‘exclusivity‘.  the answer appears to social media and technology.  Making fashion more easily accessible makes it more relevant and appealing.

“These unique factors (about Millennials) make them very savvy consumers, who pay great attention to the value of what they buy and require a different way to interact with brands,” says Mr. Polet. “At Gucci Group, we recognize their transformative power in the way they engage with luxury brands. We are embracing different ways of creating dialogue through social media. Some of our brands have launched Facebook and Twitter pages and iPhone applications.”

Certainly communicating with Millennials in their own digital language is an important first start.  According to the NYT article, prestigious brands such as Armani, Gucci, LVMH and Burberry are now taking a fast trip up the digital learning curve.

Kudo’s to the fashion industry for leading the way. They appear to be among the first of the mainstream marketers to recognize the opportunity among Millennials.

Not only are they clued in, they appear to be actively addressing the opportunity. Here is Hannah Ahrendt of Burberry:

“Attracting the Millennial customer to luxury started two years ago — I said that we can either get crushed or ride the greatest wave of our life,” says Ms. Ahrendts. “We brought people on the team who were Millennials. I knew it was not my mother tongue — and I don’t have time to learn it.”

Related posts:

• Millennial Fashion Bloggers Making An Impact
• Where Do Millennials Shop for Fashion?
• Buckle’s Up! Fashion Retailers Who Get Millennials

By Millennial Marketing Guest Blogger, Kristin Dziadul

One of the questions I get most often from marketers is “What brands do Millennials like?” I asked Kristin Dziadul, a recent graduate in marketing, to provide her perspective.

“I think I speak for most all Millennials when I say that I choose brands because they are seen as ‘popular’ or ‘cool’ as deemed either by our social group or society as a whole.

For example, I would not buy clothes from Wal Mart when I had the option to buy them from Abercrombie & Fitch or Express instead. This is because the two former brands are popular and buzz-worthy, whereas you would be more abashed to say your clothes are from Wal Mart. I think most Millenials go through this stage during high school, as everyone is becoming very judgmental and forming their social ‘clicks.’ Millenials are major gossipers, which is why brands tend to matter a lot as we go through our teenage years.

This age cohort gains their information and social influences mainly from friends, family, and the Internet when making brand decisions, which is why they care so much about what others think of them. As we get older, we tend to not concentrate as much on the brands we use, as we do the cost versus quality.

I have noticed as I get older that I have become more sensible with the brands I choose to buy.

For example, when I was in high school I used to buy ridiculously expensive clothing from Limited Too, a teen store in the mall. Simple jeans ran upwards of $80, and I used to buy those all the time!  Now, I am comfortable  buying a tee shirt or bathing suit from Target or Macy’s where they sell no-name brands, but they are fashionable all the same.

When we get older, we tend to lose our main focus of social pressures and influences, and more on our wallets, comfort, and style.  I still put focus on what styles are in fashion and do buy from well-known brands on occasion, but it is not an imperative anymore, and my friends and I no longer judge each other based on what we wear and where it’s from.

The brands I am most passionate about are Apple, Coach, and American Eagle.

I am loyal to Apple because of the high quality, great integration with all their products, latest and greatest technology, and brand loyalty. Although their products are expensive, they are extremely durable, made of great quality parts, and are always at the top of industry knowledge when it comes to product development, three components which mean a lot to me.

I also love Coach purses because of the fashion statement and high quality that the brand instills. I have had a Coach purse for over two years and it is still in perfect condition, matches all my outfits (very versatile!), and also serves as a fashion statement.

About 80% of my clothing is from American Eagle. I love this brand because of the affordability and relaxed style.

Kristin Dziadul, 21, is a recent graduate of Western New England College with a Marketing Communications/Advertising major. She is the 2009 New England Direct Marketing Association scholarship recipient, and has a strong passion for marketing and social media! Kristin is from Connecticut and currently has two marketing freelance jobs.

She blogs at http://kdmedianow.com Follow her on Twitter: @KristinEDziadul

Related posts:

• Appealing to Millennials: Cool, Authentic — or Dorky?
• Buy Cool Stuff, Do Good
• Fashion Industry Leads in Millennial Marketing

I have been searching for Millennial marketing cases to feature on the Millennial Marketing wikispace

Several of my Gen-Y focused Twitter buddies assure me that these cases exist and that there actually quite a lot of attention being paid to Millennials by marketers (more on this in a moment). But it’s difficult to point to much of substance in the literature.

As a professor who also practices marketing, I emphasize real world cases when teaching.

In my undergrad class, we study the timeless Principles of Marketing , but my goal is to have students see those principles at work in the marketplace. I use a very recently published text (MKTG3 by Cengage) that offers current cases, via print and video. It features companies like Kodak, Method, Sephora, Red Lobster, Apple’s Garage Band and more.  A case analysis is required prior to most classes. Four entire class sessions this semester are devoted to student reports of ‘environmental scans’ – articles analyzed in terms of marketers’ decisions to change the marketing mix in response to changes in the marketing environment.

My MBA class also features cases and the class maintains a blog to discuss current marketing events.  The final project required students to create a brand strategy for The HomeMade Pizza Co.

The strategy behind using cases is more than just temporal relevance. Cases are the foundation of marketing knowledge.

Marketing borrows heavily from other academic disciplines. While I might get some pushback from my colleagues on this, in my opinion, there is little in marketing theory that is original to marketing. It draws on Sociology (Diffusion of Innovation) Anthropology (culture & meaning), Psychology (Maslow’s Hierarchy, Laddering), Economics (Price elasticity, Product Life Cycle), Biology (Diffusion of Innovation), even Theology (Word of Mouth marketing & evangelism).

If newspapers are the first draft of history, then Ad Age, Brand Week, the Wall Street Journal and Business Week are the first drafts of marketing text books.

Marketing successes today are standard marketing practice tomorrow. Consumer needs change,  market research offers new techniques for understanding those needs and marketers have different options and challenges for addressing their audience. That’s why everyone is watches innovators like BMWFilms, Pepsi Refresh Everything, and even the Burger King Subservient Chicken campaigns. (All of these have been topics of discussion for my classes at some point.)

It concerns me that marketers are not sharing their knowledge. The blogosphere is alive with advice on how to leverage social media, the importance of cause marketing, and more. But with few exceptions (such as Ford Fiesta) there is little hard case evidence to back it up.  Despite diligent searching for nearly two years, I have just a dozen cases (with results) featured on the Millennial Marketing Cases page of our wikispace. (Please send me links to others if you have them!)

Of course I understand the concept of corporate secrets and I am not advocating that companies lose their competitive edge by revealing all they know. Scott Hess of youth market research company, Tru Insights, responded to my Twitter plea with this series of comments: (read from bottom up)

Hess makes some great points. But the case for sharing is equally strong.  The rules for marketing to Millennials are still being written. Until marketers are willing to share what they know, it will be hard to generalize about the principles.

Comments below are all from @ScottHess of Tru-Insight Research, which focuses on “tweens, teens and twenty-something research”. What do you think?

Related posts:

• Millennial Marketing Case: Blue Cross Blue Shield
• Marketing to Millennials: Lessons from the Classroom
• Have We Finally Reached The ‘Tipping Point’ on Millennial Marketing?