I have been meaning to post a list of marketing blogs by Gen Y authors for some time now. But I get so absorbed reading the blogs, that I get sidetracked and write about something else. So here are some of the more interesting Millennial voices I follow, in no particular order:
1. NakedGen Mapping: Heledd Straker and Christopher Lomas, founders Naked Generations, London. Sample: ‘Jon Favreu: BoY GENius’:
In the struggle to cut costs and grab what little resources are still available, many businesses are tightening their belts and changing their management strategy, from a ‘looser’ style, as preferred by Generation Y, to a more ‘authoritarian’ approach – thereby exerting maximum control relieving the feelings of fear of wasting precious time and money. Jobs have also suddenly dried up for Generation Y: 40% of the predicted three million unemployed at the end of 2009 will be under 25[1]. Does this mean that Gen Y needs to both ‘pipe’ and ‘knuckle down’, at least until the storm has blown over?
2. The Marketing Student: David Fallarme, Student, Ontario Canada. David is a master of clever titles (‘Not Part of Geny Y? You’re Paying Too Much’). The entries live up to the titles. Sample: ‘Gen Y Prefers Crowd Wisdom Over Experts’:
The recent news about Bike Hero being fake reminds me that Gen Y has extremely fine-tuned BS detectors — it seems that we think something is even remotely fake, it probably is. It’s almost disillusioning and insulting to think that agencies are continually trying to camouflage adverts. Why pretend to be something? The magic is always lost when you discover something to be a lie, even if it’s just a YouTube video or a funny blog. It’s a very fine line between corporatizing something natural versus being a contributing participant. For brands trying to infiltrate Gen Y and its media, the key factor is, and has always been, sincerity.
3. Ask A Millennial: Adrienne Waldo, 22, New York marketing professional. Sample: ‘Dentyne’s “Make Face Time” Campaign’.
I am absolutely crazy about the most recent Dentyne campaign.It is fun, warm, unique and targets Millennials without being patronizing. I think the essential goodness of this campaign comes from its genuine nature. It doesn’t seem to ostracize any one specific group, which tends to happen more often than not when a campaign is online-themed (I’m thinking of ads that use cyberspeak – of which I am not fluent). I imagine it will resonate equally with two completely opposite groups of people – those who spend a lot of time online, and those who hardly use the web at all. But don’t get me wrong, the rest of us love it too. The commercial ties in well with the print. The song selection, “Summer Day” by Coconut Records, comes across pleasantly quirky, the setting is beautiful, and the whole thing leaves me feeling happy (in stark contrast to the Pepsi commercial from yesterday’s post). On top of all that, Dentyne designed their web site so that it shuts down after three minutes. It would be a risky move, except they were smart enough to freeze the timer on the product page.Altogether a fantastic campaign.
I also love Adrienne’s comments on the Pepsi / Arnell logo flap: ‘Breathtaking? I Think Not’
The marketing world is all abuzz about the 27-page document supposedly composed by the designer of the Pepsi logo.
Here’s what I think: it’s among the most ridiculous documents I’ve ever seen. If it’s real (although I’m registered with the “It’s Clearly a Fake” party), then Pepsi should have taken the most extreme precautions to be sure it never got leaked to the public. If it’s fake, then someone has way to much time on their hands and I feel sorry for them.
Fair warning: These are my picks today. There would have been three or four others, but they seem to have stopped blogging? So catch these voices while you can.
