Interactive Marketing To Millennials

By Brenna Hanly

Consumers demand control.

Create interactive experiences.

Consumers want to be involved.

But not really. It’s not that easy. The problem is twofold: poorly executed “participatory” marketing and the average consumer’s apathy. In fact, a recent emarketer study revealed that the majority of millennials spend most of their free time watching tv.

I think there’s a lot of ineffective check-listing going on among marketing executives regarding consumers and interactive marketing campaigns. For instance, I’ve seen a number of “fun, interactive” quizzes in advanced tv campaigns and on Facebook. Really? You think someone wants to take the time to do a quiz about BMW automobile parts or a word scramble about Vaseline on tv in their free time?

It seems as though putting up an interactive quiz on tv, online, etc. has become a check mark for marketing executives that “yes,” they have involved the consumer in their marketing campaign. The truth is that the average consumer doesn’t want to go through too much hassle unless there is something worthwhile to get from participation. There could be a variety of incentives. For the tech-savvy/blogging type, fame and notoriety may inspire them to participate. But for the average millennial, it’s going to take a bit more to get us on board and engaged in your brand. That’s not to say that brands can’t become passion points for us, because they are. But you really have to connect with our values. If you develop a participatory program, make sure it has real value and provide the right incentives. Give us money, give us free stuff, donate to a charity on our behalf. Think Kraft Feeding America, HP You on You, etc.

However, despite current ad agency rhetoric, not all marketing programs need to be participatory. As I alluded to earlier, some millennials are looking for lean-back experiences in their downtime. Not to suggest that my boyfriend and his friends can represent all millennials, but in observing their behavior, it occurred to me that it is more important to think about consumers and what they value than to arbitrarily conceive of a participatory marketing effort. For instance, they spend every Saturday and every Sunday watching football. They enjoy watching and betting on the teams as well as participating in fantasy football.

Fantasy football is a crucial part of the whole experience in that it can involve friends across the country. Instead of attempting to persuade these couch potatoes to actively do something, Ford simply sponsored a CBS Sports Fantasy Football mobile application that brought these guys a truly valuable service. Because the mobile application improved their quality of life (not an exaggeration) and fulfilled an actual consumer need (to be updated in real time), they could effectively recognize that Ford understood them.

When appropriate co-creation and participatory marketing can result in extraordinary outcomes, but it’s not always about persuading people to participate in your brand, sometimes all you need to do is show them you get it, by helping them out – providing real utility.