How Creative Branding Draws Millennials
“It's been very funny to try to act like an adult. Even getting dressed. Every day, I'm like, 'Should I wear a blazer and walk around with an umbrella? Do I carry a briefcase?' Because I'm trying to be some image of the adults I saw on TV growing up.”- John Mulany
Image is everything, and it’s only getting bigger. There is no hiding from the fact that we are constantly bombarded by images everywhere. So much that our eye line is being monetized, and has been for years.
Whether we’re driving, on our phone, looking up a recipe, or looking for a taxi, our eye line is being sold for images.
A recent study found that millennials see over 4,000 ads a day through all mediums. With this huge saturation in the market, how does a brand stand out from the other 3,999 ads people will see that day?
Mix Up The Product Shots
While a good product image can go a long way for your brand. It’s important to mix in alternative images of young people using your product.
A study by Lexington Law showed that millennials spend ⅔ more on entertainment than previous generations.
Young people are not drawn to a list of benefits or every practicality. To create a buying desire with millennials, a company has to portray a lifestyle associated with owning that product.
The benefit for companies is that there are now more channels than ever to build up a young following. Social media sites are a huge opportunity to help young people engage in a lifestyle with your brand.
Create A Lifestyle
Think of Corona, and most likely the next image in your head is a beach. The two forever associated through the coordinated lifestyle campaign from the beer company.
Key to these image-based campaigns is a consistent theme with a high frequency to your audience.
Once you establish the association - keep the images coming! Just one or two campaigns is never going to be enough to embed with your customers.
For a young audience, it’s not an easy task. A steady stream of images - usually released through social media, print, and video campaigns can help get the ball rolling. The difficult part is to stay consistent for a long period of time.
Definitely something a creative agency might be able to help create (nudge, nudge).
Do Your Research
Every professional sports team has a scouting report, every experiment has a hypothesis, and every campaign should have market research.
Very rarely does a campaign succeed without initial research into the targeted market. Even still, with all the free resources of data around, why would you not use that information?!
It’s important to have a team that can give you the details on what possible associations might already be out there. Making your image campaign much more effective!
With a variety of lifestyle shots, image association, and market research, any brand can become a success with identifying with millennials. Becoming an influencer has never been so easy!
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