Millennial Marketing Tips from 4 of the World's Biggest Digital Platforms

Executives from Facebok, Snapchat, Twitter and Pandora gathered at ZenithOptimedia Group's Mobile Day event to give advertisers tips on how to more effectively reach millennials - adults ages 18-34 who don't respond to traditional advertising and are increasing "cutting the cord" (consumers who ditch TV sets to watch videos on smartphones and tablets). Four interesting insights for the digital players are:

1. Get Local

Steve Hwang, director of operations and strategy at Snapchat, said brands should be involved on a more local level in the real world. Snapchat's core group of 18- to 24-year-olds hate feeling like they are being marketed to. Instead they want to watch videos and look at photos their friends are sharing. Snapchat has a "Live Story feature" that curates streams about nearby events that brands can buy full-page placements in. 

2. Less is more with video

Although it seems like autoplay video has taken over Facebook, brands are still struggling with building the right content for the platform. Facebook advises brands to make four, eight- and 10-second videos that grab people's attention in a news feed. Once people tap on a video, the sound automatically kicks in, which helps hook them to watch longer clips. 

3. Find social's new celebrities

According to Twitter, vine stars are hotter than Hollywood A-listers for millennials. Some influencers have followers and a social graph that is far bigger than any celebrity, and brands should try to emulate or work with these people when posting videos, photos and GIFs to Twitter.

4. Data-backed creative

Pandora revealed that women age 18 to 34 like to listen to YouTube violinist Lindsey Stirling on the Pandora, and they overwhelmingly listen to her from the company's app. This is an example of data that can shape a campaign and determine if it should run on mobile or desktop. Brands should tailor creative message to the environment and mindset. 

Source: 

http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/top-millennnial-marketing-tips-4-worlds-biggest-digital-platforms-165888