MILLENNIAL IS NOT A 4-LETTER WORD

The other day, a friend of mine was complaining that one of her clients still thought of her as a millennial.  It wasn’t the label that bothered her, it was the stereotype.  The client was attributing all the perceived negative attributes of the millennial generation to her – all because of her age.  Sure she’s 24, single and walks into most meetings with a $5 latte, but diminishing her by sticking on a label cast aside who she really is: intelligent (more than most), hard-working, and successful with a decent amount of disposable income.

You’re probably reading this and thinking the same thing – what an injustice.  Labeling people, stereotyping people, being dismissive – how crude.  You’re right, but it’s how many companies and marketers execute their strategy, build their ads and write copy to speak to customers – stereotypes.  I can’t count the times I hear “I need to reach millennials (or Gen-Xers or Boomers).”  Of course, you do, but you need to go beyond broad stereotypes to be successful.

Lifestage segmentation is the method good marketers use to dive deeper.  Instead of comparing basic demographics we look at behaviors, cultural influences and lifestyles to find smaller sub-sections of a market.  Sound complicated?  It’s not, it’s just the way life is.  Take the real world example of my friend, the “millennial.”  She’s 24, but she’s also a mom with a toddler.  She’s successful – advancing quickly and earning more than 90% of her millennial peers.  She has a mortgage, day care payments, a healthy retirement fund and an avid gardener.  Now, let’s compare her to my other colleague, 25.  He’s a recent college grad – took him a while to get through.  Barista, single, rents housing, has two roommates, and thinks gardening is something his grandparents do to pass the time – in retirement.

Lifestage segmentation is the method good marketers use to dive deeper.  Instead of comparing basic demographics we look at behaviors, cultural influences and lifestyles to find smaller sub-sections of a market.

Lifestage segments don’t always fit into the generational buckets we’ve created.  The 24-year-old mom shops and spends like my 40-year old neighbor with a 4-year-old.  So, if that’s your target, you need to target accordingly – and only focusing on age just won’t cut it.  Segmentation works no matter who you’re trying to reach.

See how it works with some that span from Gen-X to Boomers.

 

 

Here are some examples of younger adult segments.

 

 

Want to take your marketing to the next level?  Talk to the folks doing your marketing.  Challenge them to take a closer look at your marketing – or most importantly, at the way they are dividing up and targeting your marketing to your prospect and customers.

Your marketing partners need to operate at this deeper strategic level.  It’s not hard to understand, but it’s not easy to do well.  A good partner can help you understand your market and identify the segments you should be going after.  If you have large customer databases – names, addresses, emails – then you can go even deeper by gaining spending, behavioral and demographic data.  With this info you’ll quickly see who you’re doing a good job attracting and who you’re missing.

Segmentation isn’t the magic bullet, it’s the foundation for successful marketing.  You must know who your customers are before you can think about how to reach them and what to say to get them in the door.

Contact us to learn about how we can help you reach the right audience for your destination.

Learn more about how we can help you adapt to the evolving marketing landscape and ramp up your efforts.

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

  • October 29, 2024

    Key Takeaways from the 2024 Tennessee Governor’s Conference

    We at Advance Travel & Tourism were honored to once again attend and sponsor the Tennessee Governor’s Conference on Hospitality & Tourism in Chattanooga. Because TNHTA and Chattanooga Tourism Co. put on such an insightful event, we wanted to share some of our key takeaways from the conference below.  

    3 min readBy Published On: October 29th, 2024
  • October 24, 2024

    Economic Impact & Advocacy Webinar

    Econonomic Impact & Advocacy Webinar The impact of marketing isn’t always easy to measure, making destination marketers’ jobs difficult. Join Advance Travel and Tourism as we take a deeper look at how industry leaders are measuring the economic impact of their marketing efforts. This webinar recording looks at the impact of destination marketing while considering how [...]

    0 min readBy Published On: October 24th, 2024
  • October 14, 2024

    Key Takeaways: Advance Travel’s Midwest Team and Mackinac Island Tourism

    In case you missed it, here’s a quick review of 10 takeaways for 2025 travel trends. Advance Travel & Tourism expert, Eric Hultgren, shared informative insights during the webinar on September 10, 2024.   With the help of case studies and conversation from our guests, we discovered more about what travelers will be looking for moving into 2025, [...]

    2 min readBy Published On: October 14th, 2024

WE BRING THE TRAVELER TO YOU.

CONTACT US TODAY TO DISCUSS HOW WE CAN HELP REVAMP YOUR TOURISM MARKETING STRATEGY.

"*" indicates required fields

Hidden
Hidden
Hidden