Getting to Grips with the Contradictions of Female Millennials

We recently returned from our second time at M2W, the world’s biggest conference about marketing to women, which was held in New York this year. It’s a massive and inspiring event which brings together experts from around the world, all with great insights and knowledge to share.  There are always a number of different trends that come to the fore, but this year’s hottest topic by far was Millennial women. 

This was interesting as there has already been a lot of noise in the press about Millennials, but speakers and delegates alike were all keen to know more about this key demographic. As Nan McCann, president of M2W, said in her opening statement: “From Malala Yousafzai to Jennifer Lawrence, Millennial women are asserting the social, political, cultural and economic power of their majority … in every segment of society … in every corner of the world”. 

Most people agreed that Millennial women are full of contradictions: charitable yet demanding, self absorbed yet communal, highly social and peer influenced yet they gate-keep intensively.  This has made it difficult for marketers to create a clear Millennials’ engagement strategy, which is likely why there is so much debate.  We have therefore pulled together the key findings about marketing to Millennial women from the conference and our thoughts on how brands should respond to them: 

1. They define their own consumer journeys:

The old purchasing funnel (from awareness to purchase) is obsolete for Millennials.  The new model is an infinite figure of eight loop – a constant flow of research and dialogue.  Interestingly, while Millennials pride themselves on being independent thinkers, they place considerable value on the opinions of friends, peers and family from whom they seek inspiration and advice about products.  Indeed,  93% of Millennials have made a purchase after hearing about it from a family member or friends and 87% trust products after conducting their own research (typically with significant investigation amongst their friends).  

What this means for marketers:

Millennial women don’t trust brand content. They read it in full but are aware that it may be biased because it is written with the intent to sell. Research from Influence Central shows that 97% of Millennials feel confident they can tell the credibility of a review (i.e. if it is exaggerated or biased). They don’t want to be told what to do, so don’t push content at them.

To get female Millennials to engage with your brand, create lots of opportunities for open communication: Get them talking about your product, commenting on and sharing posts and reviewing your products online – and make it two-way by responding appropriately. Humour can be a great (and often underused) way of connecting with women. Find ways to be part of their ongoing research and dialogue and don’t be afraid to jump in and help. Optimise everything for all devices and make sure these conversations and insights about your products area easily shareable via social.

2. Altruism is a key driver 

According to Kerry Lyons, SVO Sales & Marketing at House Party, Millennial women are 40% more likely to want to align with brands with causes.  They get involved with community and humanity institutions for fundamentally different motivators than earlier generations. Helping a cause, supporting an organisation and making a positive, measurable impact is a big motivator for them.  80% of Millennials are likely to switch brands similar in quality and price to one that supports a cause (M2W Conference 2016). 

What this means for marketers:

Connect with these women with more than just a good product and a great price. Demonstrate your dedication to causes and institutions (even if they are not obviously related to the business’ bottom line). This is why brands such as Tom’s the shoe company that donates a new pair of shoes to an impoverished child with every pair purchased, have aligned with their values. 

3. Brand story co-creation 

Your brand is no longer solely yours to control. The rise of social means the dynamic has shifted away from brands creating and having ownership of content to an era where consumers create the brand story.  In fact, Millennial women view themselves as brand partners and expect to be included in the process of creating their own products, marketing and brand experiences. 45% of Millennials say they hold the power to help brands succeed or fail (Havas). With their use of social and digital platforms exceeding their male counterparts, they may have a point. 

What this means for marketers:

For many marketers letting go of the reins can be a struggle, but the key to success is finding a balance between branded content and user generated content produced by consumers to tell an honest and connected brand story. Kelley Skoloda, Partner, Global Brand Marketing Practice at Ketchum introduced the concept of ‘un-marketing’ as the way forward, with marketers seeing themselves not as ‘push messengers’ but as ‘story starters’, inviting women to co-create brand stories with brands. 

However, it’s important to remember that brands still need to moderate user-generated content and protect themselves from potential damage. 

4.They demand to be treated as individuals, but consider themselves equals to their peers

This doesn’t mean Millennial women aren’t ambitious or don’t strive to be leaders. They simply don’t view social engagement such as retweets, likes and followers as an indication or affirmation of their status: over 40% say they don’t measure their personal success against others on social media.2  They prefer to stay on a more equal footing with friends, family and peers as they share information, and view all peers as their equals. 

The biggest mistake marketers could make is to treat Millennial women as a single ‘one size fits all’ group. The truth is women from diverse age groups fall into the category of Millennials (ranging from age 18 – 34). This means the category includes school leavers and university graduates to women who are hitting their mid-30s and each and every one of them wants to be treated as an individual and marketed to accordingly. 

What this means for marketers:

Make her the hero! Recent research found that 67% of women appreciate brands that make them the hero vs themselves (the brand).  When it comes to engaging Millennial women, brands that talk about themselves will swiftly be discarded. 

Last word at the conference went to , Jenny Darroch, author of Why Marketing to Women Doesn’t Work, who summarised why we are right to be so interested in the Millennial female: “they represent a quarter of the population, they are the pipeline of our consumers and, most importantly, they will keep us contemporary.” So, while these women may be full of contradictions, everyone is in agreement that they are a force to be reckoned with. 

References:

1.       Millennial survey by Influence Central Sample Size 1,100 Millennial women born between 1979 and 1993

2.       Millennial survey by Influence Central Sample Size 1,100 Millennial women born between 1979 and 1993