This guest blog post is by Leah Holmes-Bonilla, a Senior Account Supervisor and the Multicultural Services Manager at Vanguard Communications.
Have you ever mused about wanting to live in a world with a generation of self-assured, enthusiastic, forward-thinking and culturally diverse young people? Think no more because they are here. Fifty million 18-to-29-year-olds make up a major portion of this new and exciting generation: the Millennials.
The Pew Research Center‘s recent publication, Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next, provides a window into the world of Millennials and what makes them tick. This generation is the most culturally diverse in the history of the nation, college-focused and more tolerant than any before them. They believe that good parenting, successful marriage and helping others are among the most important things in their lives. They view their values and beliefs as in sync with those of their parents more so than any previous generation.
Millenials are well attuned to their world and to its ever-changing landscape. They seek news and information in real-time. They embrace new technologies, information sharing, are astute networkers and incredibly hopeful about the here-and-now, as well as about the future.
So, as present day communicators, what does this tell us? Our communications efforts need to understand and resonate with Generation Nexters. Is the message direct and clear as well as hopeful? Does it reflect the diversity of the audience it hopes to reach? Are the avenues for disseminating the message in tune with the tech-savvy of this audience?
As veteran communicators this is an exciting time for both learning about and communicating with Millennials. If diversity, real-time content and hope are the lens through which we need view and reach out, then we should consider ourselves fortunate.
After you rejoice in the knowledge of who the Millennials are, remember a few simple cues in your communications efforts: be credible, relevant and real. Understand that constant communication and flexibility in communicating are also important. And finally, never be afraid to learn from your audience.
The Pew Research is just a start, there is much more research available for FREE on Millennials now that marketers are taking a more active interest. You can find some of it on our wiki http://millennialmarketing.wikispaces.com. I especially endorse the last sentence. Marketers should not assume that Millennials are like them. Include them in your marketing process to make sure your ideas are connecting and resonating with this generation.
Carol Phillips
Fantastic! Thank you for the additional resources, Carol. I look forward to diving into them.
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