Three Ways to Reach the Millennial Audience

Brian Rigney, CEO at  Zmags talks about what type of content resonates with the millennial target audience

The millennial audience constitutes a market that expects fresh and exciting content from their brands. They’re tech-savvy, youthful and want their content to entertain as well as sell. A simple product grid just won’t cut it. Rich and shoppable content is the answer.

Featuring elements like beautiful on-brand graphics, embedded videos, animations and GIFs keep youthful customers engaged on the page. And integrated product quick views establish a streamlined path to purchase. Together, these features create a rich, multimedia digital experience that reintroduces consumers to your brand, targeting a younger generation.

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I’ve taken a deep dive and broken down the top three features of content that resonate with the millennial target audience.

1. Integrating Immersive Video Content

Videos are always a rich, exciting and polished way to present a product. But the best way to integrate them is to layer them into the experience on auto-play, ensuring a seamless transition. Video inclusion should be completely natural, not just thrown on the page; rather, the experience must be organically built around them. Viewers are immersed in your experience and ultimately your brand, and this connection is priceless.

2. Instant Shop-the-Look GIFs

A great way to make your content dynamic and layered is to seamlessly weave GIFs into the experience. By using them sparingly, they are visually impactful and add an interesting element of freshness and surprise. More importantly, GIFs offer inspiration for the shopper. By featuring these fluid images, customers can gain insight into how products can be styled or used, offering value as well as products. In short, GIFs are fun, and millennials will appreciate them.

3. Clickable Media With Quick View Capabilities

Of course, why invest in this sort of rich content if it just complicates the path to purchase? Shoppability is an absolute must. Without it, customers are engrossed in the experience, excited about the product and then sent on a wild goose chase through landing pages to chase that pair of heels down. It’s frustrating, especially when you’re forced to leave the experience that inspired you to buy in the first place. It has been said before, but the millennial generation expects instant gratification. A difficult path to purchase is a sure way to lose them before they ever make it to the cart.

To avoid this, digital marketers should aspire to add shoppability to everything: images, GIFs and even videos. So the moment a customer feels that “has to have it” moment, they can click on the product to activate a product quick view, select their size or color, and immediately add to cart — without ever leaving the experience. This means your customers can continue to peruse the experience and possibly purchase more. The worst thing a retailer can do is pull the customer away right when they’re ready to buy, so instant shoppability is a tremendous driver of conversions and average order value.

Shoppable content is a powerful alternative to the standard static category pages that customers are used to. The millennial audience wants to create a connection to their brands, and rich digital experiences are a smart and innovative way to do so.

When brands leverage multimedia content and layer images, video and GIFs, customers are inspired and ready to convert.