How the meaning of marketing is being redefined by MILLENNIALS !

Generation Y, aka the millennials, now make up the largest cohort in the workforce, and the people hiring them — and marketing to them — have plenty of preconceived notions about them. Companies have been reacting to these set of customers, trying to anticipate their next moves and position themselves in shoppers paths as they navigate the decision journey from consideration  to purchase. Earlier product used to be an important component of buying process, but now the journey has become a crucial part...Marketers are increasingly managing  journeys as they would any product.  The heavy explosion of digital technology has created "empowered" customers, which has lead to experts getting deep into data analytics and  trying to understand what they want, when they want it and getting it delivered to their doorsteps at a rock-bottom price.
 Social media has become an integral part of this journey of course. We don't even realize while running through Facebook and Instagram, we tend to visit so many random shopping websites and our buying behavior has taken a toss altogether. This is how retailers are making money through affiliate marketing by using third party to drive sales. Isn't it interesting to see our mailbox flooded with emails from budding brands like "Zivame" , stalkbylove.com, POPxo etc. These brands have commendably used affiliate marketing to create an impact on the mind of consumers. 

We’re now seeing a significant shift in strategy, from primarily reactive to aggressively proactive. Across retail, banking, travel, home services, and other industries, companies are designing and refining journeys to attract shoppers and keep them, creating customized experiences so finely tuned that once consumers get on the path, they are irresistibly and permanently engaged . Recently in a survey conducted by Wharton it was found out that millennials buy more gift cards than any other generation.

Older generation has still got to want to get out there and do their own shopping.  Whereas millennials are relying on that digital connection and are leading the change in purchasing trends. For all the upcoming marketers it has become mandatory to integrate digital media with their traditional advertising strategy to attract millennials. 

Millennials are using mobile devices to compare and save.
When we receive mailers from companies like Starbucks and Van Heusen saying "We miss you!" "Visit us soon!" there's a sort of connection we feel with the brand.
I  recently read somewhere about the three things that make millennials most happy and contented ie :

• Travel..
• Love..
• Their work..

Marketers need to take these points seriously so as to cater to this generation. Creating excellent shopping experiences for this generation has become the need of an hour. Virtual reality is another booming platform for marketers to excel in.This technology when used stands to eliminate customer pain points, elevate customer service, and create a differentiated, personalized customer experience.

 How Lakme make up pro app is designed using virtual reality is an excellent example of how smart marketers engage their customers by letting them check how each Lakme product looks on them


The way Starbucks used this platform in US to market itself was also attractive. From valentines's day to Christmas, they know how to make it up to their customers ! Users would point their smartphone's camera at one of the seasonal cups and it would pull up an augmented reality scene that matched up with whatever character was on the cup.
As they say “Good marketers see consumers as complete human beings with all the dimensions real people have.”
This is how marketing has been redefined by the millennials including the retailers, customers, marketers, advertisers and all others who are a part of the journey !