Stop Blaming Millennials for Failed Marketing

Marketing, Strategy

There has been a host of articles in the news over the last couple of years about the number of things that millennials have killed.  Most recently, according to Business Insider, they took deadly aim at Applebees and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Other things millennials have been accused of killing include, but are not limited to:

Let’s Get Real

Okay, listen, millennials didn’t kill any of these products or businesses.  They killed themselves.  Death by marketing suicide.

You must know your target market.  You must research, identify and understand your ideal client, and then market to them.  If you don’t, they aren’t going to buy your product, solicit your services, or engage your business.  It’s that simple.  And if you fail to do that, for goodness sake, don’t blame them.

Millennials aren’t really any different than any other generation that has come before them.  You need to put the work into figuring out their wants, needs, and desires.  You need to research their buying habits and their impulses.

(And….pssst….trade secret:  your target market is constantly changing!)  If you assume your target market is the same that it was ten years ago, you are probably missing out on some revenue opportunities.

Marketing isn’t Static

That’s why marketing is a constant evolving machine.  You should create new marketing plans each and every year and regularly evaluate the return on your investment.  Data can drive your decisions and that includes researching your target audience often.

Your target market is spending its hard-earned dollars on something – don’t let your competition figure out how to earn their attention before you do.

What Disney World Teaches the Small Business World About Marketing Plans

Marketing, Strategy

Does your business have a marketing plan?

Come on, be honest.  It’s okay if you answer no.  I think you’d find yourself in good company.  According to latest survey done by Manta, less than half of all small business owners have a marketing plan.  Why?  Well, I’m sure you know the answer to that one as well.  Small business owners are overloaded with work and stretched too thin to dedicate either time or resources to creating a marketing plan.

But you should.  A marketing plan should be a part of your greater business plan (complete with an operating budget) and should be updated often, or at the very least annually.

Let me tell you why.

Have you ever gone to Disney World?  If so, you know that a good trip requires good planning.  Whether you hire a professional (like a travel agency or a travel planner) or you plan it yourself, it’s a significant time investment.

You make your resort and travel reservations almost a year in advance.  Six months ahead, you make your dining reservations (and you do so quickly as the hot venues fill up fast).  You plan which days you are going to visit which parks, taking in account the extra magic hours, parades, and fireworks.

If you don’t plan for your trip, could you still go to the most magical place on earth? Of course you could. But that trip would be expensive. Without planning ahead and reserving your accommodations and travel arrangements in advance, costs could be almost three times as much as if you had planned effectively.  You wouldn’t be able to eat at the dining locations of  your choosing – those venues fill up with reservations very quickly.  You wouldn’t be able to get tickets to special shows and events.  You may go to the wrong park on the wrong day and miss something special (like a parade or fireworks).

Would you still have an enjoyable time?  Probably. It is Disney World, after all.  But you would be throwing money out of the window, based on necessity and emergent situations and wouldn’t be getting the most out of your trip.

The same is true about creating a marketing plan.

Yes, it takes a lot of time and effort to make it happen. Sometime, you need to bring in the professionals.  But the planning pays off.  You are going to spend less, do more, and get the most return out of that investment.  And that?  That is magical.