Millennials Are the New B2B Buying Generation; Is your business prepared to win them over?
Some 73% of 20-to-35-year-olds are involved in product or service purchase decision-making at their companies, according to a study of “Millennial” buyers by Merit, with one-third reporting that they are the sole decision-maker for their department. Remember when we all joked about the prospect of Millennials growing up to lead companies in the future? Well, welcome to the future.
Why Millennials Matter
Let’s quickly refresh your memory on Millennials (also known as Generation Y), just in case you forgot about their unique positioning in our new digital-first world.
Primarily raised by Baby Boomers, Millennials have been sandwiched between Generation X and Generation Z. They grew up hand in hand with the internet, witnessing the rapid evolution of communication, gaming, and digital experiences in general.
Unlike Baby Boomers and Generation X, Millennials were given the internet at a time when they were young enough to embrace it into every facet of their lives—but old enough to remember life without it. From my experience in the B2B space, this nuance makes a big, big difference.
Give Content, Be Discovered, Get Love.
To get in with the Millennial crowd, you need to get your content game in order.
Millennials don’t like to be dictated to or “sold” to. They want to discover new brands. They prefer frictionless buying processes where they’re in control of what content reaches their eyes and ears. That’s because they’re used to having the internet’s information at their fingertips, which is why content is so vital to the buying journey.
In fact, Adobe’s 2018 Consumer Content Survey shows that over 25% of Millennials use three or more devices at once to engage with digital content, while 65% for Millennials reported they would be more willing to engage with a brand’s channel if video content is offered.
So, ask yourself if your content can be accessed from multiple devices, at any time, and through various mediums, because that’s what Millennials expect.
Slow and Steady Wins the Race
Millennials prefer buying things that seem like an evolution of something they know and love, not something totally outlandish that’s going to change the world overnight. Don’t believe me? Just ask Microsoft about Zune, a product that aimed to be the iPod killer; I just watched Guardians of the Galaxy and the Zune was fully roasted.
The only problem with Zune is that it was ahead of its time. It had WiFi and a whole bunch of bells and whistles that, at the time, early Millennials just didn’t want. All they wanted was a better version of what they already had, a swift step ahead of where they were rather than a gigantic life-changing leap (and great design that appealed to them). That’s what Apple.
In other words, bells and whistles have their place, but improving on the tried and tested features people know and love is a clear winner. Why? Because Millennials know better than anyone that technology and business evolve rapidly, but those evolutions typically happen in small, frequent increments rather than instantaneous breakthroughs. Thus, Millennials avoid getting on board with a product, service or company that claims to have changed the world overnight. They’re a very skeptical generation.
Something to leave you with: Does your messaging reflect that? Are you providing them value when they discover you? Or, are you painting your product or service as the next life-changing leap for your industry?
Want to learn more about training your staff to embrace the new generation of B2B buyers? Let’s talk.
