Yes, we’re still talking about millennials and social media, and it probably won’t stop anytime soon. Millennials are one of the largest, most peculiar, and hardest to market to generations to appear in a very long time and ignoring their existence and buying power is impossible. Brands are starting to clue into this and are altering their marketing strategies to appeal to millennials. One brand in particular, Snapchat, has really seemed to master this intimidating artform.
Snapchat offers a multitude of features for users to interact with on its disappearing photo sharing platform. By allowing millennials to connect with their peers with fun tools like facial recognition filters that can change them into puppies or old men, allowing them to constantly let everyone know where they are and what their doing with location / event specific geofilters, and the infamous 10 second picture or video window all give millennials the ability to be constantly connected to friends and followers.
Snapchat also knows what millennials don’t want, which puts them ahead of the curve. Invasive advertising is the least effective way to market products or services to this particular group of people, so Snapchat did the smart thing and makes ad viewing optional. Users can choose to view the sponsored ads that appear at the top of the app or completely ignore them if they choose, giving them the freedom to choose what is advertised to them.
Snapchat’s most recent marketing effort is especially millennial-centric in its weird, but effective strategy. After deciding to finally start making tangible products, Snapchat unveiled one of its first products on Amazon: a Snapchat ghost shaped ice cube tray. To break away from being a product that would only appeal to the app’s user base, the description of the product on Amazon makes sure to set it apart from the rest and appeal to millennials as a whole.
The product description is as follows:
- Produces eight ghost-shaped ice cubes
- Ice cubes are ephemeral — they disappear at warm temperatures
- Great for cooling down Mar-ghoul-rita’s and Boo-jito’s
- Made of flexible silicone material
While it may appear weird to some, this seemingly absurd description is sure to tickle the fancy of millennials and push them along in the buying process. This paired with the fact that it’s available for shipping through Amazon Prime (can you say “instant gratification”?) makes the marketing for this product a millennial’s dream.
The moral of the story here can be summed up into a simple lesson: millennials don’t like the ‘box’, so think outside of it. Doing this more often will make marketing to this generation much easier than ever imagined.
P.S. Looking forward to receiving my ghostly ice tray in the mail by 9pm tonight (thanks same day Amazon Prime shipping!).