When It Comes to Bank or Credit Union Success, Simplicity Wins
Simplify your credit union marketing for success. Discover how a focused strategy, clear messaging & a streamlined website can enhance member engagement.
Read More“How do we reach Millennials?” is a question we hear often from credit unions and banks, particularly this time of year during strategic planning sessions.
It’s a great question, but it’s also one you’ve probably been asking for the last 10 years. It’s time now to get a little more creative than simply putting pictures of Millennials on your website.
My top recommendation for reaching Millennials? Host an event for millennials.
Here’s why an event for Millennials is a good thing:
Before you jump in and start planning, here are seven tips for hosting, sponsoring and successfully executing an event for Millennials.
I cannot stress this point enough. Saying you want to target Millennials is like saying you want to plant a flower garden. What types of flowers? How much water and sunlight do they need?
Millennials currently range from ages 20 to 37. There’s a lot of life that happens there, which means there are several Millennial subgroups. You have college students, Millennial moms, DINKs (dual income, no kids) and HENRYs (highly educated, not rich yet) just to name a few.
Your first step in targeting Millennials through event marketing is to decide exactly which Millennials you’re trying to reach. Each subgroup responds differently and is interested in different things. You cannot be all things to all Millennials.
Millennials are, for the most part, not prioritizing financial services. Your chances of getting Millennials to come to a cocktail hour at your branch after they finish work are slim to none.
Instead, go where Millennials already are. Host a puppy meet and greet at a local dog park. Partner with a local weekend farmers market. Sponsor an outing for a local Mothers’ Day Out group. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel here.
Many Millennials lack basic financial knowledge. More than 65% live paycheck to paycheck. Telling them they’ll qualify for a 2.50% APR auto loan for attending your event will not draw attention, because they don’t know what you’re talking about.
What will draw attention, however, is benefits. Tell them how their lives will be better for participating in the event. Examples include peace of mind, social connection and personal fulfillment.
How much foot traffic do you actually get when you have a booth at events? Not much, likely because booths are boring. They fade into the crowd, not because what you’re offering isn’t good but because the way in which you’re offering it doesn’t stand out.
If you must have a booth, then make it interactive. Give the Millennials you’re targeting something to do, an incentive to interact with you (besides free junk). Examples include a uniquely designed photo station or a basketball hoops contest.
The average Millennial looks at their phone every five minutes…without anything prompting them to do so. If they’re going to be on their phones during your event, then use it to your advantage. Give them something valuable to do with those screens.
Have them take out their phones and follow you on Facebook (yes, Millennials are still on Facebook) or (better yet) Instagram. Have them fill out a survey for a chance to win something. Get them engaging with technology in a way that also benefits you. For extra points, make your WiFi network name and password readily visible to attendees.
If young professionals are your target, then networking is no doubt a mutually beneficial way to reach them. That said, everyone (and I mean everyone) hosts “networking lunches.” Millennials will likely skip yours for a more focused, interest-specific event.
Instead of falling victim to the generic networking lunch trap (and thereby wasting hundreds of dollars on free lunchers), get creative with your networking events. Host networking outings, corporate tours or high-profile speakers.
Millennials who haven’t run a mile since it was required in grade school will get up at dark thirty in the morning to run a 5K supporting a local charity. Millennials love philanthropy and want to participate in their giving rather than just giving to causes blindly.
Caution: be careful how you promote your charity sponsorship. Make sure the charity you’re sponsoring aligns with your brand and target market. Second, don’t be sleazy. Millennials crave authenticity, and they can smell you using someone else’s need for your benefit from a mile away.
Finally, remember the end goal.
Your end goal is to build relationships with Millennials that will lead to years of loyalty, not to host the biggest event in your credit union’s history. Build relationships with even a few key Millennials, and you’ll have them for life.