On page 89 in the Steve Rubel interview the question arises whether there may be a way of reaching Generation Y through its addiction to instant messaging and social networking. Although I think the question may have actually been referring to how to exploit this addiction in a marketing approach, Rubel replies more generally about the struggle this generation is causing on the work market. He does however make some interesting points. Being of Generation Y myself, I really can identify with when he speaks of how people of this generation expect to be able to come and go from work as we please. I certainly do. This comes from knowing it’s possible. Today you don’t have to be at a desk in some office to be able to answer your phone, since you always have your phone with you. And this at all times. You don’t need to be at your desk to write or reply to emails, since you can access your email from any device with internet connectivity. You don’t even need to be at your desk to access your office computer, since with the help of VPN and remote desktops you can access your computer from any other computer anywhere in the world. The conventional going to work from 9 till 5 just doesn’t make any sense anymore. We get the work done, and we get it done on time, but we’ll do it when we want to do it. We no longer work 9 till 5, we work always, 24 hours a day, and we work never, always having time for family and friends. This new mentality of work etiquette is what’s causing a struggle. But as Rubel says, the only way for companies to hold on to any new talent is to adapt.
Today’s generation is simply all about connectivity. It’s all about communication. And the manner of how connected we are just grows more and more intense with the constant advances in mobile internet technology. We are now reachable anywhere, anytime. And because of this, we communicate, a lot. We communicate with family and friends, with people we know, and people we just met. We communicate so much today because it’s all so simple and accessible. And being that we communicate with a lot more people than a few close friends,. And because of this social networks are expanding. Online communities, like Facebook and its superseder, are so popular because they help us to keep track of all these people we communicate with. We simply need this tool.
So how can we use this in marketing? How can we exploit this constant and instant communication? We all know how we feel about spam. It just doesn’t work. Whether it be as an email, an instant message, or a post in your blog, it just doesn’t work. Partly because we are all so connected we’ve already learnt how to disregard spam and also any ads placed around a website, and partly because of the annoyance spam creates. As Rubel mentions in one of the following questions, the moment you put advertising into a social network, it’s seen as very intrusive. Why? Well because the networks are used to communicate with people we already know, with our friends. We don’t want any stranger trying to sell us something while talking with our friends. It’s not like we would invite a salesperson to a private Tupperware party.
As Rubel says, it’s really a matter of adapting the approach. But the greatest question is of course how to do this? Using traditional means on a new playing field clearly doesn’t work. Finding creative new ways is the way to go. But I believe the reason Rubel didn’t give a straight-on answer of how to reach generation Y is that there’s no clear answer. Nobody has quite figured it out yet, at least not how to do it effectively. Blogging is of course a good first approach, and so is being present in social networks, since it opens up 2-way communication, and as mentioned communication’s all what this generation is about. This is a generation that wants to be able to question everything and make demands, and shape products according to their own taste and feel. They want to have a say, and not just be handed something. In the words of Rubel, these platforms have to be used for collaborating towards a shared outcome. In short, we have to communicate.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Very well said Donny. You're right, in that no one is really sure how to take advantage or manage the work expectations of Gen-Y or the huge opportunities that a highly connected society has to offer. It many not just be firms that need to adapt, but societies as well. For example, France is renown for its 35 hour work-week. But would such a system make sense in the Gen-Y world? A recent work on this topic is "The Future of Work" by Thomas Malone, an MIT professor. He talks about the shift from "command and control" to "coordinate and cultivate". I would highly recommend this book.
You make another good point regarding intrusion by strangers into one's private social network. Facebook tried and failed with its Beacon system, which would keep track of what a user looked at on external websites and then report that information to that user's friends! One can only imagine the embarrassment such as system could cause to some. After a huge outcry, Facebook shut down the Beacon system. This shows the difficulty in trying to monetize social networks.
I would be interested in reading some more examples of problems/solutions regarding marketing to Gen-Y by other students.
I believe you can't use the social networks for ordinary means of advertisements, the way for example spam messages uses it. The social networks may actually not primarily have new direct ways of promoting products, but rather create a new kind of playing field where new and different kinds of promotions will have a greater impact than the traditional ones.
For example, the massive communication should mean that word of mouth gains power, and thus traditional promotion campaigns lose their competitiveness. Perhaps future marketing campaigns will be more targeted towards spreading their messages via word of mouth, rather than via billboards.
Also, social networks like Facebook map both the demographics and the social relations of people.
Through this information it should be possible to identify specific demographics very accurately and run targeted ads and offers.
It's also become popular to give away free products to trendsetters and socially influential persons. Perhaps social networks can help identify such persons further down the consumer chain (and closer to the end consumers).
For me, a fellow Gen-Y, i feel that regular advertisement still have a place, but in a different way. I feel that the purpose should be more focused on simple brandrecognition, instead of specific products.
I'm more interested in what other "real" people has to say about a product than the company. However, i feel that we still are more inclined to buy a for us well known brand, even if the price is a little bit higher.
About the word of mouth marketing, i totally agree that this has become much bigger for our generation. After all, reviews and comments to reviews is word of mouth in a sence.
The problem i see from a companys point of view is that word of mouth is ver hard to controll. You can send out free samples to trendsetters like Filip mentioned, but the outcome is still very hard to predict. Also, allot of bloggers and others have been takeing some heat from the readers for taking too much free stuff or even cash compensations from companies, becaus it soils the objectivity of the writer.
recently, i read an article about Best Buy which implemented ROWE(Results-only Working Environment). Here, where you work in the office or starbucks doesn't matter, but, the results. Each employee has freedom to work anywhere and anytime. This has been created due to Generation Y, whom you can connect with various media (mobile, e-mail, blog, etc.)... the world is quite changing the way we live and work.
Post a Comment