Today’s Younger Generation Consumes Media Much Differently

February 6, 2015 by Christine

Have you noticed how common “listicles” and “micromedia” have become in today’s internet? You’ve likely seen a whole lot of articles titled “5 Things” this or “10 Reasons” for whatever. There’s a big reason for this — today’s younger generation, the Millennials, have become a focal point of web advertising, and more than any other generation beforehand, they just want you to get to the point.

People browsing the internet generally have short attention spans with what they choose to read. If they’re not pulled in within the first paragraph or the first ten seconds of a web video, then they’re likely going to move on to something else pretty quickly.

So when you’re looking to make advertising pitches to a younger audience with your online content, you need to be able to draw them in with articles that get right to the point — a short introduction and then bullet points with quick, consumable information.

The problem with this format, however, is that this sort of “micromedia” doesn’t exactly stick around in the minds of the reader or viewer for very long. While the primary goal of your content marketing is to get people back to your website and interested in doing business with your company, a big part of that is leaving a lasting impression about your brand. You can put up a clever list in a blog or a funny social media post, but the reader will move on pretty quickly without having retained the information you gave them.

Basically, marketing to Millennials is something of a catch-22 — you need to be able to catch their attention with easily digestible information, but by doing so you make it harder to create a lasting impression.

So how do you actually create that impression after you’ve earned their attention? It’s all about experience. And to give a great customer experience, you need to rethink the way you perform content marketing.

Your “micromedia” should never aim to be an experience for the reader or viewer in itself, but the stepping stone to that experience. It should be a conversation starter that leads to engagement and a real experience for your customer.

Viral Solutions can help you to create those stepping stones. Contact us today for more information.

Copyright 2015 Viral Solutions LLC

by Christine Kelly

CEO and Queen Bee | Viral Solutions LLC

Prior to joining Viral Solutions, Christine held executive leadership roles at some of the largest small business consulting firms in the USA. Her experience includes leading direct reports of over 130 remote sales agents who generated $38mm in annual revenue. She obtained her Marketing degree from British Columbia Institute of Technology. Bring her C-Suite experience to your small business. Although our company is virtual, and we can work with you wherever you are located, she is located in Denver, Colorado and owns a second home in Vancouver, BC Canada.

Filed Under: Analytics