Marketing to Millennials by Jeff Fromm & Christie Garton - Book review

Marketing to Millennials

Reach the Largest and Most Influential Generation of Consumers Ever

By: Jeff Fromm, Christie Garton

Published: July 2, 2013
Format: Hardcover, 224 pages
ISBN-10: 0814433227
ISBN-13: 978-0814433225
Publisher: AMACOM











"Businesses cannot afford to ignore the Millennials. Their collective buying power alone - an estimated $200 billion annually - is already noteworthy and will only increase as they mature into their peak earning and spending years", write Executive Vice President at Barkley, Jeff Fromm; and founder of U Chic Media, Christie Garton, in their pioneering, Millennial marketing strategy filled book Marketing to Millennials: Reach the Largest and Most Influential Generation of Consumers Ever. The authors describe the power and influence of the enormous Millennial generation, how these young customers differ from previous generations, and offer the strategies and techniques to capture these important and often misunderstood customers.

Jeff Fromm (photo left) and Christie Garton understand that despite their generational name, the Millennials are not a homogeneous group. The authors identified six distinct subgroups. That knowledge is crucial for marketers who believed a single message would resonate with this entire generation. The authors also point out, that despite their groupings, there are common traits shared by Millennials, that are very different from the predecessor Generation X.

The authors examine who the Millennials are, share new rules for marketing that brands will ignore to their peril. The also present some case studies, of companies and brands, who are attuned successfully to the new rules of engagement with the Millennial generation.

Christie Garton (photo left) and Jeff Fromm recognize the the Millennial affinity for and skill with technology is well known. As a result, the authors go far beyond that single concept and embark upon a more comprehensive guide to reaching these ethnically diverse and participation oriented consumers. The Millennials are anything but passive buyers, and instead demand to be considered partners in the products and brands withh which they participate.

The authors present a complete and well documented and researched analysis of the Millennial generation. The book includes a series of fresh marketing principles, that underline both the diversity and the similarities shared, by this fascinating and influential generation. The new marketing concepts are as follows:

* Millennials: Who are they?
* The new rules of marketing to Millennials
* Engage those early adopters of new technology
* Build a listening and participation strategy
* Make them look good among their peers
* Design a sense of fun and adventure
* Don't give them a reason to cheat on you
* Epilogue: Other key marketing ideas to know

Fr me, the power of the book is how Jeff Fromm and Christie Garton combine a comprehensive theoretical framework for marketing to the Millennial generation, with a complete and practical strategy to implement the new marketing rules that are so essential for success. The authors take a big picture perspective of the Millennial generation, and then drill down into the various aspects of how the Millennials behave in the marketplace. The key insight is the author's conclusion that Millennials demand a participative brand with which they can partner and share.

As a parent of Millennial children, Jeff Fromm brings that experience to the book. Christie Garton, as a Millennial herself, brings an internal viewpoint to the table. The authors base the irt premises on on real world research and case studies, completed with companies who have wide ranging experience will Millennials as customers. The various chapters of the book end with the key takeaways from the text and research, that can be applied readily to any marketing campaign geared toward gaining the Millennial market.

I highly recommend the insightful and research based book Marketing to Millennials: Reach the Largest and Most Influential Generation of Consumers Ever by Jeff Fromm and Christie Garton, to any business leaders, product marketers, brand managers, sales managers, entrepreneurs, and anyone else interested in engaging and collaborating with the vast and crucial Millennial market. This book shatters myths about Millennials, sweeps aside the old marketing rules, and replaces them with an engaging and participatory marketing model that will be embraced by Millennials.