1.
What to expect
from this paper?
Our world is changing rapidly. Technology is developing faster than ever. Information is shared and
made available everywhere. Generation Y is the first generation to grow up with Internet and is
used to having everything at its fingertips.
Therefore marketing will never be the same again. Merely pushing advertising doesn’t work
anymore. One-way communication simply doesn’t do the trick anymore. Ignoring your failures will
not make them go away.
21 global marketing executives from various industries (see list in appendix) provided us with
insights on their definition of Generation Y, the main marketing challenges and some possible
solutions to tackle these challenges. This paper is composed in this order:
• How different is Generation Y as a target group according to marketing practitioners?
• What challenges are marketing, branding and communication managers confronted with
when dealing with this Millennial generation?
• A 5-step plan to improve your marketing towards Gen Y customers.
One remark: don’t expect to find all the solutions. After all, it’s about having the guts to do
something you have never done before.

2.
1
How different is Gen Y?

3.
Defining characteristics
Before defining the challenges
marketers face when connecting
with Gen Y, it is important to know
how they define this generation. It
is clear that coming up with one
unilateral definition is a hard task.
A lot of verbatim was used but
brought us to four key
characteristics.
ME =
FREE

4.
The free generation
The overall trend when marketeers are talking about GenY is that the GenY
youth have a high degree of freedom compared to the previous generation.
Everything their parents and grandparents fought for finally paid off: youth
today is finally free. No pressure to practise a given religion, no worries about
being gay: let’s put it all on the table and talk about it. It’s [also] the first
generation that didn’t need to rebel against former generations. Society
became more liberal and parents more democratic.
Mum and dad are pretty cool in a way: they are not an institution to fight
against, rather a source of reliable advice. Up to GenY to make this advice
their own. Parents treat their children on an equal level, like friends, and the
kids today respond with more compusere towards their folks.
That doesn’t mean that there are no issues anymore. For example: they really
care about the environment and the economic crisis also affects them. They
have a strong feeling for justice: it’s not fair that the banks profit from
normal citizens and it is not okay that we are all polluting the planet we live
on. Fortunately, they have the balls, the skills and the means to address and
tackle these issues. And when they have issues with you as a brand, they will
tackle those as well.
Let’s go more into detail about the implications of these characteristics for the
today’s marketeer.

5.
PRAGMATIC
I want it all
Looking for the best deal Kuruma banare
As there is less stress about where to belong or how to Let’s take transport as an example: the more convenient, the
behave, youngsters feel more confident. They have a better. Improved infrastructure in the big cities, environment
realistic view on the state of the world and what their role in issues, the rising fuel costs and everlasting traffic jams make
it can be. Therefore, they make choices which best fit their a car a luxury item rather than a necessity for youngsters.
needs at that particular moment. They want everything as In Japan they use the phrase “kuruma banare”
fast as possible and have no patience whatsoever. They’re (demotorization), which means that youngsters fall out of
annoyed when they can’t get what they want. love with cars. They prefer public transport, bicycles or
even skateboards to go from A to B in big congested cities.
“They are not a generation that wants to wait; if they feel a need It’s not that they don’t like these big cities, they just want to
for change they'll immediately want that change. Everybody in this be as efficient as possible. Today’s youth is more
generation feels entitled to freedom, to deciding on their own interested in the latest gadgets rather than in acquiring an
terms and having a better and bigger life. Life became more rapid expensive car. City cars, like for example MINI, need to be
and this fast-paced age has changed their attitudes, their world convenient, smart and easy-to-use.
perceptions and their whole life.“
Christophe Fellinger, Employer Branding & Talent Attraction,
Beiersdorf

6.
CONNECTED
I want to share it now
Sharing is caring The success of the Tomorrowland
after-movie
Connecting was never easier. There are no
restraints which keep them from communicating “When the product is good, people start the
exactly when, where and how they want it. They campaign for you. And of course we have all these
have Internet in their blood and are not afraid to deejays from all around the world who have their own
use it. GenYers love to talk with each other blogs or webpages and fans and they are the
online. They learn about products, situations, ambassadors of our event too. And we try to surprise
experiences by hearing from others. Not only are them, like for instance the people flying in from
they sharing, but they also do it continuously. Barcelona, experienced a party flight with deejays
Being connected at any time has become more and dancers. They will talk about that.”
and more important: Christophe Van den Brande, Marketing & Creative
Manager Tomorrowland
“Three quarters claim to never be offline for more
than an hour. They are accustomed to working on Tomorrowland has been voted the best Dance
numerous devices, gadgets, social networks and apps Music Festival in the world in 2011. Everyone
and thus live in a perpetually virtual world allowing who was ever there agrees: Tomorrowland is
them to maintain a consistent level of engagement.” quite an experience. That much an experience,
Anita Caras, Head of Insights Global Agency & that people want to re-live it. The success of the
Accounts Microsoft after-movie says it all: in 24 hours the movie
already had 2 million unique views. One week
later the video already had 10,000,000 unique
views. Quite impressive, knowing that there were
actually 180,000 people present.

7.
BOLD
I„m sharing it all Belvedere Vodka:
not so smooth
Past March, Belvedere placed a
Heart on the sleeve rather controversial commercial
online. Within an hour, Belvedere
Having original and conversation-worthy experiences and had to take the ad down.
opinions is key. If it’s not buzz-worthy, it’s not cool. Comments on Twitter and
Everything is shared, good and bad news. They have their Facebook were furious, even after
own voice and they are not afraid of using it. They like to apologizing with the following
give their feedback to friends & family, but also to brands tweet:
and companies. Review sites are more popular than ever. “We apologize to any of our fans who were offended by our recent
And you’d better be listening, because they won’t stop tweet. We continue to be an advocate of safe and responsible drinking.”
talking:
Even more complaints came in after this apology, because the
“The challenge with this generation is that your organization company only apologized for offending their fans, not going to the
should be ready to act rapidly as a response to their feedback. core of the case. Charles Gibb, president of Belvedere, wrote a
Social media are a good way to have feedback right away, but personal message on Facebook:
this generation has a high need of quick reactions to their
feedback. If you want to satisfy them, you need to respond with “My name is Charles Gibb and I am the President of Belvedere Vodka. I
product or campaign changes much faster than before and try would like to personally apologize for the offensive post that recently
to deliver what they are asking you.“ appeared on our Facebook page. It should never have happened. I am
Clelia Morales, Head of Social Media & PR eBay Europe currently investigating the matter to determine how this happened and to
be sure it never does again. The content is contrary to our values and we
deeply regret this lapse.”
The company also made a donation to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse and
Incest National Network, as an expression of their regret.

8.
ECLECTIC
I want it my way
Puzzle time Karl Lagerfeld for Coca-Cola light
Today’s youth isn’t about predefined structures or rigid A special cooperation is the one between Karl Lagerfeld,
movements anymore, it’s about creating your own style the famous Chanel designer, and Coca-Cola light. The
dimension. Freedom implies freedom of choice: clothes, fashion legend has already signed twice for the design of
music, travel, hobbies… Instead of one main point of special edition bottles for one of the most well-known
interest there are several smaller ones which construct drinks in the world. Not only do Coca-Cola and clothes
their identity. Mixing and matching brands, expensive or not have that much in common, the high-end image of
non-expensive, hippie, chic or vintage: it makes them feel Chanel and the image of the mass-produced soft drink
unique and original. are also not an obvious match. It works, however: on all
fashion blogs, the cooperation was a hot topic. The
“Millennials break the traditional segmentation and bottles were sold exclusively in only a few specific shops
marketing theories. They may buy a very expensive fashionable per country.
Louis Vuitton bag because of its badging value, but at the same
time they’ll buy very cheap private label crisps simply to go for
the cheapest. As consumers they are far less predictable than
before. They may buy the gorgeous next Paul Smith dress for
€1000 even, and the next day buy a €20 H&M copy of something
fashionable, just to use it for a couple of months.”
Mark Van Iterson, GlobalHead of Brand Design Heineken

9.
2
Challenges in marketing to Gen Y

10.
These characteristics create challenges
Pragmatic
“If you don‟t do what
you promised me
I‟ll get bored, I‟ll go
away and talk about
my feelings
(offline and online).”
Eclectic
Bold
Connected

11.
But
…
“If you do everything
you promise me
I’ll stay with you
and share my thoughts
(offline and online).”
(until you no
longer surprise me…)

12.
The question is
HOW
“You constantly have to be up-to-date about what is actually moving in their heads, what
makes them happy, what makes them worried and what makes them prefer one company over
another.” (Jörgen Andersson, SVP and global brand & new business director Esprit)

13.
Challenges for the marketeer PRAGMATIC CONNECTED
Deliver value for money Be where they are
Companies are obligated to deliver value for If there are no restraints which keep them from
money. This doesn’t necessarily mean monetary communicating exactly when, where and how they
value. Their personal needs (identification, want it, there are none for your company either. It’s
experience, trust…) will influence their definition of not about mass marketing anymore, but about
value for money. It has to be the whole package: managing all different touch points.
it’s not about adding a nice design or giving a special
experience, it’s about having both.
ME =
FREE
ECLECTIC BOLD
Act like a chameleon… Activate a conversation
…but don‟t become a lizard! Their eclectic nature Youngsters talk about brands and decide what is
implies that companies nowadays should be flexible said about them. Cool and interesting information
and able to react quickly to all sorts of new trends. Gen could be fun to share, irritations and bad
Y has another way of consuming than the previous experiences are also a conversation starter. Open
generation: harder, better, faster, stronger. Still, the dialogue, participate (add value) and have a
consistency in time, channel & culture remains honest conversation.
important.

14.
3
Five steps to Gen Y-proof marketing

15.
Step 1 Step 2
PRAGMATIC
CONNECTED
RELEVANCE TOUCH POINTS
GenYers won‟t take bullshit. They So many possibilities, so difficult to
search for products which satisfy their manage them all. Reaching out to them
needs the best way possible. Being and communicating with them requires
relevant is key. good touch point management.
Step 5
HAVE
5-step plan
GUTS
Step 4 Step 3
ECLECTIC
BOLD
LOYALTY ENGAGEMENT
Their constant hunger for new You can‟t just expect them to
impulses makes it hard to keep swallow every message. Do you
them interested. How can you really tap into their minds? How
make them loyal? can you really engage them?

16.
1
Step
Make it relevant

17.
1
It all starts Don‟t forget about Creating the
with the product the company experience
“The first way to be cool and stay hot “Corporate CSR became more “We used to focus on creating the best
is to have a nice and differing product. important because Gen Y is also smarter product benefits. Today that's not enough
These days you cannot build a brand just and will spend and invest their money anymore, it's all about creating the best
by marketing, you need a great product carefully, in a way that it actually product EXPERIENCE. But creating a
and adapt all the marketing to the core reflects their value system and they will relevant experience is always related to
strengths of the product, not the other challenge companies to use their money understanding the world of your
way around.” in a conscious and social way.” consumers and trying to be as close to
Renzo Rosso, Founder Diesel Hubert Grealish, Global Head of them as possible.”
Marketing Communications Diageo Mariken Kimmels, Marketing Director
If your product isn’t doing what it Heinz Continental
promises, you may as well close up. Of course, being true to who you are
Youngsters can find information is key. It’s about wearing the Stories will be stories, and the
anywhere and are asking feedback company value glasses in everything product should give your consumers
from peers all the time. you do. Storytelling, authenticity what they’re expecting, nothing more
It is all about price/quality: are you and uniqueness could add more and nothing less. Creating an actual
offering something valuable? That than you would expect: they reflect experience around it, online and
will cost a certain price. Finding their values and build up your offline, is something intangible that
exclusive promotions and getting corporate identity. could elevate your product and
even more value than expected is the brand experience.
top of the bill.

18.
Step
1 Be cool
A cool product A cool company is A cool experience
is innovative and smart and reliable is exclusive
surprising
Making genuine efforts to be Youngsters are afraid to be just like
Being the first to do something new relevant to them is considered to be the rest. They want to stand out,
will certainly arouse the interest. Of cool. It is showing them that you have their own identity and
course, your innovation should be have done your homework and are experience things that are
clear and add an extra value to the willing to go beyond the obvious. exceptional and exclusive. These
product. After all, the pragmatic Being cool nowadays means being moments are most likely to be
GenYer won’t like anything that smart: inventiveness and creativity shared with their closest friends. It is
seems irrelevant or doesn’t add create buzz. about having a moment they will
some extra value. never forget. ‘Remember that
evening we had thanks to brand x?’
Instant coolness.
“It is about relevance, being meaningful and worth sharing. Like tweeting it to your
friends. That’s a pretty good sign that it is cool. We’re not kidding ourselves into
thinking that people are really going to talk about it: “Oh, I had a great experience
when I paid with my debit card at the local pizza place”. What will get people to talk is
when you tap into their emotion and add some sort of value, so some of them will say:
“Oh, I got this through MasterCard. How cool is that?”
Peter Jung, Senior Business Leader MasterCard

19.
Step
1 Be real
A real product is A real company is A real experience is
transparent and fair approachable and engaging (online and
open offline)
Be clear about what you are: what
are the ingredients, where have you Authenticity is key. What does Captain Morgan is a very popular
made your clothes, how authenticity mean? First of all: you rum brand, named after a real 17th
environmentally friendly are you? need to have a story to tell. Second: century pirate from Jamaica. This
Youngsters appreciate honesty: you should stay true to your brand character is used as a real-life
being clear about your intentions values. It is all about being human. entertainer in bars and pubs, offline.
and your goals and living up to them Social media is a perfect platform to People are then able to share their
is a huge asset. have direct contact with your pictures and experiences online.
consumers. Brand ambassadors
even more so are giving your brand
a human face.
“It can bring so much fun and personality to those places in ways we’ve just not seen before.
And to think that all of that is brought together again with the digital background is so important
because it allows people to share their pictures, share their stories and it allows the Captain to
say where and when he will be in different places. It creates a whole new type of engagement
opportunities for Millennials based not only on branding but actually on personality.”
Hubert Grealish, Global Head Brand Communications Diageo

20.
Step
1 Be unique
Every company, product, service,
commercial… has to be unique in
some way. The time of one single
USP is over. Having a combination
of several USPs is what every
company strives for.
A unique product is A unique company has A unique experience is
personal a story to tell memorable
Personalisation is still key. The clue A unique company has a story to For Gen Y, creativity is also very
is to go beyond personalisation: it’s tell: they talk about heritage, important. There is so much to
not only about adding or changing consumer experiences, employees choose from that you have to stand
something to the layout of a product, and company culture. out in the crowd. Abercrombie&Fitch
but also about being open to co- are doing a great job in giving their
creation and co-ownership. customers the ultimate in-store
experience:
“When people enter an A&F shop, they expect high energy, a cool fun environment with
shop staff with a great sense of style and appearance. We bring that same consistent shop
experience in all countries. We are cool on many levels: songs, music, lyrics, feel, smell, taste,
touch, in the shop, how we look. It's important that our staff humanizes our brand and
experience of walking in the shop. When you walk in people will talk to you and help you.”
Todd Corley, Senior VP, Abercrombie&Fitch

21.
Step
1 Make them happy
The product fulfils The company believes The experience met or
my needs I‟m important even exceeded my
expectations
It’s all about managing expectations. It’s about truly engaging with your
Don’t promise what you can’t make consumers: are you listening? Are
For this generation, it’s all about fun,
happen. Listen to the needs of your you reacting to what they’re saying?
happiness, excitement, feeling part
consumer and try to adapt your Only when you’re showing your
of something, feeling empowered.
product to these needs. honest interest and link actions to
It‟s about living the light life. Let’s
this, the consumer will really feel
again take the example of
that they make a difference.
Tomorrowland. Tomorrowland is a
dance festival in Belgium which has
captured the hearts of youngsters all
around the world in no time. In only
four years time the visitor count
went from 50,000 to 180,000 this
year. Tomorrowland is more than
just concerts, it is a total concept:
“We work on exceeding the expectations. We want to create an atmosphere of phantasy, a separate imaginative world, everything must be
part of that experience: from high quality food (Michelin starred chefs cooking, fresh vegetables and good meat even at the burger stall...),
over comfortable entrances, showers and luxury cabins for overnight stay, some of them with Jacuzzi and sauna and butler. We build an
experience comparable to the good feeling after a long holiday with memories to cherish for life, the ability to get in touch with new people,
start a relationship. It's more than just people watching a good show and then leaving again, we want to bring them a creative and sexy
unique experience.”
Christophe Van den Brande, Marketing & Creative Manager Tomorrowland

22.
Step
1 Let them identify!
A product I can A company I can An experience I can
identify with identify with identify with
While globalisation no longer left youngsters Values are a reflection of a consumer’s
An experience should have a personal
clueless about each other and styles are a identity. Identifying these values and
approach and elaborate on a person’s
mixture of several influences, GenYers still responding to them makes consumers feel
interest. Involving peers in the experience will
want to have their own identity. They want to connected with the company.
make it more valuable and memorable. When
be proud of the products they are using.
being connected with each other, youngsters
Tapping into their personal atmosphere and “For Esprit last Christmas we did the "make
will share interesting content. Add a local
adding a local touch stays important: your wish" campaign around the world with the
experience to your global campaign and you
Facehunter (famous street style fashion
already have the right mix to approach a
Xerud the fortune teller photographed/blogger). Urban people were
diverse audience.
holding a card with their personal wish in the
Despite the liberal mind-set of Taiwan, talking pictures and some candid movies were shot too.
about safe sex is still a sensitive subject. Everything was posted on Facebook and people
How to adapt to this cultural threshold if your could add their own wishes and then a jury would
brand is called Durex? In Taiwan, fortune select wishes relevant to the Esprit brand and
tellers are very common. Durex decided to make them come true. So instead of just showing
develop an unbranded fortune-telling clothes, we were showing the values and
automaton that provides love/life predictions. expressing that we care about people and the
They let her tour in bars and clubs over the world around us.”
country. With their prediction comes a Jörgen Andersson, SVP and global brand & new
condom and a message. An example: business director, Esprit
"In a relationship it is vital to just be your free
self. Don't worry. With Durex your romantic
undertakings are in safe hands... For more
predictions go to durexfu.com.tw of look for
Xerud on Facebook.“

23.
To stay relevant for Millennials, marketers should take
inclusiveness AND exclusiveness into account.
On a corporate and brand level, they On a product level, it is important to be In marketing campaigns, activations,
should make sure their brand is accessible for everyone (inclusive) on events and retail experience, successful
including as many Millennials as the one hand but to create stimulating Gen Y brands know how to create
possible. Gen X marketing was all exclusive novelties, limited editions, extraordinary, exceptional
about creating an exclusive brand. To higher priced temporary items or experiences. They should feel like
approach the social Gen Y, brands innovations on the other. The latter will exclusive and personalized experiences
should be involved in all lifestyles and keep the attention of the fickle that Millennials find worth sharing with
segments of Millennials. Brands must be stimulation-junkie generation. their friends.
innovative, surprising and
inspirational for all of them. This is the
only way Gen Y will identify with the
brand.

24.
Abercrombie&Fitch
Being an inclusive company becomes more and more
important. After a racist scandal, where potential employees
were discriminated because of their skin colour, hipster shop
Abercrombie&Fitch decided to focus on an inclusiveness
program, creating a special function which would be
occupied following up this program.
“We rolled out a programme to make our staff more dexterous,
more flexible with different cultural styles or different ways of
looking at thing, to help them figure out the common ground and
meet someone who is perhaps more passive or less direct,
somewhere in the middle. In 2004, when I started this office/new
function, A&F had 400 shops, based in the US only, in 2011 we had
grown to 1,000 shops, the majority still in the US but also in many
other nations. We moved from a 90% white in-store population to
a 50% white and 50% non-white population. With that evolution
came an increased level of awareness and dealing with not only
issues of race but also nationality.”
Todd Corley, Senior Vice President & Global Chief Diversity Officer A&F

25.
MasterCard & Exclusive experiences
MasterCard, a difficult product for youngsters to really
engage with, tries to connect with consumers through exclusive
experiences. By surprising their consumers and tapping into
their true interests, MasterCard becomes more relevant.
“An example of engaging young consumers in conversations: a
pilot project in Mexico built around one of the core passions: music.
We've invested in mobile apps which actually profile consumers based
on their listening behaviour. So, for instance, if you like Coldplay and
you live in Mexico, you will receive an invitation to post something or
share something and then get an invite for a VIP cocktail reception
before the concert. Or you will get access to presales of tickets
exclusively for MasterCard holders so that you will be guaranteed to
get a ticket before the mass sales start... So exclusive, experiential
offers based on your preferences.”
Peter Jung, Senior Business Leader MasterCard

26.
2
Step
The touch point mix

27.
Step
2
Point of sale Media & Advertising
Look at your (web) shop as if it‟s your own home: when What about good old-fashioned above-the-line campaigns?
you invite people to your home, you want everything to be in Of course they’re not dead. You just need to know that you
order. You want people to have a nice impression of you and won’t make it with a single TV advert. Actually, campaigns
you want to make them feel comfortable. Hopefully they will are great to create global awareness. But it not enough to just
spread the word and will be eager to come back. Don’t forget leave it at that. Integration with social media is a must. The
about social shopping either: it’s an important trend that will campaign should trigger some kind of interaction with your
emerge more in the future. Offline and online go hand in consumer.
hand: GenYers have the tendency to ask feedback from a
friend when shopping offline or online. The faster, the better! “Gen Y understands very well what marketing and advertising is
about and that marketing people paid big sums of money to put
"One of the new services we are testing now with eBay is all their logo on TV. If the content is not entertaining or relevant it's
about this instant gratification. It is called "help me find". For useless. Of course TV commercials are still important but it's all the
instance, if you see a bag you like, you can immediately take a digital marketing around it, the extra content like in films or behind
picture, tag your friends and ask them to help you find out which the scenes, the challenges and little games make the commercial
brand it is and where you can buy it. It is this type of instant more talkeable and interesting. So it's all about understanding the
services allowing you to connect with your friends that are context of a touch point.”
endorsing the social shopping trend among Gen Y“ Mark Van Iterson, Head of Global Brand Design Heineken
Clelia Morales, Head of Social Media & PR eBay EU

28.
Step
2
Website Social media Mobile integration
A website is more than just an Of course, social media are a must. Use mobile efforts to connect with your
information stall about your product. It is Facebook for example should be consumers and connect them with each
what you are: you can share your past, integrated in all communication actions. other. Don’t create just another app:
your present and your future and get Don’t think of it as a one-way make it relevant.
feedback from your consumers. You can communication platform though: the most
engage and connect on a deeper level valuable feature of Facebook is the fact • Take location-based marketing to
than for instance on your Facebook page that it enables interaction and the next level: it’s not about knowing
(which is obviously linked to your website inspiration (by brands, celebrities and where your customer is, but about
and vice versa). Contests, games or friends). Not only with the brand, but also customizing your communication in
advertising often refer to the website. with their peers. It is a great platform to try the right context. If you know your
Make sure you keep your new visitors new things and to innovate. Playing with customer is working out at the gym,
connected by making them more curious: trending topics, asking them about the you might as well communicate about
hide a riddle, reveal a secret or show latest news and using humour are your energy drink.
exclusive footage! Don’t make it successful ways to connect with your Gen • When are your customers the most
overcomplicated though: your website Y audience. active? Maybe during lunch? Maybe
should be a portal where everything your just before or after school? Link
consumer needs to know is presented in “Brands have to be more social today and certain actions to these timings!
an intuitive and engaging way. that doesn't just mean adding a Facebook tab • It’s not about culture, but about
and Twitter account. It's about investing in services: where are the good
“Mobile and web is not a differentiating community management and establish a restaurants, where are the other
strong social voice. It means that you have to
factor, it is just something you have to have.” respond and syndicate conversations about people around here who have the
Christoph Fellinger, Talent Relationship
your brand and payments and create real two- same product as I have? How can I
Manager Beiersdorf way dialogues. It takes serious commitment connect with them as quickly as
and engagement to get people to talk about possible?
your brand or service - you should ask • Don’t make a rip-off of your website,
yourself: why should they care, why should but do something unique. An app is
they share?” a perfect platform for branded utility.
Peter Jung, Senior Business Leader MasterCard

29.
Step
2
Event
Being relevant is defined on three levels: product level, company level and
experience level. Events are the way to go when you want to create the
ultimate customer experience. Not only can you connect with your
consumers, but consumers can also connect with each other. This results
in WOM, sharing stories online and long-lasting memories.
“When it comes to touch points, although we have the right product in the right
shops and successful social media networks, we believe connecting with
consumers in real life, physically, is still very important. So skateboarding events
like Coastal Carnage at Huntington beach are important because we bring
10,000s of people together to interact socially with each other and it's an
exceptional experience that they will discuss with their friends both on- and
offline. (see also 100 club events in London)”
Geoff Cottrill, CMO Converse
Managing touch points nowadays means having a well-balanced mix of
online and offline channels. Take a good look and bear in mind the tips
and tricks of the previous chapter when choosing the appropriate way to
communicate with Generation Y.
“The true CEO of the company is the consumer. And it is all about his/her
emotions, what he/she feels when coming into a shop: it's not just the clothes or
colours: it's also about feeling inspired. So with every touch point of the brand,
you have to feel something. If you're passionate about something, you become
engaged.”
Jörgen Andersson, SVP and Global Brand & New Business Director Esprit

30.
3
Step
The engagement toolbox

31.
Step
3

32.
Step
3
Top users
You probably have some true brand lovers. Those consumers are crazy
about your product, love to talk about it and share their experiences with
others. So why not connect with your top users and engage them to
engage others?
"It's not only about selling stuff to them, it's about getting into a relevant
conversation with them related to their interests in daily life and get involved.
For instance: eBay's spring&summer fashion campaign in the UK ( #mymix).
We had a meeting with the 20 most influential fashion bloggers and through a
Twitter party everyone could connect, ask questions and make live comments.
Three bloggers created their own style with eBay items -and became a model of
their own look! It's an example of how we engage with our clients through
different channels.“
Clelia Morales, Head of Social Media & PR eBay EU

33.
Step
3
The
engagement
toolbox Co-creation Collaboration
Ok, so now you have Consumers are no longer waiting for Co-creation is evolving more towards
used your relevance an invitation to co-create brands. collaboration. The pragmatic, eclectic
checklist, you checked They are building their own brands and bold GenYer wants to have a say
the touch point mix and with other consumers, involving your in the products he uses. How should
you involved your top brand whether invited or not, and you facilitate this? Create a platform
users. How can you now expecting their influence to be where they can share their thoughts
engage with consumers? rewarded. So it is not a question of and ideas. Act upon these thoughts
Look in the toolbox and incorporating co-creation or not, it is a and involve them in the early stages of
choose an engagement question of how far you want to go. the creation process.
technique.
“Many companies are still afraid of “I do think brands are co-owned.
what I would call the real co-creation. Companies need to learn to let control of
Not just using co-creation as a one-off the brand by consumers. Before it was more
shot for marketing purposes but really centralized and more, small groups making
involving consumers in an early stage of decisions on how the brand acted, and what
developing new products, concepts and type of campaigns you portray, activate and
ideas. At Heinz, we are now what type of platforms you use. I think now
experimenting with the Talking Labels: we are shifting towards more co-ownership
people can order their own label with a of the brand.”
personalized text but the next phase Francisco Bethencourt, Director Strategy &
should be collaborating with them in an Marketing PepsiCo
earlier phase.”
Mariken Kimmels, Marketing Director
Heinz Continental

34.
Step
3
Surprises Stories
Surprising your consumers is the best Do not underestimate the power of
way to give them a shake and make stories. Tell a story about yourself, let
sure they stay focused. A surprise can your consumers share stories about
be anything: send them a birthday their personal life, or even better:
card, post a video that nobody has combine both. People want something
ever seen before, show up to talk about. What kind of stories?
unexpectedly at an event… As long as Cool, real, unique, personal and
it is relevant (see previous chapter) emotional stories!
and you don’t stalk them, they’ll love it:
“Red Bull is a good example of a brand
“When the product is good, people want which represents 'experience life to the
to be part of it, share movies and pictures full', with adrenaline kicks. Maybe the
on YouTube and Facebook and start the biggest fear of Gen Y is to lead a dull and
campaign for you. And we have of course boring life. So Red Bull does all this
numerous deejays from all around the exciting interesting stuff with adrenaline
world who have their own blogs or kicks, stuff worth uploading and sharing
webpages and fans and they are the on FB or through Twitter.”
ambassadors of our event too. And we try Mark Vaniterson, Global Head of l Brand
to surprise them, like for instance the Design Heineken
people flying in from Barcelona,
experienced a party flight with deejays and
dancers. They will talk about that.”
Christophe Van den Brande, Marketing &
Creative Manager Tommorowland

35.
Step
3
Games
Games are engaging, no question about that. The problem is:
everyone is doing it already. So how can you stay relevant and stand
out in the crowd? First of all: link it to your product and try to make it
cool, real, unique and relevant. Second: don’t make it too difficult so
your consumers can still feel good about themselves. Most of the
time they are playing for attention and achievement. And last: don’t
forget to leverage on the social potential: your target group probably
has a wide social network. Try to engage your gamers to activate
that network as well!
“Achieving something and feeling happy (in a social context) is utterly
important to Gen Y. Gamification can fit into this aspiration to achieve and
self-improve but in the same time you gain feedback and comments of your
social circle.”
Anita Caras, Head of Insights Microsoft
“To develop the new cap of the Heinz bottle we used some gamification
elements. For instance the first 57 visitors of a new website to develop a
new cap were invited to share their ideas. (57 refers to the 57 varieties of
Heinz also mentioned on the bottle). They could create their own content
and share it with their friends. It really worked and we found out that mire
young people participated because of these gamification elements.”
Mariken Kimmels, Marketing Director Heinz Continental

36.
4
Step
Enhance Loyalty: be FAIR

37.
Step
4
Want fame? Be FAIR! Be fast
How to keep them involved, for more Let’s get Famous – have a continuous conversation with your Gen Y
than just 15 minutes of fame? consumers
Great that you managed to create a Famous is the first advertising agency which truly connects with consumers,
good campaign which receives a lot of in order to make their campaigns more relevant. For consumers and for their
positive reactions. But it doesn’t end clients. Via an on-going online research community, Famous has a constant
there. A frequent mistake is to take a connection with consumers. Not only campaigns, but also trends, brand
break whenever something goes well. positioning and strategy are discussed. Famous is always in touch with
Wrong: you have to keep your young consumers and can ask questions at any moment of the day.
consumers involved. If not, you just had
your fifteen minutes of fame, but you The faster you react towards your consumers, the more likely you are to have
want to be legend, or not? Follow the a bond with them. It’s all about conversations: the more fluent you
FAIR model: communicate with each other, the better you will understand each other. Fast
action shows them that you actually listen and care. And it’s not only about
literally acting fast on Facebook or Twitter, it’s also about monitoring their
behaviour and keeping on learning more about them. Go out and talk! As
their world is so rapidly changing, an on-going approach is the most
successful way for keeping up:
“Research now is done online, both qualitative and quantitative. Companies that
are more forward-thinking and are starting to embrace those ideas, will understand
much better what is up and coming in the new generation, engaging with them on an
on-going basis.”
Francisco Bethencourt, Director Strategy and Marketing PepsiCo

38.
Step
4
Innovate (or let them innovate) Reward them for their loyalty
Standing still is going backwards. By innovation you The pragmatic GenYer won’t do anything for free.
are showing interest, creativity and proactivity. Always Showing them your appreciation for the fact that they
question your product with the end-user in mind. And choose you is key. Compare it with a relationship: you
very important: involve your users in the innovation also like appreciation for the fact that you’re
process. They will feel heard, appreciated and will stay committed, no? Some nice words, a little surprise, a
loyal to the brand they helped building. gift… It makes you feel appreciated and motivates you
to go on! Going beyond the obvious could even make
“Apple's communication is very much about innovations, your consumers happier: a random act of kindness is
improvements and simplicity, but always clearly linked to an instant satisfier.
daily life. Their strength is that they don't bother too much
about dominating technologies but are able to imagine what “Durex sponsors Valtifest, a festival in Amsterdam. The
the future will bring.” theme of one of the previous editions was religion. A sign
Mark Van Iterson, Global Brand Designer Heineken dropped from the sky upon the festival visitors when Durex
dropped 3,000 condoms on the festival terrain. A random
“Who creates the content? Historically this was done by act of kindness.”
the agencies. Companies engage with agencies to create a Ilse Westerik, Senior Brand Manager Personal Care Reckitt
new marketing campaign based on a big idea. That content Benckiser
was pretty much created internally, within the four walls of
the company. Together with the agency, but in that internal
environment. I do think we are seeing more and more FAIR= FAst, Innovative, Rewarding
examples and we will see more successful companies and
brands engage in that two-way dialogue and create content
together with their consumers.”
Francisco Bethencourt, Director Strategy and Marketing
PepsiCo

39.
5
Step
Have guts

40.
Step
5 Go out there and
create a daring but
relevant appeal
“Keeping the Heineken brand cool and stay hot… in the
end it’s a couple of people who had the imagination and the
guts and thought “okay, let’s do it”. Because this is typically
how cool stuff happens, not by endless business meetings
and calculations on return of investments. That will come
later, you know. If you’re cool, people will buy it.
I think that in the end it’s about having guts. It’s daring
to do stuff that’s never been done before. This Milan club
is a brilliant example of it. We didn’t know at all what this
was going to bring, my boss and his boss thought: Okay,
wow, this sounds like a great adventure, it’s probably going
to cost quite a lot of money… we cannot calculate the return
of investment up-front but somehow it fits the brand, it’s a
territory in which we must start experimenting.”
Mark Vaniterson, Global Head of Design Heineken

41.
5-step plan
Key take-aways

42.
1 2 3 4 5
Being relevant goes The shop in your One of the biggest Keep your consumers Have guts!
beyond the product: favourite city is linked fears of a GenYer is to involved by acting Go out there and
it‟s about the to Facebook, where lead a boring life. fast in everything you create a daring
combination of you can find the latest Bring in your toolbox do and show your but relevant
product, company collection you can to keep it exciting and appreciation for their appeal.
and experience buy online and share use your top loyalty by doing
creation. Use the with your friends and consumers to spread random acts of
relevance checklist wear afterwards on the word. kindness.
and make sure you the event the brand
have what it takes. organizes:
integration is
everything.

43.
Joeri Anneleen
Van den Bergh Boullart
Gen Y expert & speaker Research
Author of ‘How Cool Brands Stay Hot – Branding to Generation Y’ Consultant
Co-founder InSites Consulting
Hear the key take-aways first hand from author
Joeri Van den Bergh in a workshop or presentation
More information on www.howcoolbrandsstayhot.com/speech
+32 496 232 919 +32 472747659
joeri@insites-consulting.com anneleen@insites-consulting.com
@joeri_insites @anneleenboullar
www.linkedin.com/in/joerivandenbergh

44.
http://www.howcoolbrandsstayhot.com/book

45.
Meet Joeri Van den Bergh: watch an intro movie Test your Gen Y knowledge: do the interactive YouTube quiz
http://www.youtube.com/HowCoolBrandsStayHot

46.
Special thanks to the interviewees for sharing their knowledge
Heineken Mark Van Iterson Global Brand Designer
Durex Ilse Westerik Senior Brand Manager Personal Care & Sexual Wellbeing
Esprit Jorgen Andersson Global Brand Manager
Eastpak Jean-Jacques Maartense Ex-Marketing Director
KFC Michaël Werner Chief Marketing Officer
Nivea (Beiersdorf) Christophe Fellinger Employer Branding Responsible
ex-Mexx/Crumpler Christophe Krick Head of Marketing
PepsiCo Francisco Bethencourt Director Strategy & Marketing
MasterCard Peter Jung Senior Business Leader
Abercrombie&Fitch Todd Corley Senior Vice President & Global Chief Diversity Officer
ID&T Christophe Van den Brande Marketing & Creative Manager Tomorrowland
BBC Ishita Roy Marketing Head, BBC Worldwide Channels, South Asia
LUTA Luke Dowdney Founder & Director at Fight for Peace / LUTA Limited
Diageo Hubert Grealish Global Head of Brand Communication
Heinz Mariken Kimmels Marketing Director Heinz Continental Europe
UCB Samantha Clarke Associate Director Global Marketing Excellence
eBay Clelia Morales Head of EU Social Media and ROE PR at eBay Europe
Microsoft Anita Caras Head of Insights - Global Agency & Accounts at Microsoft
Diesel Renzo Rosso Founder of Diesel
Converse Geoff Cottrill Chief Marketing Officer
Mini Wim Verbeurgt Marketing Manager MINI Belux

47.
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