If your business is selling to other businesses, chances are it’s a Millennial buying your products. They are getting older and moving into important business decision-making roles – so it’s important to know when marketing to millennials how they research and how they buy.

Millennials are people born between 1981 and 1997 and account for more than a quarter of the global workforce. They can be found in all industrial and business sectors including manufacturing, financial, pharmaceutical and retail. For the past five years, the amount of Millennials in the workforce has surpassed the baby boomers and generation X. Unlike the generations before them; Millennials grew up using the internet and have a very strong connection and comfort with technology. They are now responsible for purchasing more than $600 billion for businesses each year.

Website and Social are Key

Millennials are known for doing the bulk of their own research before coming to the buying table. Most Millennial buyers will already have a good idea about the product or service you offer before contacting you. How do you prepare for this? First, Over 70% of B2B searches start with Google, so it is important to make sure your page is ranking at the top. Having a comprehensive backlog of relevant content on your website will improve your Google quality score and assist with search engine optimization – all to help you appear higher in Google searches. Second, you need to provide as much information about your products as possible on your website and make sure it is easily accessible. Chances are if the Millennial buyer cannot easily find the information they are looking for on your website they will move on to your competitor’s. Millennial buyers prefer to avoid phone calls, especially cold calling, and look for emails and live chats to get their questions answered. Don’t wait too long to answer, Millennials expect answers on demand.

Third, it is important to make sure that your online presence is consistent on all platforms if you want the values and information you are trying to present to be perceived as genuine. Millennials value transparency, honesty, and relevancy in their vendors and all of this information can easily be found with a quick social media search. They are very interested in your company’s Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn profiles. They will read Facebook and YouTube comments from other buyers or users on your profile as well as to see your branding, recent news, latest posts and new products – along with and as much relevant visual content as possible.

Connecting to Millennials

If you are in the B2B sector, you need to make sure you are integrating the following into your marketing tools in order to reach Millennial buyers. First, a positive mobile user experience with websites, emails, and ads is crucial. Nearly all Millennials are accessing data from their cell phones and are doing it on the run. And, Google requires a strong mobile presence for search rankings. Next, visual content is essential. Millennials like infographics, charts and videos. Finally, once again, a strong presence on social media is vital. 86% of Millennials use social media as a research tool during their buying process. When it comes to social content that is the most useful, Millennials want to know that other users have had a positive experience with your products. So consider having customer video testimonials as well.

Conclusion

The younger generation is now starting to sit in the buyer’s seat and understanding their media habits could greatly help your B2B sales. Traditional marketing messages focused on selling products are losing their potency and new avenues have opened up to replace them. We are in an age where digital research and social presence are the biggest influencing factors for buyers. Contact us at SMM Advertising too see how we can help your business not get left behind in the everchanging digital marketing landscape.

See how SMM is helping businesses better reach Millennial buyers, check out our work on Winters Bros. e-commerce website: https://smmadvertising.com/winters-bros/

For more insights and ideas on how to move your brand or business forward for greater visibility, contact SMM Advertising.

[WD_Button id=9302]