The PACnet '15 session panel included Paciolan moderator Stevi Ibarra; Helen Hsueh, University of California Irvine; Melissa Schaff, Wells Fargo Center; Jason Cole, FanMaker; and Paciolan moderator Zaundra Fernandez.
REPORTING FROM NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. — Millennials are categorized most broadly as the generation born between 1980 and 2000. They are currently the largest generation in the United States, making up one-third of the population and, in the next five years, it is predicted that about one-third of all spending will be done by millennials. But most important, for the industry, millennials are the future subscribers and season-ticketholders, and shouldn’t be left out of the conversation.
At the recent PACnet ’15 in Newport Beach, Calif., an entire session was devoted to discussing the strategies of marketing to and managing millennials. As the most technologically advanced and educated generation to date, specific techniques are required to reach and relate to this age group.
“When we’re marketing or when we’re managing, we want to do some from being part of their world,” said Jason Cole, co-founder and CEO of FanMaker. “We can do whatever we’ve always been doing, but if you’re going to ask someone to come and look at your advertising message on the channel you prefer to buy it on, you need to make sure you’re not doing it wrong. Looking at what’s next and listening to the people that have the expertise on your staff is one of the most important things you can do.”
Millennial Marketing
Traditional advertising methods fail to reach the online junkies who are glued to their smart phones and probably don't remember what actual paper feels like. But beyond that, millennials typically see value in different things than the past generation, and this is something that venues and events can take advantage of in different ways.
“Millennials are much more interested in garnering experiences rather than possessions,” said Cole. “A new car and bigger house aren’t nearly as important as life experiences. For our industry, that is immensely valuable, especially as they age and their expendable income grows. That feeling is the reason we’ll be able to get them back inside the stadium and to live events.”
So, the potential is there, now venues need to figure out how to cater to it.
For Calvin Hudson, assistant manager of Ticketing Services at Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, marketing to 18-35 year olds in Houston meant bringing in programming that would appeal directly to them. TUTS Underground started in the fall of 2013 as a second series apart from their main stage shows that featured edgier, high-quality musicals that had never been performed before in the region, or ever.
Taking advantage of Houston’s young talent pool, the shows relied on local talent that was connected to the target age group.
“These actors and interns are coming to TUTS and experiencing it,” said Hudson. “They’re designing, they’re directing, they’re acting in these shows, and they’re going out to this artistic community and saying you need to come see what TUTS is doing. You need to forget all that old TUTS stuff where you’ve trained yourself not to like it, and you need to start realizing they’re doing some really great things. And we’ve gained a lot of traction in that area.”
Hudson said their marketing approach for TUTS Underground differs from what they do for the main stage in that they push it as a brand and don’t promote the shows individually. This consolidated method helps combat the smaller stage’s budget as they focus on getting subscribers rather than individual ticket sales.
Beyond programming, social media obviously plays a huge part in any millennial marketing effort. Melissa Schaaf, director of marketing at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia said the arena got involved in Snapchat after a millennial employee suggested it. To introduce it to the fans, the marketing team created free giveaways for new followers every day for the first week. To promote an upcoming Miley Cyrus show, they held a selfie contest through Snapchat to give away a welcome banner and received over 100 selfies. Now, they regularly use Snapchat for presales and build specific presale codes for Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat for all shows that cater to that age group.
“These are future season-ticketholders,” said Shaaf. “If you can get them in to a show when they’re in college, then when they’re a young working professional in Philadelphia, and hopefully in 5-10 years, we turn them into a forever fan.”
Cole believes platforms like Snapchat are going to continue to grow in popularity and said already 36 collegiate athletic departments actively run Snapchat accounts to reach their college-aged fans.
After talking with the team at Ohio State University, Cole said it’s clear to see why so many schools are coming on board. “Snapchat has been one of the most important avenues for them to be reaching their fans,” he explained, “because they get a phenomenal open and engagement rate. It runs north of 90 percent on every snap they push out there.”
Managing Millennials
When it comes to hiring millennials, the benefits are clear. The generation's comfort with technology and their creativity can service your company well, providing new ideas that connect with a younger demographic and keep your brand relevant.
“Millennials are learning a lot of what we’re learning this week in school now,” said Schaaf. “We’re trying to catch up and they have classes on it now. So I’m a big proponent of hiring that younger, more creative generation.”
Millennials are the most underpaid and unemployed age group in the nation, so they may not come to your event, but they definitely want to talk about it. They want to be in the know, which benefits your event because you can use them as your voice on social media.
Helen Hsueh, director of Fan Experience for University of California, Irvine’s athletic department, heads a student internship program at the university. With 20 interns each semester, the program seeks to give these students real-life experience in sports management and social media marketing.
One of the biggest challenges Hsueh has faced working with these budding professionals is communication. Rather than phonecalls and emails, Hsueh has found success with private Facebook messages for group communication and texts for individual correspondence. The gap exists for millennials when it comes to communicating with people outside the program as well.
“There might be a little bit of a communication gap when it comes to what you prefer and what your millennial staff prefers,” said Hsueh. “Phone calls? Just don’t even bother with it.”
Another drawback for Hsueh is the generational gap. “If you don’t want anyone to understand your pop culture references or any jokes around that,” joked Hsueh, “just keep those millennials around you, and you’re good to go.”
By working with millennials, Cole has discovered a few insights for managing them to their best potential. Often, they want to be involved in something that is vision focused and has a purpose beyond a paycheck. A company with a social conscience that gives back to the community can be an important aspect of this demographic’s work outlook. Regular interactions and feedback about how they’re progressing in the job is an important factor, while keeping things challenging remains key. Rather than working on some long-term objective, Cole suggests breaking the work into bite-sized components with short-term goals that can be accomplished. For this generation whose parents are typically more involved in their lives than past generations, recognition also plays an important role.
“Be meaningful and be immediate,” said Cole. “When there’s something good that happens, immediate praise in front of their colleagues goes much further than a trip to Tahiti.”
Interviewed for this story: Calvin Hudson, (713) 558-2600; Jason Cole, (866) 385-0027; Melissa Schaff, (215) 336-3600; Helen Hsueh, (949) 824-0160