Engage Millennials
By The Mann Group
Here’s how savvy retailers can speak to their best potential customers.
It’s been a years long and contradictory question: with outdoor culture in the midst of a cool-vibe renaissance, why is it that outdoor retailers and brands are struggling to engage with millennials?
For more than a decade, the outdoor industry has scratched its head over the millennial question; they’ve tapped consultants and hosted studies to explore they “why” behind the industry’s problems with the next generation. Both brands and retailers have noted the difficulties in engaging with this younger audience, and with older, reliable generations aging out of the market, the industry is reaching a critical turning point in attracting the attention of millennials.
And yet, millennials are getting outside. According to a study by the Outdoor Industry Association, millennials represent 38% of the US outdoor consumer population and spend more time outside and more money on outdoor products than the average member of the community. They’re outdoors, and they’re buying products—so why aren’t they buying yours?
The answer, in a way, is simple: you’re not trying. This is a new generation, and they don’t want the same things, or the same, service, as their parents. It’s integral that you adapt and evolve to this new audience if you’re going to succeed in the future.
There are a number of tactics outdoor retailers can take to attract and engage with millennials. There’s a massive market out there for the taking, you just need to refine your business model to attain it.
Test New Brands
You know what your customers like, right? But chances are, those customers aren’t millennials, and millennials probably don’t like those tried-and-true, but frankly uncool brands and products. When looking to tap into the millennial market, it’s important that outdoor retailers consider new brands and products that are shaking up the industry. Even allocating 10% of your open-to-buy to new brands could prove profitable if it engages with that younger community of outdoor enthusiasts. It’s a low-risk and potentially high-reward way to draw in a new crowd.
Use the ‘Gram
Sixty-four percent of 18–29 year olds use Instagram, and 80% of users follow a business account. If your marketing plan isn’t highly integrated into Instagram, you’re missing out on an incredibly valuable and direct channel for engaging with millennials. From targeted ads to curated content, every outdoor retailer should be tapping into Instagram to push not just their products but their brand in front of this younger generation of buyers.
Host Classes and Workshops
That same Outdoor Industry study found that millennials are more likely to shop at outdoor retailers that cater to beginners (after all, they’re pretty young, and oftentimes new to this whole “outdoors” thing). That means offering products designed for beginners, inspiring them to try new things (hello, Instagram! Make it look fun!), and offering classes and workshops that will help millennials learn the ropes. Plus, classes help cultivate a sense of community, which millennials are also big fans of.
Incorporate Affordable Options into Your Inventory
The greatest hindrance for millennials looking to get outside is affordability. That highly-technical gear that appeals to the established middle-aged outdoors enthusiasts just isn’t accessible to millennials. It’s important to include affordable options in your inventory that millennials can incorporate into more modest budgets. In fact, REI has seen enormous success with millennials purchasing from their line of inexpensive tents. You should do the same.
Be Authentic
Millennials love authenticity—so be you! They want to engage with brands that have a true, loud voice, brands that have cool appeal, and brands that genuinely want to help improve their lives. Communicate with millennials—both in store and online through channels like Instagram—in a way that proves you 1. love the outdoors and 2. really want to help them get out there. They’ll appreciate your honesty.
About The Mann Group: We are The Mann Group, a charmingly incongruous and blatantly genuine group of big thinkers and list makers. Get us together, and our ideas bloom into vibrant, sky-high projects; take us apart, and we work methodically and assiduously to accomplish the goals we created together. We create and implement practical courses and curriculum to help businesses and individuals grow.