The game has changed and nobody told you. Commonly associated with journalism, the 5 W’s of Who, What, Where, When and Why are the basis for the development of all PR, marketing and advertising campaigns. What is of particular interest is the order in which these questions are prioritized.
I spent a lot of years in the marketing and advertising industries driving the development of numerous national and global campaigns for some of he world’s biggest brands. Many of my friends and colleagues are still charged with this challenging and creative task. The question is; how effective is this approach in the new era of millennial marketing? The good news is that this approach can still be very effective. After all, it answers all the questions that a consumer wants to know, with maybe the exception of How. Some argue that the how is covered off in the when and the where, but I digress.
Although the following information does place a focus on how the 5 W’s should be approached for effective millennial marketing. It’s really quite simple. You must rearrange how you prioritize the W’s in the communications strategy and campaign development. The Who (not the band) and the Why must come first. This may seem like a minor detail, but it makes a big difference. I’ll tell you why. Your narrative takes on a completely different emphasis and tone when you shift the focus of the W’s. When you start with “the who”, which in this case is the millennial generation, it forces you to place more of a focus on the target and not the tactic. This generation is very different than generations past and taking the time to understand their real motivators and expectations shouldn’t be explored after the product or campaign is developed, it should drive the campaign or product development process. Now comes “the why”. When it comes to millennials, the What, Where and When are all secondary to understanding the Why. Understanding a brand or company’s motive for doing something matters more than what the brand is doing.They seek transparency in their relationships with brands. Millennials want to know that they have shared values with a brand and that the relationship is not one that is merely transactional. The game has changed my marketing friends. There is a New Word Order to adopt.
The 5 W’s of Millennial Marketing are Who, Why, What, Where and When. Who you are serving should always take priority. Please let us know if you have other perspectives to share for effective millennial marketing. “Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.“ ? Sun Tzu
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