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Oh no, we forgot the children! Let's re-discover our precious Millennials.

October 10, 2011 by Mark Murray — Director, The Store Channel

Last week my daughter texted me – "I think grandma sent me a check. What do I do with it?" For the record, she only texted me after her friends threw their smart phone clinched hands up in the air – no one knew. So, I thought, "Why not kick out a light, little post about our fun, clever and ever so cute little "Millennials."

I pulled out some secondary research, jumped online and scanned my bookshelf for a few supporting facts to flesh out a quick but amusing post. Diving in, my mood changed from "playful whimsy" to "wow they're big" to "OMG pull the alarm – we just stepped out for a quick recession and the kids went out and changed shopping forever"!

Those darn Millennials. It seems that only yesterday we were oh so amazed at how fast those little fingers flew across the old Nokia. And remember when your retired Razor replaced the rattle in the car seat? Now they're the "Monsters of the Monster Glass" - able to draw a White iPhone from a Coach holster and tell you "John Wesley Hardin was the fastest gun in the west" - before you get your handset off the kitchen island.

But, let's move from having fun with these boys and girls to having them rock your world.

When you count births from 1982 – 2000, Millennials total more than 82 million. According to this same US Census report Gen-X is a stealth 60 and the infamous Baby Boomers only managed to achieve 80 million (even that "Soldier coming home from war kicker" didn't make them as big a force as Millennials). For perspective, 82 million is in the ballpark of the total population of all states between Maine and Florida. BETTER YET, MOST HAVE YET TO BUY OR FILL THEIR FIRST REFRIGERATOR.

Not to get all Jerry Maguire on you but this generation has come of age while retail has been stuck in a world of demanding answers without understanding. Our strategies are actually a series of recession driven tactics to win share from shrinking seasonal buying sprints.

Balance sheet gymnastics to reach bottom-line results regardless of top lines revenues have distracted us from building relationships among the Millennial lab rats we dropped into the digital age. Yes, while most retail decision makers have collectively agreed to back-burner the recommendations of industry thought leaders, this new shopper has not been waiting.

Folks, 82 million Millennials have flown home to roost and all the newspaper inserts in the world are not going to keep the chicken coop floor from getting ruined.

And that's not the half of it - THE KIDS ARE CONTAGIOUS!

News Flash - They Won't Shop Like Us – We Will Adopt Their Shopping Preferences.

Millennials already control how retail experiences will be re-invented – even for the generations that precede them.

Am I an alarmist? Just download a February 2010 study from the Pew Research Center - "Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next - Confident, Connected, Open to Change". On the website, they sport a "How Millennial are You" quiz.

I asked 14 Baby-boomers (50 to 70 years of age) to answer the 14 questions and report their scores back to me. The scale is 0-100 (the higher the number the more "Millennial" you are). Well, The lowest score among my respondents was an astonishing 80. (If it wasn't for that "piercings" question, my AARP sponsored team could have hit the mid 90s).

The Pew Research Study describes this dramatic shift as, "Millennials' 'technological exceptionalism' - It's not just their gadgets. It's the way they've fused their social lives into them."

As with most omnibus studies, I went directly to the open ended questions to find something to prompt strategic thinking – (Forget the stats – the phenomena is moving too fast – and the study is nearly 2 years old). Instead, go to, "Millennials distinctive reason for feeling distinctive." A whopping 24 percent say it's because of their use of technology. That's twice the Gen-X response. By the way, "Boomers" topped the charts with "Work Ethic" – it didn't even "place" for Millennials. Their top five include "music/entertainment," "liberal/tolerant" and "clothes."

Seems our "Everybody gets a trophy" child has become our "Everybody gets a reality show" adult. What's more, the smart phone has brought eternal life to their "immediate gratification" mandate.

So where are we?

• Your customer (regardless of generation) is driven to the accessibility of on-line presentations, reviews and networks – turbo charged by a post-recession resolve to make better purchase decisions.
• In-store experiences are plagued by reduced staff, boring merchandising standards and displays that can barely withstand "value engineers" and corporate purchasing teams focused on their low price selections.
• Millennials control the playlist for what Callison's David Kepron calls "The subtle dance of retail" and a host of retailers won't find a chair when that iPod gets yanked out of it's docking station.

What to do?

1. Get a company-wide sense of urgency.

Since 2008, all of retail has needed to subscribe and act on an understanding that Millennials' more complex, less predictable selection process is being adopted by Boomer and X generations. Yes, while retail analysts have been charting recession spending, commodity prices and "contagion" from Europe, there has been a contagion of shopping practices from Millennials to all of us.

If this force for change doesn't get your management's attention, just ask if Apple Store genius Ron Johnson moved from Cupertino to Plano, Texas for the weather or perhaps his JC Penney employee discount. Big moves are coming on a grand scale at mass-market retail.

2. Retrace your steps. (It's what any good mall cop would tell you.)

On 5/7/08 Kelly Mooney's The OPEN Brand went up on Amazon– It's your best playbook for "Experiences that pull consumers into brand participation in a way that's relevant to their lives". On 9/15/08 Lehman Brothers files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The focus instantly shifted from strategies and plans to "where are the cutbacks." Re-open the OPEN Brand and get a comprehensive multichannel relationship game plan in place and active. Relish in the fact that Millennials are the most open, measurable and active generation of all time. They'll let you catch up.

3. Walk. Don't Run.

Find and retain true thought-leaders. Right now, the best use of those "operational efficiency" dollars is becoming Millennial relevant in a post recession world. Last fall, John Gerzema published his second book - Spend Shift – "How the post crisis values revolution is changing the way we buy, sell and live." Now I know John as the guy smart enough to pick up Jerry Seinfeld's bar tab back when the unknown comic was on the college circuit. Since that time he's been guiding some of the best brands in the world from his perch at BrandAsset Consulting. Guys like John have their finger on the pulse just when traditional retail needs to see signs of life.

4. Recognize brick and mortar as your best channel.

It's easy to get distracted by technology, cost of service models and the growth of online purchases – remember 80 to 90 percent of sales happen at your stores. Yes, the store experience is in store for dramatic change. At the same time, there is no better channel to create the kind of relationships that will live, thrive and enjoy on-line referrals. It's the most vivid expression of your brand for years to come and the best place to place your bets. Plan to change it on a grand scale. And be prepared to pick up the customer conversation at any point in their path to purchase.

Later.

About Mark Murray

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