Generational Marketing: Comparison Between Millennials, Gen X And Baby Boomers

Whenever we talk about building and promoting an app we mention a marketing method which is mandatory to make sure that the strategy created is a successful one. Targeting user audience is crucial when you need to validate your app idea or when you want to reach your customers. You have to pay attention to many groups of people but users’ age is one of the most important factors which influence their behavior when it comes to smartphone usage. The differences between generations aren’t just a myth. They are real and segmenting customers based on their age is a smart technique which demands a lot of attention in order to provide the wanted results.

Generation Gap

Let’s discuss about users for a while (we always do!). Think about you and the people around you. You have different ideas regarding many aspects of life and you always argue on various topics. What about mobile? Or, mobile apps? What are your preferences? Do your parents use apps? What kind of apps? Even though the answers vary from person to person, there are certain similarities according to each generation. But what are the generations we are talking about? We will study the most representative groups that can influence the way we manage our apps.

• Millennials – born between 1980 and 2000;
• Generation X – born between 1960 and 1980;
• Baby Boomers – born between 1940 and 1960;

Because we are in the middle of the holiday season users’ behaviors are more analyzed than with other occasions. For this reason, Yes Lifecycle Marketing released A Marketer’s Guide to Reaching Each Consumer Generation, a report which describes the way every generation prepares their gifts for their loved ones. It seems that millennials don’t need special shopping events for purchasing various products since they do that even before Black Friday. The same study proves that 32% of baby boomers aren’t influenced by content when they want to buy something. In the same time, 58% of respondents from generation X consider that social media has something to do with their shopping decisions.

How To Market Each Age Group

Now let’s look closer to every cohort and let’s discover their life experiences which will determine your mobile marketing strategy.

Millennials

We discussed millennials on many other occasions. Therefore we will summarize their characteristics and the best methods available for approach them. Millennials represent the generation addicted to technology. They can’t even breathe if they don’t see a mobile device around them. They also prefer to be part of a community and they make decision based on others’ opinions.
Pro Tip: When you want to attract millennials, every advanced method has amazing chances to succeed. In the same time, social media represents a great environment for connecting with millennials. In fact, there are a lot of channels available for you to win their confidence. Our advice is to invest some of your time in spreading the word about your app. For millennials, storytelling works very well. Don’t forget about guerrilla marketing which is suitable for making your product stand out. Additionally, boost campaigns can do wonders for increasing your apps visibility when you want to impress this generation of customers. The 2017 US Mobile App Report from comScore offers valuable insights about tech savvy users.

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Generation X

Gen X are persons that embraced technology as adults and they like to be on their own whenever they need to find an answer to a problem. Some of them don’t rely on modern solutions and they like to express their ideas loud and clear. While millennials like to live the moment, gen X prefer to think about the future. Also, they love to follow the same brand and they trust only those businesses that proved their value in the past.
Pro Tip: For gen X we can recommend you to build some referral programs because their loyalty must be rewarded in a creative way. Keep in mind that some video ads with their favorite products are what your app needs for convincing gen X to pay attention to your work. Luckily we have an entire folder of easy – to – follow tutorials that can help you build smart campaigns. The best way is to get straight to the point without long introductions. You need to emphasize that your app takes worries off their shoulders. Just look at the report published by eMarketer which demonstrates that “gen X isn’t a small market”.

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Baby Boomers

Baby boomers are customers born after the World War II. It is known the fact that they rely more on traditional elements. They are more pragmatic and their thinking is based on their previous experiences. This doesn’t mean that you need to focus on old technique and to exclude innovative methods for attracting baby boomers. They really enjoy campaigns tailored to their needs.
Pro Tip: If you prove that your app is valuable enough baby boomers will pay attention to your acquisition campaign, but don’t forget that they appreciate personalized aspects of an ad. While they prefer traditional advertising you can also try location based services for engaging them with a special offer. They will adapt to the new trends if they notice the potential benefits of a certain solution. Baby boomers are sophisticated customers who know what they want despite the fact that they are new in the tech world. They are the most willing to share their feedbacks and if you take into account their opinions you will be able to build a sustainable plan for attracting this category of users. Smart Insights gathered some useful statistics that can help you in this area.

Final Thoughts

Even though Millennials is the most representative category when it comes to mobile marketing, it would be a mistake to ignore other generations which can increase your loyal user base. It is definitely a huge error to promote your app in the same way for all of your users, without taking into account their age. Every group has its own preferences and mindsets and it is very important to define the right strategy according to those differences. If you don’t know what to do in each case, remember that our experts are ready to help you!