May 31, 2023
Much has been written about millennials—their propensity for selfies, their love of avocado toast, and their changing spending habits ‘killing’ various industries. While these are subjective and debatable, one thing that is clear is how economically and culturally significant this generation is. According to the Freddie Mac Single Family Report, in 2019 Millennials surpassed Baby Boomers as the largest population cohort in the U.S, and Millennials (defined as people born between 1981 and 1996) accounted for 71.2 million Americans (22% of the country).
Millennials are a valuable target for marketers and brands. According to the same report, “Millennials are the most educated adult generation. Forty percent of them hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared with just 29% of Gen Xers and 28% of baby boomers when they were the same age.” Higher levels of education lead to higher income levels, which makes Millennials more likely to act on your brand message because they have more disposable income.
Millennials are also less likely to have children then previous generations were during the same time(42% of Millennials aged 23-38 have children, compared with 55% of baby boomers during the same age range). Children (and childcare, diapers, sports and activities) are a huge expense for parents, and Millennials waiting to start families (or not starting families at all) means they have more money to spend.
Millennials media habits are more fractured than previous generations, which makes them more difficult to reach. They watch broadcast TV and listen to terrestrial rates at lower rates than the Baby Boomers and Gen X, so brands must leverage other mediums to augment their strategy and maximize reach among younger people.
We’ve written before about the benefits of podcast advertising (including podcasting’s massive audience and how listeners view podcast ads as more trustworthy than other mediums), but they have a particular appeal among younger generations. According to Sounds Profitable’s comprehensive study The Medium Moves the Message, 50% of people aged 18-34 listen to podcasts every week, which is almost as many who listen to AM/FM radio (59%) and TV (54%).
In addition, the average age of podcast listeners is 36.4, compared with 47.8 for AM/FM radio and 55.3 forTV. Including podcasts in your media mix enhances your brand’s cross-generational appeal.
We could make a strong enough pitch for podcast advertising by saying that Millennials are the largest generation, and half of them listen to podcasts every week. However, one other benefit of podcast advertising is that it helps brands reach consumers who may not be reachable by other advertising media.
According to the Sounds Profitable study, 18% of podcast listeners aged 18-34 do not listen to AM/FM radio and 19% do not watch TV. Brands relying on these mediums risk losing the next generation to their competitors. It’s not just that advertising on podcasts is an incredible opportunity for brands to gain new and loyal customers—not advertising on podcasts is an incredible risk that may cost your brand in the years to come.
For millennials, one of the most important qualities for a brand is authenticity. According to a Stackla report, 90% of Millennials say authenticity is important to them when deciding which brands they support. To quote the report, “younger consumers prefer ‘real and organic’ over ‘perfect and packaged.’” To further show how important authenticity is to Millennials, 30% said they have unfollowed a brand based on inauthentic content.
Podcasts offer brands a halo of authenticity that other mediums cannot match. As we’ve written about before, podcasts listeners form personal relationships with hosts, and trust their recommendations(and host-read ads) almost as much as those from friends and family. The deep trust and connection listeners have with hosts generates an authentic media environment, and millions of younger consumers respond to that by listening every week.
Podcasting is a great medium to help your brand connect your brand with the next generation. Soundrise offers a large catalog of shows hosted by talented storytellers that have powerful connections with audiences, and many shows that have a strong appeal among younger listeners. Contact us today to put your brand in the ears of this valuable consumer cohort.
