Q&A with Jeff Fromm, Author of “Marketing to Millennials”

We had the privilege of speaking with Jeff Fromm, Author of “Marketing to Millennials: Reach the Largest and Most Influential Generation of Consumers Ever” and Executive Vice President at Kansas City-based Barkley, a fiercely independent full-service advertising agency. Jeff provided us some insight on Millennials, a topic on which he has done extensive research, and their impact on sports and entertainment.

• POPULOUS: Why are Millennials important to the sports and entertainment marketplace?
• JEFF FROMM: Millennials are 80 million strong and represent more than 21% of direct consumer discretionary purchases. In addition, they index higher in entertainment expenditures than the general population – meaning they are more willing to spend money on sports and entertainment experiences. That being said, they are the customer of tomorrow. Cultural preferences are important to them and they are loyal customers. When they prefer a brand, a team or a venue, they are committed. Furthermore, older consumers tend to follow their lead when it comes to their purchasing behavior… something that can have a tremendous impact on brand preferences in sports as well as entertainment purchases. It’s no surprise then, that their influence is greater than any other generation. Millennials are important to this marketplace because, simply put, they are the customers we will need to be catering to in the future in sports and entertainment, and they have the power to drive brand loyalty and consumer discretionary purchases of the generations that came before them.
• POPULOUS: Could you point out three of the most important things we can learn from Millennials? 
• JEFF FROMM:

1. They impact many non-Millennials in terms of their preferences, which is just part of what makes them such a powerful group.
2. They have a big peer affirmation life theme. Meaning, they want their friends, co-workers and acquaintances to affirm their choices – whether that be a brand preference or entertainment option. We see this exercise this on social platforms.
3. Millennials also have an adventure life theme, indicating they want experiences that delve beyond traditional and instead, speak to their desire for adventure.

Jeff has 25 years of experience leading brand work including Hallmark, CITGO, Warsteiner Beer and Build-A-Bear Workshop as the Executive Vice President of Barkley. Jeff has a marketing degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He has been researching the Millennials generation since 2011 when he spearheaded a research report called, “American Millennials: Deciphering the Enigma Generation.” Jeff is also lead editor of the blog http://millennialmarketing.com and co-author of the book Marketing to Millennials: Reach the Largest and Most Influential Generation of Consumers Ever. Jeff is the founder of a Millennial marketing conference, www.sharelikebuy.com.