Male and female millennials. How do gender differences affect marketing?

If you, as a marketer, want to find a universal way of influencing such a consumer category as millenials, do not forget that not all representatives of the so-called generation Z are the same. And when it comes to gender, their behavior can radically differ.

First, let's move on to a common denominator regarding definitions.

In their previous issues (“ Millennials and Internet Marketing - How to Form the Future of the Financial Industry ”, “ Millennials Watch the Most Videos, Is It ?”, “ Innovation Lessons from 4 Millennial Marketers? ”) We have already dealt with such a pressing issue regarding the consumer behavior of the modern generation. Today's article is a logical continuation, with more recent statistics.

So, millennials, or the Zeta generation, is a generation of people born between the early nineties and the mid-zero. What the older generation called “new technologies” or “future technologies” for representatives of generation Z is already a given and present. Often, the term “digital person” is a synonym for millennial, since the main unifying feature of all representatives of this generation is the regular use of Internet connection and digital technologies.

If we talk about segmentation of the audience of millennials, then the same rule applies as for the audience of consumers as a whole. They can be segmented into unique and specific subgroups, with an additional criterion for gender separation. Why? Surely you yourself guess that gender affiliation largely determines the way of life and behavior when shopping.

Some statistics. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics , women are quicker to master higher education : 60% of them achieve master's degrees, about half of which are legal and medical, 42% are MBA students.

In the working path, women also achieved great success - more than half of managerial positions compared with 26% in 1980. About ⅓ American doctors are women, as are 45% of the staff in law firms.

Despite all these achievements, women still periodically face difficulties, especially when it comes to wages. 50 years after the Equal Pay Act was passed, women still earn an average of 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. However, one more interesting fact should be taken into account: according to a 2012 Pew Research Center study , 40% of American working wives receive a higher salary than their husbands.

So what gender differences should be considered when setting up advertising campaigns for millennials?

Men are an “earlier” audience

When analyzing millennials taking into account the gender division, it turns out that men are more willing to accept changes and want to keep abreast of the latest technologies.

This statement is supported by the study “DDB Worldwide survey of US Internet users”, from which it follows that 40% of men are happy to buy everything that is possible on the Internet, while women with a similar opinion account for 33%. Men are more likely to shop at online auctions, are more likely to use online shopping apps and tend to compare prices using smartphones, and they are also more willing to use retailer apps than female shoppers.

What is this talking about? Men are the most interesting target audience for modern digital marketers . A successful case is a viral video from The Dollar Shave Club, which, like "hotcakes," diverged among enthusiastic millennial men on social networks, which greatly increased the popularity of the advertised brand.

Men are “lonely rangers”

Speaking generally about millennials, they are socially active - both online and offline. They willingly perform group activities - travel, go hiking, gather in clubs of interest.

But taking into account gender differences, men are more likely to behave as loners — eating alone, traveling, etc. — while women prefer to “shop” or spend free time with friends or family members.

Given these features, the impact on target groups needs to be different. For example, to focus the attention of male travelers on the possibility of quick check-in during flights, for women - to arrange group discount trips for goods of well-known brands.

Millennial

mothers are more responsible. Today's mothers are far from the same as before, when the man was the unconditional head of the family with priority voting rights. Now women have on their shoulders a much greater burden of responsibility for making important decisions than their mothers and grandmothers. A Pew Research Center study found that in 43% of couples, women make decisions in more areas than their men.The key decision-makers in pairs remain 26% of men, while couples who share equal responsibilities account for 31%.

Not surprisingly, a significant part of the consumer audience is mothers, especially those who became them for the first time. They often turn to social networks, blogs and forums for advice on products and products for children. And these moms really have a big impact on brand promotion. 50% of them leave product recommendations daily or at least once a week, and 21% of them tell friends or family members about them at least once a month.

Therefore, when targeting such an important segment of the audience, marketers need to try to “get in their place”, imagine what they can care about and how they can be helped.This approach will cause the greatest brand loyalty.

Conclusion:

Given all of the above gender characteristics of millennials, it makes sense to consider men and women of generation Z as two different groups. Spend enough time segmenting the audience and identifying the most characteristic gender types of behavior for your users, and the effect will not take long. BYYD • Mobile Advertising Platform