Reaching The Next Generation: Part 1

Martin Pesis of SociaLink, delivered a 1-hour presentation at the 2014 Hollander Summit on the topic of “Reaching the Next Generation," The following article spans 2 post entries and touches on the high-level take-aways of the presentation. For follow up questions or to leave any feedback, please comment below.

Keep it easy. The ability to reach the next generation of customers is all about convenience. Generation Y expects their experiences online to be effortless. Keeping a clean and simply designed website with a clear “Call to Action” message, will keep your users’ experiences fluid. In line, one of the biggest parts of that design is the website’s ability to be properly displayed on mobile devices. 60% of American adult smartphone users access the internet from their devices. Keep the user’s experience easy.

Where are they? Building your clean and simply-designed website with its definitive messaging is only one part of the equation. Finding your audience and presenting your content is the next part. Where is Generation Y? The answer is social media outlets. Social media is a convenient and efficient way for Generation Y to hang out and spend time online. Using such tools as Facebook Ads, and maintaining an active social media presence will gain you immediate access to this generation of customers. By precisely targeting your online ads to by age, geography, and interests, you will position yourself for maximum exposure and, in turn, the potential to gain sales.

Be a part of the conversation. Be a voice on Twitter. By adding your messaging to Twitter, you will be able to share insightful information directly with an audience that is interested in what you do. Properly using hashtags within your posts will add your message to similarly grouped messages when people search for content on Twitter. This is important to getting your message out to your intended audience. This strategy applies to advertising on Twitter as well. Defining your advertising by the proper use of hashtags and targeting will yield the best results. Drive that user back to your mobile-optimized website!

Yelp is your friend. Yelp is one of the most trusted review sites customers uses when making a buying decision. 90% of Yelp users say positive reviews impact their buying choices. Your business’s review should be authentic and encouraged. Ensure to fully fill out your profile. This makes finding your business easier for a user who is interested, as well as provides decision-making resources like photos and service offerings. They may also be looking for your location, hours of operation or a link to your website. Monitor your Yelp account by taking the time to respond to your reviews. Whether the reviews are positive or not, your response should be professional and genuine. Keep in mind the negative reviews will be diluted by the positive ones.

Stay tuned for Part 2 next week!