Marketing to Millennial Parents: 7 Surefire Tactics

It’s a hard pill to swallow, but we Millennials are no longer the youngest generation (thanks, Generation Z).

Instead of college community service programs, trendy bars, and artisanal mayonnaise, many Millennials are finding themselves spending more time thinking about baby monitors, preschools, and non-toxic toys.

That’s right: Millennials are becoming parents.

In fact, 80 percent of new moms today are Millennials, according to a 2015 study by BabyCenter. which means that if you’re marketing to parents at all, you’ve got to have a strong grasp on what makes Millennials tick.

So how can you grab these parents’ attention in the increasingly overloaded digital landscape? Here are 7 surefire tactics for marketing to Millennials with kids.

Embrace diversity.

One of the most striking features of Millennial parents is their diversity – and not just their cultural and racial diversity. Take a look at these stats from AdAge, for example:

• 4 out of 10 Millennial moms are single parents
• 67 percent of Millennial moms are multicultural
• 61% of births to Millennial moms are to unmarried women
• By 2020, 50 percent of U.S. children will be non-white

While marketers have done fairly well in recent years breaking out of the WASP family model – white mom, white dad, and 2.5 white children – it’s important to remember that this isn’t the only diversity that matters.

Does your marketing reflect a large number of single-parent households, for example? Does it reflect the multi-ethnic, multi-racial homes that lots of Millennial parents are creating? Are you showing multi-generational homes? Moms who are the main breadwinners for their families? Stay-at-home dads?

While not every one of these profiles will be relevant to your product, making sure that you’re thinking about diversity – in all its incarnations – will help you immeasurably when it comes to reaching Millennial parents.

Make sure your mobile and in-store marketing work together seamlessly.

It should come as no surprise that Millennial parents spend a whole lot of time online. According to that same BabyCenter research, Millennial moms spend 4-5 hours per day online on a smartphone, tablet, or computer.

But it’s not just for entertainment. 80 percent of Millennial moms use their smartphones to help them shop while they’re in-store, whether to download coupons, check product reviews, or check prices.

That means that your mobile marketing should tie into your in-store marketing, even if all that means is highlighting the same products on mobile and in-store, or offering mobile coupons that can be used in-store only.

Target’s Cartwheel app is a great example. You download Cartwheel onto your phone, add coupons to your cart while you shop in-store, and then scan a barcode at checkout that processes all your savings at once.

Build a robust social media presence that will add value to Millennial parents’ lives.

As Millennials have grown up, partnered up, and had kids, they’ve maintained their strong social media habits – as anyone whose Facebook or Instagram feeds are constantly updated with new baby pictures knows well.

But aside from oversharing, Millennial parents also turn to social media for help with parenting (97 percent of moms and 93 percent of dads, to be exact).

If you’re not developing and maintaining a robust social media presence, you’re missing out. Sharing your curated content from top parenting websites or influencers, as well as original content around parenting trends, funny parenting fails, or tried-and-true parenting advice will go a long way toward engaging the Millennial parent and make it more likely that he or she will try your brand.

Videos work.

Research conducted by Google found that 3 out of 4 Millennial parents are open to using branded YouTube videos for guidance on parenting topics. 72 percent said they use YouTube to make better purchases for their child.

That’s because Millennial parents – like every other new parent who’s come before them – crave guidance and answers, especially when they’re parents of infants. And as all digital marketers know, video is swiftly becoming the most popular format for digital marketing.

Brands that can help parents achieve peace of mind by providing tutorials and information will earn Millennial parents’ loyalty much more easily than those that simply offer a product – even if that product adds enormous value to parents’ lives.

Make your brand experience easy and convenient.

The average mom in 2015 has added 9 hours to her day, resulting in 13 fewer hours for herself. 65 percent of mothers to children under age 6 work full-time.

Clearly, these mothers don’t have time to search through your website for that coupon you emailed them about or to jump through three or four digital hoops to enter your latest giveaway.

If you want to reach Millennial parents throughout the course of their ever-busier lives, you have to make your brand experience both easy and convenient. Keep account registration short and simple. Make product reviews easy to find. Ensure calls-to-action are clear and easy to follow through on.

Put your money where your mouth is. 

Millennials are skeptical of brands that promise too much or present a too-perfect picture.

Moms and dads today want to see “real” people in their advertising. They want to see brands living up to their professed values. They want to know that a high-quality item really is high-quality.

In other words, your brand must embrace authenticity on every level, from brand voice to mission and vision, to advertising. This is even more important when your product is for children and parents.

One great example of this is Johnson’s (the parent company of Johnson’s Baby Shampoo) So Much More campaign. This marketing campaign consisted of content, including infographics and video, that explain how bath time for babies can actually play a large role in developing baby’s senses and stimulating brain development.

This educational, informative content is exactly the type that Millennial parents value.

Invest in your e-commerce options.

This is a good idea for most brands, as e-commerce is growing 23 percent year-over-year. Among Millennials, 67 percent prefer to shop online than in-store.

However, brands that market to parents will especially want to up their e-commerce game, as moms and dads, strapped for time, are some of the most frequent online shoppers.

Offering a seamless online shopping experience is one major way to connect with Millennial parents, and ensure they’ll come back to your brand over and over.

Millennial parents have different values and characteristics than earlier parenting generations. Knowing what they are will help you engage these new parents and create long-term, meaningful customer relationships.

For more on marketing to Millennials, read “Marketing to Millennials: 10 Things Every Company Must Know.”