Book Review: Marketing to Millennials

They got me with the introduction. 

 “They” being authors Jeff Fromm and Christie Garton. The hook for me - stats. The Marketing to Millennials intro is not the standard “why we wrote this book and there’s how it’s laid out” bit, instead it highlights the research that was the catalyst for the book. The numbers are compelling and made me want to gobble the rest of Fromm‘s and Garton’s sensibility up.

The book is part resource (research from Forrester, Pew, BCG, Gartner, Barkley, etc.), part storytelling (many millennial interviews) and part case studies (several brands that are maneuvering their way into millennial relevance, daily consumption and loyalty.) Yes, you did read right, millennials can be fiercely loyal - if a brand lets them be - and this book explains the how behind the what.

The book flow is one that I akin to marketing research books I read for my MBA classes. It is straight forward and business-driven with a focus on explaining the millennial market backed with multiple research findings, discussing the unique opportunities, pointing out the gray (ie – Is this a life-stage driven or a true generational difference?) muddledness and providing in-depth analysis on how brands succeed with millennials.

Each chapter is easily digestible starting with a millennial quote that is a summary statement for the chapter’s theme.  There are at least two charts from industry research powerhouses in each chapter backing up the authors’ key points. The case studies are landscaped in a helpful “Who? What? How? Impact?” framework. And at the end of every chapter, there’s a handy one-to-two page key takeaways summary.

The content is solid for any company that is creating and marketing brands targeting millennials or those they influence. I think it’s relevant for companies that are trying to attract and keep millennial employees as well. Here’s an excellent review by Bob Morris that goes into detail about the content.

I really didn’t know what to think going into this book as I really didn’t know if the subject matter was core to my current role. Given how many brands my company, Expion, works with that target millennials and also given the average age of our office is 28 – this book is a necessary resource for me. I’ll definitely be keeping this book handy. I don’t say that about most books I read. I typically read and give away. Marketing to Millennials needs to stay within arm’s reach for me. 

·   Disclosure: I received a free copy of Marketing to Millennials from Jeff Fromm to review however I’ve given that book away and have ordered a few on my own dime – one to keep on my shelf and a couple to give to industry colleagues.