Experiences Over Things for Millennials
According to research by Pandora, young listeners tend to say they prefer to spend money on experiences rather than things.
A report from Pandora titled, “Micro-Moments are Nice. Experiences are Unforgettable,” refers to Google’s efforts to market search as the micro-moment sales vehicle. The study shows that 67% of millennials would rather spend their money on experiences rather than things. That number grew 10% from last year. Female millennials especially prefer experiences, 74%, according to Pandora’s research. This doesn’t mean that millennials don’t want to buy things, but if the “things” lead to an experience, then all the better for the purchase.
The experiences included travel, concerts, movies, music festivals and sporting events. So if you are thinking about offering a prize to millennials, don’t think of cash or gifts, think about trips or tickets.
One of the reasons is that 25% of millennials suffer from the “fear of missing out” (FOMO). According to Pandora, the FOMO effect means that the “road leading up to the event is just as important as the event itself.” As my father use to say, 90% anticipation and 10% fulfillment. That means we need to make the “before” part of the experience.
And do millennials notice? Absolutely, says Pandora: 82% notice a brand sponsoring a musical event; 1 in 3 are likely to purchase a brand’s product after seeing it at an event. Experience is the truly the teacher of all things.
Mark Mathis
Mark wrote his first direct-mail fundraising letter in 1981 for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. The effort raised a few million dollars in undiscovered wills and legacy gifts. From that day forward Mark discovered a love of the big idea that moves the needle.
After 12 years at KWWL, Mark became a business owner as a co-founder of ME&V — rebranded as AMPERAGE in 2015. After 25 years of leading creative teams in video production, graphic design, PR, writing and web development, Mark transitioned out of ownership in 2021. Today he serves in an employee role as special projects consultant.
He is creatively ambidextrous — son of an artist and engineer — and famous for distilling complex ideas down to a few words and a few visuals. Mark is a writer. When he found that many nonprofits struggled with complex branding puzzles, he wrote the book, “NonProfit-NonMarketing .” He also wrote a novel called “Reenactment.”
Mark is an active blogger OneMinuteMarketer® with nearly 1,000 readers each week on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter. One of his most popular YouTube videos is on “How to Look Good on Zoom.”
One of Mark’s fondest business memories was being named to INC 500 two times and attending the INC 500 conference with other winners. Mark is considered by some a Civil War expert (and that explains his novel). Mark also served as an adjunct professor in the business and in the communications departments at Wartburg College.
Mark is a graduate of the University of Iowa and is currently vice president of the University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communications Advisory Board.
Mark is married to state Sen. Liz Mathis, and the two love to travel, even when it means being trapped by a volcano in the Czech Republic for three weeks.