MARKETING SKEPTICS RESISTANT TO BRAND MESSAGES
The degree of marketing skepticism and resistance to brand messages was highlighted this week
when a student asked me in class if the brand examples used in the text
book and discussed in class were paid product placements. I think this student has a future in marketing because the thought never occurred to me to sell my lectures in class to a captive student audience.
Instead, the brand examples and case studies that I use are to
demonstrate a concept or make a point about a company that does a
particularly good or bad job at marketing. Where does this level of skepticism and resistance to brand messages come from?
Millennials is the label given to those born between 1982 and 2000. They have grown up with instant 
and continuous multi-media communications, entertainment and social networks and are more
dependent on technology, their peers and parents than previous generations. Millennials are continuously plugged into their iPods, mobile phones, video games, PC's, televisions, and social networks and multitasking. They consume so much media and entertainment through so many different channels that they receive over 3,000 distinct advertising messages daily. This bombardment of sales messages and fragmentation of media use make Millennials difficult to reach and highly skeptical of marketers messages.
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This level of skepticism about information and communication is not unique to Millennials as consumers in general have become more suspicious and resistant to marketers messages. This is a challenge and opportunity to marketers as the traditional brand marketing approach is no longer working. Instead marketers are turning to new interactive models that give the control to consumers to create and share the marketing message with their peers through word-of-mouth. Brands are using consumer-created content and social networks to create and transmit something that is entertaining or helps to facilitate communication with others and make their lives better or easier. The best marketers understand that consumers do not need brands interrupting their lives and instead must be invited in. Do you have examples of brands that you have invited in to your lives and shared with others?
I look 4WARD to your feedback.
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