Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 42

BY BRENDAN CONDON

Generation L: Introducing the Lead Generation
CHANNEL CROSSING: ADVERTISING
We all hear about the unique properties of Gen X and Gen Y. Gen X is pragmatic and practical. Gen Y is optimistic and realistic. Gen X are latchkey kids, and Gen Y is nurtured by family. Gen X rejects rules while Gen Y rewrites them. I could go on, but what this really points to is speaking in the right voice with the right offer in the right media. That is the perfect equation to create leads and reach Generation L. So who is Gen L? They need your product or service and are actively looking to purchase. Quality and value are essential to the purchase decision, but they may have addition needs – such as a local offer, a green message or a timeless product. They can be any age or any demo, and they expect to be targeted with offers, but you must speak their language and create an offer that is truly compelling. Here are some tips to reach what we like to call the Gen L Four Quadrants: seniors 50+, baby boomers, young adults and tweens. When talking to the first quadrant of Gen L – seniors – know that they are somewhat fixed in their ways, not comfortable with change. They need specific and clear directives and simple call-to-action. The best media is traditional, such as TV (broadcast especially), radio and print. The best engagement device? An 800 number. And make sure if you are using a call center that they are prepared to deal with a senior. Need to reach a baby boomer? They grew up when social issues mattered, and that is still part of their DNA. They are smartphone-savvy because they are tethered to the office. So if you are looking to reach the busy baby boomer of Gen L, try online, print or TV with mobile tie-ins. Believe it or not, baby boomers are some of the biggest users of Facebook and other social media – so make sure to integrate it into your media plan. The young adult quadrant of Gen L gets bored easily and is super subjective, so try a campaign with multiple creative executions. Embrace funny advertising and try branded entertainment or content that can expand to online video services such as YouTube or a cable company’s VOD service. You can add pre-roll video to this content too. Social is important to this Gen L demo, so be innovative with media testing daily deals or sponsored tweets. Finally, there are tweens. They aren’t brand loyal yet, but they sure are lovable. They are more online than off and are extremely connected to the zeitgeist,

including entertainment, fashion and celebrity culture. They were weaned on technology, and it is a perfect place to reach them. Since they are aggressive media mashers – they consume TV, online and mobile at the same time – try digital infotainment such as movie advertising, VOD, interactive TV, gaming platforms (such as Xbox Live Network) and QR codes. As I mentioned earlier, this is the key to connecting to Generation L: Gen L is reachable if you speak in the right voice with the right offer in the right media. So turn right, and they will be right there for you. Brendan Condon, CEO of both REVShare (revshare.com) and Media Properties Holdings (mph.tv), has more than 25 years of global media experience across several Time Warner divisions. Condon is an expert in media monetization. He worked in digital at AOL, national print with Time Inc. and cross-platform media for Time Warner Cable. Most recently, he ran the European and Japanese divisions for AOL. He was a member of the Leadership Council for the EU Internet Advertising Bureau and is currently on both the Electronic Retailer Magazine Advisory Board and the Board of Directors of ERA. He can be reached at Brendan.Condon@Revshare.com.

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Electronic Retailer - January 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Electronic Retailer - January 2012

Calendar of Events
Your Association, Your Bottom Line
Industry Reports
FTC Forum
eMarketer Research
IMS Retail Rankings
Jordan Whitney’s Top Categories
Lockard & Wechsler’s Clearance & Price Index
SENSAtional Marketing
When Words Can Hurt
‘Because They Can’t Afford to Get Sick’
Guest Viewpoint
Guest Viewpoint
Inventor’s Corner
Legal
Payment Processing
Member Spotlight
Advertiser Spotlight
Bulletin Board
Advertiser Index
Classifieds
Rick Petry
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - cover1
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - cover2
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 3
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 4
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 5
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 6
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Calendar of Events
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Your Association, Your Bottom Line
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Industry Reports
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 10
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 11
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - FTC Forum
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 13
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - eMarketer Research
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 15
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - IMS Retail Rankings
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 17
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Jordan Whitney’s Top Categories
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 19
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Lockard & Wechsler’s Clearance & Price Index
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 21
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - SENSAtional Marketing
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 23
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 24
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 25
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - When Words Can Hurt
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 27
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 28
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 29
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - ‘Because They Can’t Afford to Get Sick’
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 31
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 32
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 33
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 34
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Guest Viewpoint
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 36
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Guest Viewpoint
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 38
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Inventor’s Corner
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Legal
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Payment Processing
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 42
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Member Spotlight
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 44
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 45
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Advertiser Spotlight
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Advertiser Index
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Classifieds
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - 49
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - Rick Petry
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - cover3
Electronic Retailer - January 2012 - cover4
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