Watch: Chelsea Krost Chats Marketing to Millennials on Video Talk Live

Millennials represent the largest consumer group on the planet, so connecting with them can be the key to a successful business. But if you’ve been struggling to reach this powerful demographic on social media, you’re in luck!

This week, our Chief Video Officer, Jason Hsiao, was able to grab some time to chat with Chelsea Krost, a millennial influencer and branding expert, on our Facebook Live show, Video Talk Live. Chelsea shared a few ways businesses can win over millennial audiences, along with offering some pointers for finding the best social strategy for your business goals. Check out the talk in the video below, and then read on for a few highlights:

Video Talk Live with Chelsea Krost

Increasingly the people behind companies are becoming a brand’s biggest asset. No one knows this better than Chelsea Krost who has successfully built a brand around who she is and what she’s passionate about.

Join Animoto’s Jason Hsiao for a new episode of Video Talk Live to learn Chelsea’s tips and tricks for brand success.

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Posted by Animoto on Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Defining what a brand is

Chelsea started off talking about how the concept of brand is more important than ever, especially to small businesses. “Branding should literally be the extension of your business. Your brand is your who, what, where, when, why. It’s what people think of when they think of you or your small business.” And a positive association with your brand builds trust and helps expand your audience.

She also pointed out that it’s recently become much easier to build that trust and expand your brand recognition on a budget. “We have the power to take branding into our own hands because of the resources, technology, and channels now available to small business owners that weren’t available just a decade ago.”

Why millennial marketing matters

Right now, millennials have the largest spending power in the world. But even more importantly, Chelsea pointed out, “millennials will officially mark the generation that changes the consumer mindset forever. We’re only getting more digital, more social, and more hyperconnected, so that’s why it’s important for every business to take the millennials mindset into consideration.”

To target those millennials—and the Gen Zers that are coming up right after them—Chelsea recommends focusing on mobile first, social first content that’s utilizes lots of video.”Millennials and Gen Zers are most engaged and heavily converted by video content that is relatable and relevant and valuable to them.”

Converting with video content

“Video is something that is only going to get more and more influential in all of our sales and marketing efforts.” Chelsea shared, before detailing a few ways you can connect at every stage of a customer’s journey through video storytelling.

• When you first connect with customers: Focus on educating consumers about your brand, product, or service. Create short videos designed to connect with your target audience and help build a relationship with your brand.
• To push customers to buy: Try testimonial videos that describe customers’ or clients’ experiences with your products or services. Get as many as you can without overwhelming your current customers.
• For advocacy and retention: Show what happens after customers purchase. Choose stories that illustrate how consumers were excited by or benefited from choosing your brand and business.

Humanizing your brand

The purpose of all that video? Building trust. And one of the most effective ways to foster trust in your brand is to put a human face to it. Chelsea shared, “Ninety-two percent of people trust recommendations from an individual or employee over a brand. There is nothing more powerful than peer-to-peer approval.” Even if you’re not interested in getting in front of the camera yourself, there are lots of great alternatives.

• Influencers: Chelsea recommends finding “relevant voices that bring value to your brand.” To get the most out of an influencer, “have them create content—like video—on behalf of your brand, using your services, using your product, an unboxing video… there’s such a variety when it comes to how to create content that appeals to millennials and Gen Zers.”
• Employees: Social content is 24% like to be shared if it comes from an employee instead of a brand. And when it comes to feeling comfortable with a brand, Jason pointed out, “Nothing really conveys trust and authenticity more than actually seeing the people behind a product or behind a service or behind a brand.”
• Customers: A happy customer is one of the best brand endorsements. Chelsea said, “Client testimonials are user-generated content, and user-generated content is king.” In other words, sharing customer testimonials can give prospects a sense of safety and validation because a customer liked your service enough to want to talk about it.

Finding the right social platform for your audience

Having shared what millennials want, Chelsea was ready to dive into where to find them. While Chelsea noted you can normally find a millennial or Gen Z audience on Instagram and Snapchat, or discover Baby Boomers and Gen Xers on Facebook and Twitter, “ultimately, there is no one size fits all for social media.”

Chelsea recommends developing an “avatar” for your target audience—a typical customer you can use as a reference point. Decide where your avatar would spend time, and what kind of messaging will be most meaningful to them. Then focus on just a few social media sites—Chelsea suggests three.

Once you’ve determined where you’ll be sharing, plan out what to share. Come up with a 3-month plan and stick to it, since consistency is key to seeing results on social. “Things will not happen overnight,” she concluded. “It’s a marathon, not a race.”

Want more amazing interviews with marketing experts? Head to our Video Talk Live page to see a few of our past events and sign up to get notified the next time Jason’s going to be on Facebook Live with another expert guest.