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https://medium.com/manager-mint/the-millennials-and-maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-a36415bd2f51

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Interview with my Cousin's Girlfriend - Sophie Meads

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Interview with my Cousin's Girlfriend - Sophie Meads

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Job- Radiographer
Age- 30
Shopping Habits- Online mainly ; Boohoo, H&M, New Look, ASOS. (Takes advantages of sales and usually only buys if it's in the sale but always reads reviews before purchasing).
Hobbies- Gardening, Baking, Walking her dog.
Favourite Brands- Michael Kors and Ted Baker.
Lifestyle- Works long hours most days so not a lot of spare time.
Social Media mainly used- Instagram and Facebook.
Where do you see advertising for clothing that interests you in purchasing? - Social media especially Instagram and YouTube.
Lives with FIANCE in small house.

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Characteristics I have seen when speaking to Millennials

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Characteristics I have seen when speaking to Millennials

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-Very focused on their jobs and work hard.
-Mostly well educated, was seen as to succeed you needed an education of some sort.
- Lives in apartment.

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- He orders food from Deliveroo and Uber Eats.
- Uses Uber regularly
-Loves Clubbing
-Personal Shopping
- apartment living / lives with brother

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"Millennials are a big part of the recent explosive growth in the $4.2 trillion wellness industry"

"This group has latched on to self care to cope with the perceived chaos and instability around them"

"Wellness and self-care have adopted new meanings that correlate to shifts in Millennial values"

These parts of information taken from WGSN (linked below) show that Millennials invest time in self care and wellness massively. It states that due to their chaotic and unstable lives they invest their time into self care to cope and make life easier. - 02.05.20

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Relating to Millennials of Gen Y

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Realting to Millennials of Gen Y

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- As they pay off debts and student loans their shopping habits will change.

-Millennials are steered towards online retailers.

-They buy almost everything online including ; groceries, household items and consumables, clothes, electronics and household furnishings.

-They love to save money if they can so they may subscribe to a brands deal to buy something if there is any chance of saving on a bit of cash! For example you can order fresh weekly food boxes from online for example - Hello Fresh and they may for example have a 'Join today and save £' etc.
-Seek fast delivery and free shipping.

-Reviews and Quality is very important to them.

-They research heavily before deciding to buy a product.

-They will not purchase until they find the best possible deal.

-Gen Y also shop in Bricks and Mortar stores for products like personal care items, electronics like phones or laptops and some clothing.

-Although shopping online fits their shopping habits they know that some products need to be seen in person in bricks and mortar stores to make the decision of purchase.

-They do like to test and try on the clothes before buying so sometimes shopping in bricks and mortar can be better.

-Millennials like to shop from their local community to feel as if they're helping and giving back and making a difference.

-They love to shop sustainably.

-They buy through social media as they are regularly using social media.

-They listen to personal recommendations from Influencers social media platforms.

-This is why if you have your own brand, you would be silly to not to promote what you're selling through social media as you'd miss out on a large amount of customers.

-Gen Y enjoy flicking through social media to find new products to research and then purchase.

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The millennial generation appears to be a perplexing subset of consumers. As they continue to establish and differentiate themselves from generations past, their behaviors and purchase decisions leave many brands to ask the question - what are millennials buying?

While not every individual of this generation will identify with the projected spending habits of millennials - these trends and forecasts are proving to play a definitive role in this generation's marketplace preferences.

So, let's jump right into it - we'll answer what are millennials buying and feature some brands they love with our Gen Y shopping guide.

The Millennial Spending Habits

Before we dish the details, let's give some background to millennial spending habits. According to Lexington Law's "45 Statistics on Millennial Spending Habits" - this generation has some serious spending power.

"Millennials average yearly expenditures totals around $47,112 and together, millennials spend $600 Billion in the United States each year. They spend two thirds the amount that Generation Xers and Baby Boomers spend on entertainment."

The article also notes that, "As many Millennials are graduating from college with financial responsibilities, including debt, they have a growing obligation to be responsible with their money. By the year 2020, they will generate more wealth and will spend $1.4 trillion. As they pay off loans and get better jobs, their spending habits will change."

So, what exactly does all of this mean? In short, Millennials have more vested interest and influence in the consumer marketplace than any other generation. And, if you're a brand - your most favorable market of consumers, guaranteed to add value to your company, are millennials. Therefore, you should be appealing to them whenever and wherever you can.

What Are Millennials Buying?

Now, that we know how much money millennials spend - let's talk about what they are buying and investing in.

They Shop Online

One of the top behaviors that set the millennial generation a part is their online shopping habits. Whether it's because they feel that there are better offerings or value the convenience, millennials are more geared toward online retailers.

In fact, in busy cities where millennials work full time jobs and may even have a side hustle - they are more inclined to shop and purchase just about anything online. This includes groceries, household items and consumables. This is just the beginning - don't forget shopping for clothes, electronics and household furnishings.

Therefore, we see large retailers such as Amazon that offer direct grocery shopping with Whole Foods delivered to your door. Or companies such as Plated, that send you weekly meal subscription boxes. Even more so, there are now options to save when you subscribe to a reoccurring purchase choice. Need paper towels every month? Subscribe and you'll save some change.

For enjoyment and entertainment shopping, millennials seek fast delivery and free shipping. But, they are also more in tune with reviews and quality. Therefore, they research heavily before deciding to buy a product. And, will put off a purchase until they find the best possible deal.

They Shop Brick & Mortar Too

Although they buy a majority of items online, millennials don't exclude brick and mortar options. In fact, millennials still shop in person for products such as personal care items, large electronics such as a phone or computer and various types of clothing.

They recognize that although shopping online fits into their busy schedule, there are some things that need to be seen in person before making a purchase decision. For example, when it comes to clothes - many millennials have no problem buying pieces online. Yet, a vast majority still prefer in person retail that allows them to test and try an item on before buying.

And, brick and mortar allows them to support local and small businesses. Considering that some millennials tend to veer off from big, name brands - they are more inclined to purchase from their local community to feel as if they are giving back and making a difference.

They Shop Sustainable

A third aspect of what millennial s are buying is that they shop sustainable. Now more than ever, we are seeing a push toward more conscious and ethical consumerism. With big issues heading the forefront of our media, there is a call to action to be better and greener in the ways we shop and consume.

Millennials have no problem with focusing on sustainability. And, they would eagerly swap out one brand for another if it meant supporting a better mission and positively impacting on the world.

This is why we see millennials shopping with brands that produce items with natural ingredients and ethical production lines. And, they buy sustainable goods in any sectors. This list includes food, household cleaning, linens and clothes.

They Buy Through Social Media

The biggest outlet that shapes what millennials are buying is social media. Not only are they active on these platforms regularly, but they use them for reference, advice and insight into what is available in the market.

Millennials are more influenced by the opinions and choices of people they trust and in turn, will purchase based on personal recommendations.

This is why every brand needs to utilize social media to its fullest extent. If you're not pushing and promoting what your company does and the products offered through various social platforms - you are losing out on an important group of consumers.

Millennials enjoy browsing through social media to discover new products and brands. They also find individuals with great content and use their influence as a sounding board for their own spending. In short, social media is highly influential in the way that consumers experience and support a brand. And, as time goes on - it will only continue to grow and expand to meet the shopping habits of millennials and newer generations.

The Gen Y Shopping Guide

So, we know how millennials shop - where, when and how often. Yet, what brands and companies do they prefer to support?

Here are some of the brands that Generation Y loves.

They offer quality glasses at an affordable price with quick delivery, in person shopping experiences and the ability to try before you buy.

Skincare and beauty products inspired by real life for your every day essentials. They offer products that are not only affordable, but make you feel and look great.

Offering the best bed for better sleep, Casper is all about getting the sleep you've always dreamed of. Not only are they award-winning, but their products are quality crafted and ethically made in the USA.

The brand for thoughtfully designed luggage that is made for how you travel and with a lifetime guarantee.

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As you can see, what millennials are buying and how they choose to shop is defining their generation. Not only do they purchase often, but they care about the quality and production of their goods.

Would you like to see a complete millennial brand guide? Connect and let us know on social at @h_collective // If you liked this, don't forget to check out our post on 10 Millennial Brands With a Positive Mission

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What Are Millennials Buying: The Gen Y Shopping Guide - The H Hub

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The millennial generation appears to be a perplexing subset of consumers. As they continue to establish and differentiate themselves from generations past, their behaviors and purchase decisions leave many brands to ask the question - what are millennials buying?

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Michael Kors - 23.60% Visit Share
Ralph Lauren - 21.84% Visit Share
Coach - 18.06% Visit Share
Louis Vuitton - 9.25% Visit Share
Gucci - 6.10% Visit Share

This shows that Michael Kors have the Highest Market Share in the Luxury Market.
"Although Michael Kors has the largest luxury market share in the US, their Millennial index is very low and their audience is surprisingly less likely to be invested in the importance of designer labels."

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Everyone wants to understand the next generation of luxury shoppers; what brand wouldn't want to attract young consumers and aspirational buyers who are willing to spend money on products they love, and will undoubtedly spend more over their lifetime?

In the Luxury Millennial Report we explore the luxury apparel industry as a whole, and break down which brands have the highest market share in the luxury market overall (such as Michael Kors), versus smaller luxury brands that are appealing successfully to Millennials (such as Versace). Gucci is an example of a luxury brand who manages to rank well in the online luxury market, while also pulling an impressive number of younger shoppers.

These age distinctions appear to affect the attitudes of each brand's audience. The Versace audience (which is the mostly Millennial) is 38% more likely than the average person to agree that a designer label improves a person's image. The Gucci audience, which also skews Millennial although not quite as high, is 25% more likely to agree. Although Michael Kors has the largest luxury market share in the US, their Millennial index is very low and their audience is surprisingly less likely to be invested in the importance of designer labels.

Younger Millennials (18-24 year olds) as an overall audience segment are 38% more likely than the average person to agree that wearing a designer label improves a person's image. Meanwhile, older Millennials are only 2% more likely than average to agree with this notion. From there, agreement dwindles by age, which suggests that older consumers are less likely to perceive a designer label as carrying inherent social capital.

Consumer willingness to keep up with fashion trends also appears strongest with Versace, the most Millennial brand, whereas it dwindles for Gucci and particularly for Michael Kors.

That being said, the Millennial-dominated luxury brands also appear to have the least brand-loyal audiences; Versace buyers disagree strongly with the idea of sticking with a few favorite clothing brands, whereas Michael Kors brands are more likely to agree with this sentiment.

There is no silver bullet for understanding Millennial shoppers, although several patterns emerge. Millennials care more about what luxury goods say about them than the physical products themselves. They buy products to make a statement, to keep up with trends, to build social capital and to make an emotional connection to celebrities. To buy a Versace dress that Gigi Hadid wore is to feel part of her world, connected to something more glamorous than ordinary life (and of course, to capture that experience on social media). If she's wearing a Tom Ford dress next month, then the desire will shift.

Powerhouse brands such as Gucci, who has been around for nearly a century but pushes the boundaries of experimental fashion and digital marketing, will be able to remain at the forefront of Millennial desire by constantly reinventing themselves. Meanwhile, brands like Michael Kors, who has only been around since the 1980's yet appears to have stagnated its hold on young consumers, will struggle to capture the next generation of shoppers if its unable to connect with their unique desires.

Want more?
Source: Data in this post was pulled using Hitwise Intelligence & AudienceView, based on visitors to top luxury brand websites. Top luxury brand visit share and Millennial visit share lists pulled over the month of December, 2016. Millennial visit share graph charted over the year of 2016. Age demographics and attitudes pulled over a 4-week period ending 2/18/2017.

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The Surprising Attitudes of Luxury Millennial Shoppers

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Everyone wants to understand the next generation of luxury shoppers; what brand wouldn't want to attract young consumers and aspirational buyers who are willing to spend money on products they love, and will undoubtedly spend more over their lifetime?

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Spending Priorities and Money - Executive Summary 

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Spending Priorities and Money - Executive Summary 

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In USA - Millennial women only make 80.7% of male's salaries.

Millennials overspend on trendy food and experiences. This leads people to believe that they aren't saving but this is false. 46% are saving for the future (according to a WGSN survey).

Gen Y expect the men to still be breadwinners and are less financially independent then Gen X and Baby Boomers.

A lot of Millennials result to side jobs to help fund entertainment and pay rent.

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A lot of Mellennials are facing student debt an average of $29,800 in 2018.

As the children of Baby Boomers they started life financially worse off. A long with the student debts they are also dealing with an uncertain job market, rising housing costs and stagnant wages.

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Millennials are marrying and having children later while facing debts.

Lifestyle creep- Millennials make more money and there for spend more money causing financial strain even when their earnings rise.

Impact Investing - Morgan Stanley said 95% of Millennials are interested in sustainable investing, 67% are already acting on this.

Micro - cations - Millennials are overworked and underpaid causing a lot of stress and making them very tired. 33% admit to being burnt out before allowed a holiday. Micro-cations are introduced, these mini trips are less of an expense and offer experience and adventure without the cost.

House Hacking - Some homeowners have bought properties with the plan to host long term room mates and travellers.

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Most Millennials only purchase items with Online Reviews

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Most Millennials only purchase items with Online Reviews

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A study finds that people of Gen Y only purchase after reading reviews online about the purchase.

- 8/10 Millennials don't buy without reviews.

- A study of 2,000 Millennials shows that they purchase more online than Get X and Baby Boomers and research into the product more before purchasing.

-Around 3/10 only buy from websites they've used before.

-An equal number only buy from websites with trusted recommendations.

-45% of millennials admit that they prefer buying online so they can run comparisons on products and prices, with 3/4 saying it’s ”easier than going to the shops”.

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Eight out of 10 millennials never buy anything without first reading a review, a study has found.

A study of 2,000 adults revealed Millennials make more online purchases than Generation X or " baby boomers " - but do more research before parting with their cash.

Around three in 10 only buy from websites they have used before, while an equal number only spend money on sites with trusted recommendations.

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Sharing the full story, not just the headlines

Forty-five per cent of millennials admitted they prefer buying online because they can run comparisons on products and prices, with three in four stating it's "easier than going to the shops".

However, the study also found that while overall half of Britons like being able to ask store staff questions, just 7 per cent agreed it was cheaper to buy in-store than online.

The research was conducted by online boiler business BOXT to gain a better understanding of the nation's shopping habits.

Alan Dickinson, a director at BOXT said: "At the touch of a button you can buy yourself a new outfit, the latest film release or even a brand new boiler.

"It's cheaper, quicker and you can do it from anywhere at any time, so there's less time to wait."

It also emerged nearly half of Brits will check ratings online when spending money, reading an average of six reviews.

But just 8 per cent will ask the opinions of friends and family members, with their partner and best friend being the people they are most likely to consult.

Thirty per cent will take just a few minutes to make a decision on an in-store purchase compared to 16 per cent committing to online spend within minutes.

Free delivery proved a more popular incentive to make online purchases than the benefit of seeing something in person when buying in-store.

No hype, just the advice and analysis you need

Three quarters of the population agreed we're more like to buy 'big ticket' items online now than five years ago, and millennials - those aged 18 to 37 - are four times more likely to buy a "big ticket" item like a car via the internet than baby boomers, who are aged between 54 and 73.

Those who would use an online vendor over a local supplier say it is cheaper, convenient and that they can check reviews online, but those preferring local suppliers do so because they said it is good for the local economy and they feel they are buying from someone they trust.

That being said, local loyalty proved to be short-lived with 84 per cent confessing they are more likely to purchase things online over a local vendor if it was cheaper via the web.

Dickinson added: "We're seeing more businesses, like our own, disrupting their industry.

''This sometimes causes a bit of a backlash amongst local suppliers but ultimately, this study shows that times are changing and that consumers want instant delivery, cost comparison and the ability to read reviews.

"We regularly see our customers go to great lengths to read our reviews on TrustPilot so it's more important than ever that our customer service satisfaction is of the highest level."

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Most millennials only purchase items with online reviews, study finds

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Eight out of 10 millennials never buy anything without first reading a review, a study has found. A study of 2,000 adults revealed Millennials make more online purchases than Generation X or "baby boomers" - but do more research before parting with their cash.

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-82% of millennials say that word-of-mouth is a key influencer in their purchase decisions. (Synchrony)

-90% of millennials research product reviews online before making a purchase. (Synchrony)

-Millennials use PayPal the most out of all the generations, with 32% of surveyed millennials using the payment service compared with just 15% of Gen Xers and baby boomers combined. (PaymentEye)

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Though it's not the most important part of a business, all brands need to sell in order to keep their doors open. Of course, you can't sell to everyone. which is why it's important to define your target market first.

Every good marketer knows that casting a wide net is futile; creating a few buyer personas to identify your highest-converting audience allows you to be more specific and engaging with your strategy-from the timing of your messaging to its content.

Whether your target market is Gen Z, millennials, Gen Xers, or baby boomers, it's important to know how they use technology in order to build an effective strategy and convert them into loyal customers.

To achieve this, we're going to explore some data on the following topics (plus key takeaways for each)-if you have an itch to skip ahead, the sections are as follows:

But first...

Here is the age breakdown of each generation we'll be analyzing:

Now, onto the real juicy data!

Device Preferences

1. 57% of baby boomers use tablets compared with only 35% of millennials. (Nielsen)

2. 4 in 10 baby boomers own smartphones-that's an increase from 18% in 2013 to 42% today. (Pew Research Center)

3. Over 25% of millennials use a mobile phone as their primary source for content compared with 17% of Gen Xers and 7% of baby boomers. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

4. 65% of baby boomers own a desktop computer and 49% own a laptop. (BrainBoxol)

5. 92% of Gen Xers own a cellphone, 69% own a desktop computer, 61% own a laptop, and only 5% own a tablet. (BrainBoxol)

6. 70% of millennials own a laptop compared with 57% who own a desktop, making them the first generation to be more likely to own a laptop overall. (BrainBoxol)

7. 98% of Gen Z owns a smartphone; they also expect to get their first smartphone younger than any other generation. (GlobalWebIndex / BrainBoxol)

8. 52% of Gen Z reports that their smartphone is their most important internet device. (GlobalWebIndex)

9. 88% of Gen Z reports having access to a desktop or laptop computer at home. (PRC)

Why you should care

The most important takeaway here is that all the age groups have mostly multi-device users-in other words, not a single generation is significantly behind on the times. Sure, baby boomers don't depend on their mobile devices more than oxygen like Gen Z does, but almost half of them are still smartphone-savvy. This means that your marketing messaging and touchpoints have to consider how your customers interact with your brand on all devices, from your smartphone-exclusive Gen Z kids to the surprising superfans of tablets, the baby boomers. For instance, while you may text offers to your customers if they skew younger, you're more likely to effectively reach older audiences with an email promotion instead.

Tech Usage & Content Consumption

10. ⅔ of baby boomers use the internet and half of them have broadband at home. (PRC)

11. Only 26% of internet-using baby boomers say they feel very confident when using electronic devices to do the things they need to do online. (PRC)

12. 28% of baby boomers report having some kind of health problems, disabilities, or handicaps that keep them from doing certain activities-as a result, they report being less likely to use a variety of digital assets and devices such as the internet and smartphones. (PRC)

13. 1 in 4 baby boomers say they play online video games. (PRC)

14. Only 27% of millennials follow the news, compared with 46% of Gen X and 61% of baby boomers. (PRC)

15. Gen Xers are the most likely to get their news from websites or apps, millennials are most likely to get it from social networking sites, and baby boomers are most likely to get it from local TV. (PRC)

16. 57% of Gen Z uses messaging apps at least half the time they use their phone. (BrainBoxol)

17. 97%, or almost all millennials say they use the internet. (PRC)

18. 28% of millennials are smartphone-only internet users and do not have traditional broadband service at home. (PRC)

19. 18% of Gen Xers go online primarily via smartphone compared with 13% of baby boomers. (PRC)

Why you should care

While all generations use the internet significantly more than years before, each has a different purpose or method for doing so. For instance, if you're writing content for older audiences, a company blog that helps your audience keep up with your industry's news will be more helpful to them than it would be to Gen Z. On the flip side, sending direct, customized messages to engage your audience will resonate more with a younger audience than older ones. One of the key aspects to consider for customer experience purposes is accessibility: while Gen Z was practically born phone-in-hand, nearly a third of baby boomers struggle with a physical barrier to adopting more technology into their daily lives. What does that mean for your brand? While everyone is seemingly more tech-savvy these days, if you're marketing to older generations, you have to optimize your content and channels for accessibility-whether that entails including alt text, using a lot of imagery, improving readability on your site, or otherwise.

Preferred Social Channels

20. Gen Xers are heaviest social media users of any demographic group, with 34% of the demographic using it compared to 69% of the total adult population. (Nielsen / PRC)

21. 70% of baby boomers who use Facebook report that they log into the platform on a daily basis. (PRC)

22. Facebook is the most popular platform for sharing content across all generations, with 51% of Gen Z, 62% of millennials, 58% of Gen X, and 63% of Baby Boomers using it most often out of all social media. (BuzzStream x Fractl / PRC)

23. Google+ and LinkedIn are the most popular platform for baby boomers for sharing content; YouTube and Twitter are the most popular sharing platforms for Gen X; Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest are the most popular sharing platforms for millennials. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

24. 30% of millennials engage with a brand on social media at least once a month. (Sprout Social)

25. 15% of Gen Z uses Instagram, 32% uses YouTube, and 35% uses Snapchat. (PRC)

Why you should care

Maybe you've heard this already, but word on the street is that "Facebook is for old people." Harsh? Yes. Untrue? Partially-while every generation is on Facebook technically, it's the older generations who are also there actively. As a marketer, you need to do your thorough research and pick a few channels where you know your ideal customers are; here, guesswork is costly in terms of efficiency. Personally, I've chatted with some Gen Z kids who told me they've purchased products advertised on Snapchat because the ad was timely, relevant, and engaging. Meanwhile, I find myself getting sucked into an Instagram ad since I'm a millennial and prefer that image- and product-heavy browsing experience to the others. There's no point in casting a wide net and advertising on all social media platforms; instead, your budget is better spent on targeting your audience by their favorite channel to guarantee better engagement.

Time Spent Online

26. Gen Xers spend about 21 hours per week on their smartphones while millennials spend 19 hours. (Nielsen)

27. Over 25% of baby boomers consume 20 or more hours of content each week. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

28. Gen Xers spend more time per week on all devices-21 hours on smartphones, 9 hours on PCs, and 4 hours on tablets-than millennials do. (Nielsen)

29. 60% of Gen Xers use a smartphone daily and 67% use a laptop or PC daily, surpassing the 58% of millennials who use laptops or PCs daily. (Centro)

30. 76% of smartphone-owning baby boomers use the internet at least several times per day. (PRC)

31. 45% Gen Z says they're on their phone "almost constantly;" 61.8% of Gen Z and millennials say they would rather leave their wallet at home instead of their phone. (PRC / LivePerson)

32. 44% of Gen Z says they go online several times a day, so in total, 90% of Gen Z goes online at least multiple times per day. (PRC)

33. ¾ of internet-using baby boomers go online daily and nearly 1 in 10 go online almost constantly. (PRC)

34. 40% of baby boomers consume most of their content in the morning; they are online between 5am and noon. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

35. Less than 10% of each generation reports consuming content late at night, or between 12am-5am. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

Why you should care

It's easy to assume that, the older the generation, the less they frequent their favorite parts of the internet, but the data tells a different story. Who knew that Gen Xers were second-most addicted to browsing the web after Gen Z? The key marketing insight to pull from this data is that, depending on the generation of your ideal audience, you have a different amount of engagement opportunities per day. Your best bet at reaching baby boomers is sending out messages or sharing content in the morning when they're up early and starting their day with some casual browsing. Gen Z, on the other hand, provides a constant opportunity to be reached and engaged; however, this can add a challenge of making sure that your marketing efforts don't get drowned out or forgotten amidst the higher frequency of browsing, channels, and content. As always, testing the timing of your content sharing or customer outreach is the best way to find out when your audience is ready to consider your brand for a purchase.

Brand Engagement

36. 38% of millennials follow brands on social media for entertainment value. (Sprout Social)

37. 41% of Gen Xers follow brands on social media for contests; 58% follow brands for deals and promotions. (Sprout Social)

38. 60% of baby boomers follow brands on social media for a mix of deals and promotions; 53% follow brands for information. (Sprout Social)

39. Gen Xers are 160% more likely than other generations to unfollow a brand that says something offensive or that is in opposition with their beliefs. (Sprout Social)

40. 21% of millennials unfollow brands because of having a bad experience; 22% unfollow because they found a brand's social marketing to be annoying. (Sprout Social)

41. 29% of baby boomers will unfollow or opt-out of marketing when there's too much spam. (Sprout Social)

42. 70% of Gen Xers, 60% of millennials and 51% of baby boomers will likely purchase from a brand they follow on social media. (Sprout Social)

43. 58.9% of millennials, 50.4% of Gen Xers, and 55% of baby boomers all follow brands on social media before purchasing from them. (Sprout Social)

44. Millennials are twice as likely as other generations to turn to social (instead of phone or email) to communicate with a brand. (Sprout Social)

45. More than 60% of people from all generations who follow brands are willing to buy from them. If the brand invests in organic engagement through 1-on-1 conversations and positive interactions, the number goes up to 69%. (Sprout Social)

46. Millennials are 6% more likely than other generations to purchase from a brand that they've had a positive exchange with on social media. (Sprout Social)

47. Gen Z is almost 50% more likely than millennials to write a product review in exchange for loyalty points from a brand. (CrowdTwist)

48. 68% of Gen Z says they prefer to receive communication from a brand via email. (Adestra)

49. 79% of Gen Z would engage with a brand that could help them make a difference. (Saatchi NY)

50. 60% of Gen Z prefers to shop at retailers that engage with them via social media. (Interactions Marketing)

51. 69% of Gen Z finds advertisements to be disruptive. (Vision Critical)

Why you should care

Depending on the generation, your messaging needs to serve a different purpose: younger generations seek entertainment or personal communication from brands; older generations seek brand information and deals instead. Across the board, however, social media is a promising channel for engaging all generations as they each use it with the intention of interacting with brands in one way or another. As advertising loses its touch, be careful not to turn off your audience by relying on the old way-the younger generations are easily turned off by overly promotional messaging and will even hit the dreaded "unfollow" button without hesitation if they're fed up. Take the data above and create a strategy with it in order to get the most social engagement with your audience-after all, it's more likely to turn into a purchase that way.

Purchase Journey

52. 60% of baby boomers are looking for promotions on social media. (Sprout Social)

53. 85% of baby boomers research products on their web browsers. (Synchrony)

54. 12% of baby boomers look to friends and family for advice on their purchases. (Colloquy) For millennials, the number goes up to 60%. (Gen Buy)

55. 68% of millennials demand the convenience of omnichannel accessibility during their shopping journey. (Accenture)

56. Younger millennials are more likely to shop in a physical store compared to older millennials. (CouponFollow)

57. 82% of millennials say that word-of-mouth is a key influencer in their purchase decisions. (Synchrony)

58. 90% of millennials research product reviews online before making a purchase. (Synchrony)

59. 73% of Gen Z would make a purchase based on a social media recommendation. (Retail Assist)

60. 45% of Gen Xers use their phones to look for a better price or other options on a product while shopping at a retail store. (BrainBoxol)

61. 41% of baby boomers, Gen Xers, and millennials all say they practice "showrooming," where they browse for items in-store and then find the lowest price online to purchase, more than they did a year ago. (Accenture)

Why you should care

How your ideal audience determines that your brand is the one they're going to buy from is paramount. Luckily, we live in an era where all the data is available to us marketers so that we can make strategic, calculated decisions in how we help our customers choose us over the competition. For instance, a brand that doesn't have a website is guaranteed to lose out with all but Gen Z-after all, the physical storefront now serves mainly as a place to sample a product before virtually hunting for a deal on it. Because consumers nowadays trust their peers more than brands, your strategy should try to leverage user-generated content (UGC) and word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) in order to increase your chances of gaining their attention and loyalty. Also, consider how you can make it easy for customers to shop on any device, pull up discounts in-store, and overall make the lines between digital and physical nonexistent to reduce friction in their purchase journey.

Purchase Preferences

62. 66% of baby boomers make regular purchases on web devices. (Immersion Active)

63. Baby boomers make almost 50% of retail sales compared with only 10% from millennials and 20% from Gen X. (Synchrony)

64. Shopping at a retailer with a "social conscience" is important to about 67% of people in all three generations. (Synchrony)

65. Only 27% of baby boomers think that shopping is a great way to relax, and 37% report that they would be willing to explore a store for new products. (Colloquy)

66. 84% of baby boomers prefer to shop in-store. (Colloquy)

67. 67% of baby boomers report that if an item they want is available online or in a nearby store, they prefer to purchase in-store. (TimeTrade)

68. Only 16% of millennials make the majority of their purchases on a mobile device. (CouponFollow)

69. 84% of Gen Z makes shopping a social activity, such as part of their day out on the town. (Retail Assist)

70. 58% of Gen Z prefers to make purchases in stores rather than online. (Retail Assist)

71. 68% of millennials demand an integrated, seamless shopping experience regardless of the channel. (Accenture)

72. 39% of millennials, 33% of Gen Xers, and 24% of baby boomers use mobile payments when shopping, paying bills, or sending or receiving money. (Pew)

73. Millennials use PayPal the most out of all the generations, with 32% of surveyed millennials using the payment service compared with just 15% of Gen Xers and baby boomers combined. (PaymentEye)

74. Only 13% of baby boomers still write checks; instead, about 90% use debit cards to make payments. (Federal Reserve)

75. 75% of Gen Z would rather shop at a retailer that accepts mobile payments over one that doesn't. (Interactions Marketing)

Why you should care

Cash money is becoming increasingly more rare-remember those fancy silver dollars that are more like collector items than currency these days? If your audience skews younger, they may not even have a wallet on them at all and expect a mobile pay option. This is where having the flexibility of allowing customers to pay on their phones or place orders online with free in-store pickup helps a lot of retailers stand out from their competitors. Unlike the stereotypes may imply, it's actually the older generations who prefer to shop fully online while Gen Z kids are blissfully browsing brick-and-mortar stores for fun. Rather than going with your gut, use this data to determine where and how your target audience is most likely to make a purchase in order to increase your chances of getting their business.

The Bottom Line

While each generation has some traces of similarity to the next, they really are quite separate in their preferences across the board. From their devices of choice to how they browse products, it's crucial to identify who prefers what to really make the most of your marketing strategy and create the happiest of customers.

After all, if you nail the customer satisfaction by going above and beyond, your best customers may become brand advocates, helping to further your brand's success as a result.

If your ideal audience consists primarily of millennials, we happen to be fascinated by the rambunctious bunch, so check out our big list of millennial statistics, how to market to millennials, and an in-depth look at how they behave as consumers to learn even more. I promise this: by the time you get through all that, you're going to know millennials inside and out better than they know themselves.

Which stats did you find the most surprising? Is your target audience the type of digital consumer you thought they were? Share your thoughts below!

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75 Eye-Opening Statistics on How Each Generation Uses Technology

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Whether your target market is Gen Z, millennials, Gen Xers, or baby boomers, it's important to know how they use tech to build an effective strategy & convert them into loyal customers. Here's the data you need.

# data[].attributes.body
Generation Burnout - Millennials are underpaid yet overworked, they are too tired to continue working but too poor to stop.

Loneliness - Loneliness is a massive problem and an ongoing situation. To help this Millennials are creating communities or spending time with others in a similar position.

Freedom - Millennials make less money than their baby boomer parents, global workplace dynamics are shifting and Millenialls are opening up to flexible  working, location independance and are making money on the side along side their full time jobs to fund their lifestyle as well as financial security.

Equality - Women are disadvantaged due to the gender pay gap.

The Age of Anxiety - If there is an economic downturn, Millennials will be unable to pay their debts, move out of their family home or secure enough to start families of their own.

Information Accessibility - Millennial women are digitally literate but now seeking financial literacy.

Comfortable learning on the go.

They are turning to social media financial gurus for advice.

# data[].attributes.body
Regularly referred to as "Generation Therapy", Millennials are lonely, anxious and cash-strapped. Dealing with the crippling pressures and stresses of daily life, they're turning to a brand new field of therapy that sees traditional psychology co-exist with financial advisory.

# data[].attributes.body
-Tech / Web Savvy
-Family Orientated
-Ambitious
-Team Players
-Communicators
-Like to be loved

# data[].attributes.body
-Gen Y are well educated in general.
-They understand the value of higher education and the attainment of qualifications in order to progress and succeed.
-Millennials place a lot more importance on word of mouth recommendations, reviews, social media buzz, influencer content, and real-person interactions than they do on adverts and promotions; millennials don’t want to be marketed “to” or “at,” they want to be provided with information and respected for their ability to do their own research and draw their own conclusions.

# data[].attributes.body
-Michael Kors uses brand ambassadors at their contact centers.

-Due to this here are people hired from the stores that know the products.

-This PERSONAL insight to the customer plays out in the contact center with advising and training on the products.

-Mannequins and products are on display with equal detail to a storefront window presentation.  If a customer calls to ask about a new handbag, the agent can literally say, “…hold on let me pick one up and tell you about it.”

-The focus shifted to hiring people who love the products and can really empathize with customers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Michael Kors is the leading American fashion designer of luxury accessories and ready-to-wear clothing. I had the distinct honor of moderating the latest TP Talks webinar with Ebrahim Hyder, VP of Consumer Support at Michael Kors. In fact, it is now online and available for playback. http://tinyurl.com/y7vxrr5u

During our conversation, I had several interesting interactions with Ebrahim. He talked in detail about the multichannel MICHAEL experience. However, he didn't just focus on the essential multichannel experience for customers. He dove into the immersive environment they use for their team members, who they refer to as stylists, in the contact centers.

Ebrahim talked about several areas of the entire process of creating a great customer experience for Michael Kors customers, but I'd like to focus on two examples of what they are doing that I really think make a big difference.

First, they create a customer service environment that reflects the brand. The contact center uses the same carpet as the stores. The walls are painted the same color. If a customer is in the fifth avenue store and they call for help, they will hear the same background music playing in the store and on the call - the contact center agents also hear exactly what is being played in the stores.

In addition, Michael Kors uses brand ambassadors at their contact centers. As a result, there are people hired directly from the stores that know the products. This personal insight to the customer plays out in the contact center with advising and training on the products. Mannequins and products are on display with equal detail to a storefront window presentation. If a customer calls to ask about a new handbag, the agent can literally say, "...hold on let me pick one up and tell you about it."

The other key takeaway is how Michael Kors hires. After initially looking for a Michael Kors model customer, they moved to a more empathetic and brand aware stylist. The focus shifted to hiring people who love the products and can really empathize with customers. In addition, Michael Kors brand specific training is a differentiator in their learning model by empowering the stylist with essential product information. Each new hire takes two weeks of training just in the brand and products and then they get time to 'nest' - where they can settle into the customer service process and allow all the new information time to set.

Along with their various retention measures, including a generous employee discount and clothing allowance, this is a great approach to ensuring that the customer service team really identifies with the customer and truly feels immersed in the same environment.

Ebrahim also talked about how to manage the customer service process, but I just wanted to pick out a couple of my own highlights from our conversation. Successful business and creating loyal brand advocates lies not so much in a magic bullet itself - but in taking the time to be sure you share what makes the magic within your brand. To hear the entire TP Talks webinar with Ebrahim Hyder from Michael Kors just click here. I think you'll enjoy the attention to detail and the insight shared.
http://tinyurl.com/y7vxrr5u﻿#CX, #CustomerExperience, #MK, #MichaelKors, #TPTalks

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How Michael Kors Delivers A Great Customer Experience

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Michael Kors is the leading American fashion designer of luxury accessories and ready-to-wear clothing. I had the distinct honor of moderating the latest TP Talks webinar with Ebrahim Hyder, VP of Consumer Support at Michael Kors.

# data[].attributes.headline
Millennial Women - Information Accessability (Technology)

# data[].attributes.subject
Millennial Women - Information Accessability (Technology)

# data[].attributes.body
Millennial women are digitally literate but now seeking financial literacy.

Comfortable learning on the go.

They are turning to social media financial gurus for advice.

# data[].attributes.body
Millennials were born into an emerging world of technology and have grown up surrounded by smart phones, laptops etc. They are always using technology and it becomes an essential within their lives.

# data[].attributes.body
- Over 25% of Millennials use a mobile phone for their primary source for content. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

-"70% of millennials own a laptop compared with 57% who own a desktop, making them the first generation to be more likely to own a laptop overall. (BrainBoxol)"

-97% of Millennials say they use the Internet. (PRC)

- "28% of millennials are smartphone-only internet users and do not have traditional broadband service at home. (PRC)"

-62% of Millennials use Facebook to connect with all generations. (BuzzStream x Fractl / PRC)

"Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest are the most popular sharing platforms for millennials." (BuzzStream x Fractl)

"38% of millennials follow brands on social media for entertainment value. (Sprout Social)."

58.9% of millennials follow brands on social media before purchasing from them. (Sprout Social)

"21% of millennials unfollow brands because of having a bad experience; 22% unfollow because they found a brand’s social marketing to be annoying. (Sprout Social)"

"Millennials are 6% more likely than other generations to purchase from a brand that they’ve had a positive exchange with on social media. (Sprout Social)"

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Though it's not the most important part of a business, all brands need to sell in order to keep their doors open. Of course, you can't sell to everyone. which is why it's important to define your target market first.

Every good marketer knows that casting a wide net is futile; creating a few buyer personas to identify your highest-converting audience allows you to be more specific and engaging with your strategy-from the timing of your messaging to its content.

Whether your target market is Gen Z, millennials, Gen Xers, or baby boomers, it's important to know how they use technology in order to build an effective strategy and convert them into loyal customers.

To achieve this, we're going to explore some data on the following topics (plus key takeaways for each)-if you have an itch to skip ahead, the sections are as follows:

But first...

Here is the age breakdown of each generation we'll be analyzing:

Now, onto the real juicy data!

Device Preferences

1. 57% of baby boomers use tablets compared with only 35% of millennials. (Nielsen)

2. 4 in 10 baby boomers own smartphones-that's an increase from 18% in 2013 to 42% today. (Pew Research Center)

3. Over 25% of millennials use a mobile phone as their primary source for content compared with 17% of Gen Xers and 7% of baby boomers. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

4. 65% of baby boomers own a desktop computer and 49% own a laptop. (BrainBoxol)

5. 92% of Gen Xers own a cellphone, 69% own a desktop computer, 61% own a laptop, and only 5% own a tablet. (BrainBoxol)

6. 70% of millennials own a laptop compared with 57% who own a desktop, making them the first generation to be more likely to own a laptop overall. (BrainBoxol)

7. 98% of Gen Z owns a smartphone; they also expect to get their first smartphone younger than any other generation. (GlobalWebIndex / BrainBoxol)

8. 52% of Gen Z reports that their smartphone is their most important internet device. (GlobalWebIndex)

9. 88% of Gen Z reports having access to a desktop or laptop computer at home. (PRC)

Why you should care

The most important takeaway here is that all the age groups have mostly multi-device users-in other words, not a single generation is significantly behind on the times. Sure, baby boomers don't depend on their mobile devices more than oxygen like Gen Z does, but almost half of them are still smartphone-savvy. This means that your marketing messaging and touchpoints have to consider how your customers interact with your brand on all devices, from your smartphone-exclusive Gen Z kids to the surprising superfans of tablets, the baby boomers. For instance, while you may text offers to your customers if they skew younger, you're more likely to effectively reach older audiences with an email promotion instead.

Tech Usage & Content Consumption

10. ⅔ of baby boomers use the internet and half of them have broadband at home. (PRC)

11. Only 26% of internet-using baby boomers say they feel very confident when using electronic devices to do the things they need to do online. (PRC)

12. 28% of baby boomers report having some kind of health problems, disabilities, or handicaps that keep them from doing certain activities-as a result, they report being less likely to use a variety of digital assets and devices such as the internet and smartphones. (PRC)

13. 1 in 4 baby boomers say they play online video games. (PRC)

14. Only 27% of millennials follow the news, compared with 46% of Gen X and 61% of baby boomers. (PRC)

15. Gen Xers are the most likely to get their news from websites or apps, millennials are most likely to get it from social networking sites, and baby boomers are most likely to get it from local TV. (PRC)

16. 57% of Gen Z uses messaging apps at least half the time they use their phone. (BrainBoxol)

17. 97%, or almost all millennials say they use the internet. (PRC)

18. 28% of millennials are smartphone-only internet users and do not have traditional broadband service at home. (PRC)

19. 18% of Gen Xers go online primarily via smartphone compared with 13% of baby boomers. (PRC)

Why you should care

While all generations use the internet significantly more than years before, each has a different purpose or method for doing so. For instance, if you're writing content for older audiences, a company blog that helps your audience keep up with your industry's news will be more helpful to them than it would be to Gen Z. On the flip side, sending direct, customized messages to engage your audience will resonate more with a younger audience than older ones. One of the key aspects to consider for customer experience purposes is accessibility: while Gen Z was practically born phone-in-hand, nearly a third of baby boomers struggle with a physical barrier to adopting more technology into their daily lives. What does that mean for your brand? While everyone is seemingly more tech-savvy these days, if you're marketing to older generations, you have to optimize your content and channels for accessibility-whether that entails including alt text, using a lot of imagery, improving readability on your site, or otherwise.

Preferred Social Channels

20. Gen Xers are heaviest social media users of any demographic group, with 34% of the demographic using it compared to 69% of the total adult population. (Nielsen / PRC)

21. 70% of baby boomers who use Facebook report that they log into the platform on a daily basis. (PRC)

22. Facebook is the most popular platform for sharing content across all generations, with 51% of Gen Z, 62% of millennials, 58% of Gen X, and 63% of Baby Boomers using it most often out of all social media. (BuzzStream x Fractl / PRC)

23. Google+ and LinkedIn are the most popular platform for baby boomers for sharing content; YouTube and Twitter are the most popular sharing platforms for Gen X; Tumblr, Instagram, and Pinterest are the most popular sharing platforms for millennials. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

24. 30% of millennials engage with a brand on social media at least once a month. (Sprout Social)

25. 15% of Gen Z uses Instagram, 32% uses YouTube, and 35% uses Snapchat. (PRC)

Why you should care

Maybe you've heard this already, but word on the street is that "Facebook is for old people." Harsh? Yes. Untrue? Partially-while every generation is on Facebook technically, it's the older generations who are also there actively. As a marketer, you need to do your thorough research and pick a few channels where you know your ideal customers are; here, guesswork is costly in terms of efficiency. Personally, I've chatted with some Gen Z kids who told me they've purchased products advertised on Snapchat because the ad was timely, relevant, and engaging. Meanwhile, I find myself getting sucked into an Instagram ad since I'm a millennial and prefer that image- and product-heavy browsing experience to the others. There's no point in casting a wide net and advertising on all social media platforms; instead, your budget is better spent on targeting your audience by their favorite channel to guarantee better engagement.

Time Spent Online

26. Gen Xers spend about 21 hours per week on their smartphones while millennials spend 19 hours. (Nielsen)

27. Over 25% of baby boomers consume 20 or more hours of content each week. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

28. Gen Xers spend more time per week on all devices-21 hours on smartphones, 9 hours on PCs, and 4 hours on tablets-than millennials do. (Nielsen)

29. 60% of Gen Xers use a smartphone daily and 67% use a laptop or PC daily, surpassing the 58% of millennials who use laptops or PCs daily. (Centro)

30. 76% of smartphone-owning baby boomers use the internet at least several times per day. (PRC)

31. 45% Gen Z says they're on their phone "almost constantly;" 61.8% of Gen Z and millennials say they would rather leave their wallet at home instead of their phone. (PRC / LivePerson)

32. 44% of Gen Z says they go online several times a day, so in total, 90% of Gen Z goes online at least multiple times per day. (PRC)

33. ¾ of internet-using baby boomers go online daily and nearly 1 in 10 go online almost constantly. (PRC)

34. 40% of baby boomers consume most of their content in the morning; they are online between 5am and noon. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

35. Less than 10% of each generation reports consuming content late at night, or between 12am-5am. (BuzzStream x Fractl)

Why you should care

It's easy to assume that, the older the generation, the less they frequent their favorite parts of the internet, but the data tells a different story. Who knew that Gen Xers were second-most addicted to browsing the web after Gen Z? The key marketing insight to pull from this data is that, depending on the generation of your ideal audience, you have a different amount of engagement opportunities per day. Your best bet at reaching baby boomers is sending out messages or sharing content in the morning when they're up early and starting their day with some casual browsing. Gen Z, on the other hand, provides a constant opportunity to be reached and engaged; however, this can add a challenge of making sure that your marketing efforts don't get drowned out or forgotten amidst the higher frequency of browsing, channels, and content. As always, testing the timing of your content sharing or customer outreach is the best way to find out when your audience is ready to consider your brand for a purchase.

Brand Engagement

36. 38% of millennials follow brands on social media for entertainment value. (Sprout Social)

37. 41% of Gen Xers follow brands on social media for contests; 58% follow brands for deals and promotions. (Sprout Social)

38. 60% of baby boomers follow brands on social media for a mix of deals and promotions; 53% follow brands for information. (Sprout Social)

39. Gen Xers are 160% more likely than other generations to unfollow a brand that says something offensive or that is in opposition with their beliefs. (Sprout Social)

40. 21% of millennials unfollow brands because of having a bad experience; 22% unfollow because they found a brand's social marketing to be annoying. (Sprout Social)

41. 29% of baby boomers will unfollow or opt-out of marketing when there's too much spam. (Sprout Social)

42. 70% of Gen Xers, 60% of millennials and 51% of baby boomers will likely purchase from a brand they follow on social media. (Sprout Social)

43. 58.9% of millennials, 50.4% of Gen Xers, and 55% of baby boomers all follow brands on social media before purchasing from them. (Sprout Social)

44. Millennials are twice as likely as other generations to turn to social (instead of phone or email) to communicate with a brand. (Sprout Social)

45. More than 60% of people from all generations who follow brands are willing to buy from them. If the brand invests in organic engagement through 1-on-1 conversations and positive interactions, the number goes up to 69%. (Sprout Social)

46. Millennials are 6% more likely than other generations to purchase from a brand that they've had a positive exchange with on social media. (Sprout Social)

47. Gen Z is almost 50% more likely than millennials to write a product review in exchange for loyalty points from a brand. (CrowdTwist)

48. 68% of Gen Z says they prefer to receive communication from a brand via email. (Adestra)

49. 79% of Gen Z would engage with a brand that could help them make a difference. (Saatchi NY)

50. 60% of Gen Z prefers to shop at retailers that engage with them via social media. (Interactions Marketing)

51. 69% of Gen Z finds advertisements to be disruptive. (Vision Critical)

Why you should care

Depending on the generation, your messaging needs to serve a different purpose: younger generations seek entertainment or personal communication from brands; older generations seek brand information and deals instead. Across the board, however, social media is a promising channel for engaging all generations as they each use it with the intention of interacting with brands in one way or another. As advertising loses its touch, be careful not to turn off your audience by relying on the old way-the younger generations are easily turned off by overly promotional messaging and will even hit the dreaded "unfollow" button without hesitation if they're fed up. Take the data above and create a strategy with it in order to get the most social engagement with your audience-after all, it's more likely to turn into a purchase that way.

Purchase Journey

52. 60% of baby boomers are looking for promotions on social media. (Sprout Social)

53. 85% of baby boomers research products on their web browsers. (Synchrony)

54. 12% of baby boomers look to friends and family for advice on their purchases. (Colloquy) For millennials, the number goes up to 60%. (Gen Buy)

55. 68% of millennials demand the convenience of omnichannel accessibility during their shopping journey. (Accenture)

56. Younger millennials are more likely to shop in a physical store compared to older millennials. (CouponFollow)

57. 82% of millennials say that word-of-mouth is a key influencer in their purchase decisions. (Synchrony)

58. 90% of millennials research product reviews online before making a purchase. (Synchrony)

59. 73% of Gen Z would make a purchase based on a social media recommendation. (Retail Assist)

60. 45% of Gen Xers use their phones to look for a better price or other options on a product while shopping at a retail store. (BrainBoxol)

61. 41% of baby boomers, Gen Xers, and millennials all say they practice "showrooming," where they browse for items in-store and then find the lowest price online to purchase, more than they did a year ago. (Accenture)

Why you should care

How your ideal audience determines that your brand is the one they're going to buy from is paramount. Luckily, we live in an era where all the data is available to us marketers so that we can make strategic, calculated decisions in how we help our customers choose us over the competition. For instance, a brand that doesn't have a website is guaranteed to lose out with all but Gen Z-after all, the physical storefront now serves mainly as a place to sample a product before virtually hunting for a deal on it. Because consumers nowadays trust their peers more than brands, your strategy should try to leverage user-generated content (UGC) and word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) in order to increase your chances of gaining their attention and loyalty. Also, consider how you can make it easy for customers to shop on any device, pull up discounts in-store, and overall make the lines between digital and physical nonexistent to reduce friction in their purchase journey.

Purchase Preferences

62. 66% of baby boomers make regular purchases on web devices. (Immersion Active)

63. Baby boomers make almost 50% of retail sales compared with only 10% from millennials and 20% from Gen X. (Synchrony)

64. Shopping at a retailer with a "social conscience" is important to about 67% of people in all three generations. (Synchrony)

65. Only 27% of baby boomers think that shopping is a great way to relax, and 37% report that they would be willing to explore a store for new products. (Colloquy)

66. 84% of baby boomers prefer to shop in-store. (Colloquy)

67. 67% of baby boomers report that if an item they want is available online or in a nearby store, they prefer to purchase in-store. (TimeTrade)

68. Only 16% of millennials make the majority of their purchases on a mobile device. (CouponFollow)

69. 84% of Gen Z makes shopping a social activity, such as part of their day out on the town. (Retail Assist)

70. 58% of Gen Z prefers to make purchases in stores rather than online. (Retail Assist)

71. 68% of millennials demand an integrated, seamless shopping experience regardless of the channel. (Accenture)

72. 39% of millennials, 33% of Gen Xers, and 24% of baby boomers use mobile payments when shopping, paying bills, or sending or receiving money. (Pew)

73. Millennials use PayPal the most out of all the generations, with 32% of surveyed millennials using the payment service compared with just 15% of Gen Xers and baby boomers combined. (PaymentEye)

74. Only 13% of baby boomers still write checks; instead, about 90% use debit cards to make payments. (Federal Reserve)

75. 75% of Gen Z would rather shop at a retailer that accepts mobile payments over one that doesn't. (Interactions Marketing)

Why you should care

Cash money is becoming increasingly more rare-remember those fancy silver dollars that are more like collector items than currency these days? If your audience skews younger, they may not even have a wallet on them at all and expect a mobile pay option. This is where having the flexibility of allowing customers to pay on their phones or place orders online with free in-store pickup helps a lot of retailers stand out from their competitors. Unlike the stereotypes may imply, it's actually the older generations who prefer to shop fully online while Gen Z kids are blissfully browsing brick-and-mortar stores for fun. Rather than going with your gut, use this data to determine where and how your target audience is most likely to make a purchase in order to increase your chances of getting their business.

The Bottom Line

While each generation has some traces of similarity to the next, they really are quite separate in their preferences across the board. From their devices of choice to how they browse products, it's crucial to identify who prefers what to really make the most of your marketing strategy and create the happiest of customers.

After all, if you nail the customer satisfaction by going above and beyond, your best customers may become brand advocates, helping to further your brand's success as a result.

If your ideal audience consists primarily of millennials, we happen to be fascinated by the rambunctious bunch, so check out our big list of millennial statistics, how to market to millennials, and an in-depth look at how they behave as consumers to learn even more. I promise this: by the time you get through all that, you're going to know millennials inside and out better than they know themselves.

Which stats did you find the most surprising? Is your target audience the type of digital consumer you thought they were? Share your thoughts below!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
75 Eye-Opening Statistics on How Each Generation Uses Technology

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Whether your target market is Gen Z, millennials, Gen Xers, or baby boomers, it's important to know how they use tech to build an effective strategy & convert them into loyal customers. Here's the data you need.

# data[].attributes.body
-Age - 25
-Likes shopping online rather than in store.
-Favourite stores are ; Zara, H&M, Bershka, Topshop.
-She will mainly shop when she can find discount codes.
-She works as a makeup artist.
- Lives at home

# data[].attributes.headline
Interview with Josh Denzel - reality TV star

# data[].attributes.subject
Interview with Josh Denzel - reality TV star

# data[].attributes.body
-Age-28
-Job- Presenter / Host
-He shops online and when there are discount codes
-His hobbies include ; watching sport, playing sport, cooking, listening to music / live music, comedy clubs / stand up and boxing.
-shared apartment in the city

# data[].attributes.body
-Consumer on limited income will be concerned with the functional aspects like warmth, of low cost clothing before matters of social acceptance / status ( basic needs / survival).

-Esteem needs are the need for the consumer to think well of themselves and have others hold a high opinion of them.

-Self actualisation, according to Maslow was the desire to grow psychologically - enabling creativity and a sense of achievement.

-Clothing can satisfy needs at nearly every level.

Physiological : clothing covers the body and protects us from the elements.
Safety : clothing sold must pass flammability standards.
Social : fashion is something to share with and be seen in by others.
Esteem : wearing the latest fashion makes us feel good and give us a sense of status.
Self actualisation : my clothes are an expression of the total me.

# data[].attributes.body
If a Millennial comes to work for you, it’s likely it will have nothing to do with meeting their basic needs, nor their security, nor their need for family, friendship or sexual intimacy. Someone who’s been raised with the bottom three rungs of Maslow’s having been met are looking for Esteem and Self-Actualization.

That spells trouble for a lot of organizations with poor middle management and even poorer infrastructure and systems designed to grow and retain employees.

The number one thing that young professionals are looking for is professional development and growth. They don’t want to feel that spending years with your organization, even while getting a decent sized paycheck, will hinder their career later down the road.

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http://img01.thedrum.com/s3fs-public/bauer_infographic_link.pdf

The infographic below represents how the five millennial personas uncovered by Bauer’s landmark research project, Bauer Knowledge: The Millennials Chapter, map onto Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

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Maslow’s theory states that people have five sets of needs that are fulfilled in a particular order: physiological; safety; love and belonging; esteem; and self-actualisation.

In the Bauer Knowledge initiative, millennials involved in the project were encouraged to create their own hierarchy of needs based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as a framework.

Using TGI Clickstream, Bauer segmented the 16-34-year-old audience attitudinally and discovered five very distinct segments: The Influencers, The Adopters, The Apprentices, The Entertained and The Contented.

The different segments generated distinct hierarchy pyramids. For instance, for The Influencers, their physiological needs include the basics, such as food and water, but also their smartphone or laptop as it is the main way they access the internet and feel  they feel ‘lost without it’.

For The Apprentices, self-actualization is all about just being happy with what they have got at that moment in time, not necessarily because of the objects they have in their life.

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Bauer Media has developed a version of Maslow's hierarchy of needs pyramid theory based on millennial behaviour.

The new version of the hugely influential 1943 theory of human motivations has been created with the input of over 3,000 millennials.

It provides illuminating insights for any brand wishing to engage the one-in-four UK adults that now make up the Millennial Generation.

The infographic below represents how the five millennial personas uncovered by Bauer's landmark research project, Bauer Knowledge: The Millennials Chapter, map onto Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Maslow's theory states that people have five sets of needs that are fulfilled in a particular order: physiological; safety; love and belonging; esteem; and self-actualisation.

In the Bauer Knowledge initiative, millennials involved in the project were encouraged to create their own hierarchy of needs based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs as a framework.

Using TGI Clickstream, Bauer segmented the 16-34-year-old audience attitudinally and discovered five very distinct segments: The Influencers, The Adopters, The Apprentices, The Entertained and The Contented.

The different segments generated distinct hierarchy pyramids. For instance, for The Influencers, their physiological needs include the basics, such as food and water, but also their smartphone or laptop as it is the main way they access the internet and feel they feel 'lost without it'.

For The Apprentices, self-actualization is all about just being happy with what they have got at that moment in time, not necessarily because of the objects they have in their life.

The full five new hierarchy of need pyramids infographic is below. Click to download.

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Bauer Media Launches the Millennial Hierarchy of Needs | The Drum

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Bauer Media has developed a version of Maslow's hierarchy of needs pyramid theory based on millennial behaviour. The new version of the hugely influential 1943 theory of human motivations has been created with the input of over 3,000 millennials. It provides illuminating insights for any brand wishing to engage the one-in-four UK adults that now make up the Millennial Generation.

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Gender - Male & Female
Age - The generation of people born during the 1980s and early 1990s. early 20's to mid - late 30's.

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Which of your friends needs to learn this term?

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Definition of Generation Y: The generation of people born during the 1980s and early 1990s. The name is based on Generation X, the generation that preceded them. Members of Generation Y are often referred to as "echo boomers" ...

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The average Millennials salary is $35,592.

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Think increasing college loan debt, lingering effects of the Great Recession, higher housing costs, and an overly-competitive job market, just to name a few.

Here's a rundown of the average Millennial's financial situation, how much the average Millennial makes, and how they stack up to other generations.

Millennials are the largest living generation, (even surpassing Baby Boomers), with a population of 79.8 million in 2016, according to Pew Research. This generation is widely described as those between 18 and 35.

Millennials are a unique generation in that they grew up during a time of rapid-fire technology. Social media, smartphones, and unfettered access to the internet are all a given for this generation.

There's a big difference between the younger end of the set (those who grew up with social media and smartphones) and the older Millennial set, also called "Old Millennials."

Earning Potential

The charts below illustrate that, while millennials dominate the full-time workforce today, they're making significantly less than their predecessors.

How Millennials Can Improve Their Finances

There are several factors stacked against the average millennial, but there are a few things they can do to help build net worth.

If student loans are the main issue, setting up a payment plan based on current income is another option. Or applying for student loan forgiveness, which is available in many fields, like public service.

Speaking of investing, it's one of the best things millennials can do to improve their finances and build net worth.

Consider hiring a financial advisor to help set financial goals and determine the best investing options. Or, use a robo-investing app like Acorns, Ellevest, or Betterment.

Investing early is key, and will allow for greater earnings in the future, thanks to compounding interest.

While millennials may not earn as much as the generations before them and may have more student loan debt, there are a few action items they can take to ensure a better--and more financially secure--future.

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How Much Does the Average Millennial Make?

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Think increasing college loan debt, lingering effects of the Great Recession, higher housing costs, and an overly-competitive job market, just to name a few. Here's a rundown of the average Millennial's financial situation, how much the average Millennial makes, and how they stack up to other generations.

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https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-the-average-millennial-income-4171296

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https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-the-average-millennial-income-4171296

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https://news.gallup.com/poll/191462/gallup-analysis-millennials-marriage-family.aspx

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https://news.gallup.com/poll/191462/gallup-analysis-millennials-marriage-family.aspx

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https://news.gallup.com/poll/191462/gallup-analysis-millennials-marriage-family.aspx

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Millennials are in no rush to get married.
Millennials are intent on having children.

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Story Highlights

59% of millennials are single and have never been married

60% of millennials do not have any children under 18 in their household

PRINCETON, N.J. -- There are roughly 73 million millennials in the U.S. -- those born between 1980 and 1996 -- and to marketers, these consumers represent a huge economic opportunity. To some, millennials are hyperconnected and technology-savvy social media mavens. To others, millennials are the new generation of highly indebted narcissists forever credited with coining the term "selfie."

Marketers and business leaders have a keen interest in understanding how members of the millennial generation -- now the largest generation after eclipsing the baby boomers -- differ from members of other generations. Understanding millennials' attitudes, preferences and behaviors is critical because they have significant implications for many aspects of U.S. social and economic life.

The Gallup Daily tracking survey reveals that members of the millennials do in fact differ from other generations in some important ways -- ways that millennials' relative youth alone does not explain. We would expect young people to differ from those who are older, as they always have, just as we would expect seniors to differ from those who are younger. These differences that the data reveal represent a departure from the patterns of older generations at the same points in their lives. Large sample sizes -- approximately 175,000 per year -- allow Gallup to examine extensive demographic breaks and crosstabulations of the daily measures. The 2014 Gallup Daily tracking data are one of the only sources to capture views of the entire span of the millennial generation, because the last of the millennials turned 18 in 2014.
Millennials Are in No Rush to Marry
Contrary to what we would expect, given normal demographic patterns of adolescents' movement into early adulthood and family formation, the data show that significantly more millennials are currently single/never married than was true for those in older generations, and considerably more are in domestic partnerships. Specifically, more than half of all millennials (59%) have never married, and 9% are in domestic partnerships. Gallup has noted a trend toward fewer young adults being married in recent years.

In the 2014 Gallup Daily tracking data, just 27% of millennials were married. According to historical U.S. Census Bureau data, 36% of Generation Xers, 48% of baby boomers and 65% of traditionalists were married when they were the age that millennials are now. For millennials currently aged 18 to 30, just 20% are married, compared with nearly 60% of 18- to 30-year-olds in 1962, according to the U.S. Census. When Gen Xers were the same age, 32% were married; for baby boomers, it was more than 40%.

Millennials are clearly delaying marriage longer than any generation before them, in spite of evidence suggesting that many millennials intend to marry at some point. For example, a 2013 Gallup poll found that 86% of single/never married Americans aged 18 to 34 (roughly equivalent to the millennial generation) wanted to get married someday.

The percentage of single-adult households for millennials (18%) is no different from that of Gen Xers (16%) or baby boomers (19%), while the percentage of single-adult traditionalist households (31%) is larger for obvious mortality reasons. The percentage of current two-adult millennial households (46%) is significantly lower than that of Gen Xers (57%), baby boomers (52%) or traditionalists (55%). Significantly more millennials are currently in multi-adult households of three or more (36%) than is true for any other generation, suggesting that these reflect some form of communal living arrangement (77% of millennials in multi-adult households of three or more are single/never married, while 12% are married).
Millennials Are Intent on Having Children
The key point, however, is this: There doesn't appear to be any evidence that millennials -- both married and single/never married -- are putting off having children. Even among the small percentage (2%) of married 18-year-old millennials, less than half (44%) have no children, and the percentage decreases with age to just 17% at age 34. And while few single 18-year-old millennials have children (4%), that percentage rises to almost half by age 34. In other words, almost half of the oldest millennials who have never married nonetheless have children. In 2000, the comparable number for Gen Xers aged 30 to 34 was just 30%.

In fact, public perceptions of the moral acceptability of having children out of wedlock have increased dramatically over the past decade and a half. Gallup poll data show that the percentage who say this is morally acceptable currently stands at an all-time high (62% overall and 68% among millennials). As recently as 2002, just 45% overall said it was morally acceptable to have a child out of wedlock, while 50% said it was morally wrong.

In a 2013 Gallup poll, 87% of adults between 18 and 40 who did not yet have children said they wanted them someday. The current data suggest that for millennials, "having children someday" does not necessarily depend on being married. But when combined with the observation that the substantial majority of single/never married 18- to 34-year-olds would like to get married someday, it is possible that more single/never married millennials with children will ultimately get married in the months and years ahead. It is also possible that more millennials -- married or not -- will have children in the near future.
Implications
Most millennials have not yet married, and they are waiting longer to marry. For 34-year-olds, just over half (56%) are married, and of these, 83% have children. But a substantial number (46%) of those who have never been married and are well into their 30s have children. This may represent a seismic shift in the connection between marriage and child rearing because as recently as 2000, the comparable percentage of single/never married 30- to 34-year-olds with children was just 30%.

More millennials currently live in multi-adult households than is true for other generations, and the data suggest that unlike those older generations, these multi-adult households consist primarily of single millennials living collectively. Domestic partnerships -- not common in general -- are much more common among millennials, and millennials are more than twice as likely as older Americans to identify as LGBT. No doubt this is a reflection of changing social standards within the larger American community. These last observations about marriage, family and sexuality tend to point to a generation that is beginning to rethink and reconstruct social norms to better fit its wants and needs, throwing off convention when it no longer serves a compelling purpose.

The face of the American family has profoundly changed during the past two generations, with millennials picking up where Gen Xers left off. Along with these changes, or perhaps as a result of them, social norms within American society have shifted -- and with them, nearly every aspect of our daily lives. It would be wise for marketers and business leaders to stay abreast of the kinds of changes millennials bring to American society, because understanding how this large group of consumers approaches the world -- and the marketplace -- could be lucrative. Getting it wrong, however, could hamstring and hobble a company for decades.

Download Gallup's latest report, How Millennials Want to Work and Live, to get further insight into what millennials really want from a job, manager and company, and what organizations can do to become this generation's employer of choice.

These data are available in Gallup Analytics.

Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60% cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents, with additional minimum quotas by time zone within region. Landline and cellular telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods.

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Gallup Analysis: Millennials, Marriage and Family

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Story Highlights 59% of millennials are single and have never been married 60% of millennials do not have any children under 18 in their household PRINCETON, N.J. -- There are roughly 73 million millennials in the U.S. -- those born between 1980 and 1996 -- and to marketers, these consumers represent a huge economic opportunity.

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Including brands such as - Amazon, Coach, Michael Kors, ASOS, Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Mango etc

Social Media - Instagram, Facebook, Whatsapp, Linked In

Hobbies - Baking, Gardening, Wine Tasting, Gym, Yoga, Dog Walking, Reading

Living - Small houses, maybe a young baby, boyfriend / girlfriend, a few close friends ( normally work friends or uni / school friends), Veganism and Environmentally friendly.

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A lot of Millennials use Facebook daily to stay in touch with their family and friends however, Millennials have started to move over to Instagram now.
They use Linked In for work social media.

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'Michael Kors hope to win customers with experiences'

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'Michael Kors hope to win customers with experiences'

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Michael Kors want their customers to feel as if they're being personally dressed even if they aren't.

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Michael Kors store | Source: Shutterstock

By Bloomberg November 1, 2017 14:10

NEW YORK, United States - Michael Kors Holdings Ltd.'s turnaround plan hinges on making its customers feel like they're being personally dressed by its namesake designer - even if they aren't.

The company is revamping stores and training sales associates to deliver personalized style ideas that are handed down from Kors. Example: how to match a black-sequined-and-cheetah-print dress to a pair of calf leather sandals and a pouch for a cocktail party.

The goal is to win back customers with experiences - the current holy grail of brick-and-mortar chains. With Amazon.com Inc. and other e-commerce players encroaching on apparel, retail brands are scrambling to offer something that you can't get with a mouse click.

"When each customer leaves, we want them to feel like they were styled by Michael himself," Chief Executive Officer John Idol said in an interview over email.

The Michael Kors brand needs a boost after an overly aggressive expansion led to years of flagging sales, heavy markdowns and slowing customer traffic. The company has shuttered stores to help give the business a more exclusive feel, but now it needs to show it can grow again.

In addition to redesigning its shops and increasing its product catalog, it's relying less on department stores - a channel that's marred the brand by associating it with deep discounts. And Michael Kors plans to add the personalized recommendations to a new mobile app, which will be offered next year.

"Personal service is an absolute need right now," said Pamela Danziger, founder of luxury researcher Unity Marketing Inc. Style advice and makeover tips in stores "could be a real powerful strategy and make the Michael Kors store a destination," she said, noting cosmetics retailer Sephora has used a similar recipe for success.

Investor interest seems to be rising: The value of Michael Kors shares has increased by about a third since the beginning of August. They surged 22 percent to $45.25 on Aug. 8 after the company reported profit and sales that exceeded estimates - largely by introducing new products and curtailing discounts.

The shares rose as much as 1.2 percent to $49.40 on Wednesday.

The company wants to cut revenue generated from retail partners to 30 percent from about 40 percent in the last fiscal year. To achieve this goal, Michael Kors is selling less to department stores that have been battered by falling foot traffic and working to draw shoppers into its own stores. To entice them to pay full price, it has started offering a wider range of products and has stepped up advertising for new products such as Mercer and Italian-made Bancroft handbags.
Glitzier Stores
Michael Kors also hopes glitzier stores will attract customers, and is using one located in an upscale mall in Short Hills, New Jersey as the template to follow. The 3,000 square-foot store recorded "strong" double-digit growth within three months of reopening, Idol said.

This bright spot amid a wider panorama of declining same-store sales has given the company confidence the format can be replicated as it revamps more than 100 stores over the next two years. Idol said the layout allows for quick reconfiguration so the stores can adapt to customers' preferences. Additionally, as many as 125 underperforming stores will be closed.

The company also wants to diversify its revenue stream by selling fewer handbags - instead it will offer more clothing for both women and men, and smartwatches and shoes. The latter will be boosted by the company's recent purchase of shoemaker Jimmy Choo for about $1.35 billion, including refinanced debt. Demand for handbags, which make up about 70 percent of Michael Kors' revenue, has waned in recent years.

Competitor Inc. has taken a similar track as it attempts to provide a wider range of goods, even changing its name to Inc. to reflect its move to build a multibrand conglomerate.
Fashion Makeover
But Michael Kors has to prove it can continue to cut down on bargain sales and navigate a rise in competition that has eaten into margins, said Arun Daniel, a senior portfolio manager at investment boutique J O Hambro Capital Management. More clarity is needed on its progress when it announces its second-quarter results on Nov. 6 as well as its performance in the holiday season, he said.

"That will be the true test for them. The Street has given them the benefit of the doubt," he said. "For the stock to move to the next level, they are going to have to beat all the metrics."

Danziger agreed that Michael Kors needs to show that the measures it's touting are connecting with consumers if it wants to return to growth.

"The jury is out whether it's enough to save Michael Kors," Danziger said. "It has a following. It's not dead, but it's not growing."
By Stephanie Wong; editors: Nick Turner, Jonathan Roeder and Lisa Wolfson.

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Michael Kors Hopes to Win Customers with Experiences

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Michael Kors store | Source: Shutterstock By Bloomberg November 1, 2017 14:10 NEW YORK, United States - Michael Kors Holdings Ltd.'s turnaround plan hinges on making its customers feel like they're being personally dressed by its namesake designer - even if they aren't.

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GEN Y are tech savvy.

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Millennials stand out for their technology use

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Millennials stand out for their technology use

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More than nine-in-ten Millennials (93% of those who turn ages 23 to 38 this year) own smartphones,

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Millennials have often led older Americans in their adoption and use of technology, and this largely holds true today. But there has been significant growth in tech adoption since 2012 among older generations - particularly Gen Xers and Baby Boomers.

More than nine-in-ten Millennials (93% of those who turn ages 23 to 38 this year) own smartphones, compared with 90% of Gen Xers (those ages 39 to 54 this year), 68% of Baby Boomers (ages 55 to 73) and 40% of the Silent Generation (74 to 91), according to a new analysis of a Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted in early 2019.

Similarly, the vast majority of Millennials (86%) say they use social media, compared with smaller shares among older generations. While the share of Millennials who say they use social media has remained largely unchanged since 2012, the shares of Gen Xers, Boomers and Silents who use social media all have increased by at least 10 percentage points during this period.

Unlike with smartphones and social media, tablet ownership is now comparable across most generations. Today, 55% of Gen Xers, 53% of Millennials and 52% of Boomers say they own tablets. A smaller share of Silents (33%) report owning tablets.

Those in the Silent Generation also lag when it comes to having broadband service at home. Whereas most Millennials (78%), Gen Xers (78%) and Boomers (74%) say they subscribe to home broadband, fewer than half of Silents (45%) say this.

In terms of specific platforms, around three-fourths or more of both Millennials and Gen Xers now report using Facebook (84% vs. 74%, respectively). Boomers and Silents have both increased their Facebook use by double digits since 2015. In fact, the share of Silents using Facebook has nearly doubled in the past four years, from 22% to 37%.

Almost all Millennials (nearly 100%) now say they use the internet, and 19% of them are smartphone-only internet users - that is, they own a smartphone but do not have broadband internet service at home. Large shares of Gen Xers (91%) and Boomers (85%) use the internet, compared with just 62% of Silents. When it comes to smartphone-only internet users, 17% of Gen Xers go online primarily via a smartphone, as do 11% of Boomers and 15% of Silents.

Baby Boomers continue to trail both Gen Xers and Millennials on most measures of technology adoption, but adoption rates for this group have been growing rapidly in recent years. For example, Boomers are now far more likely to own a smartphone than they were in 2011 (68% now vs. 25% then).

Although Boomers have been adopting a range of technologies in recent years, members of the Silent Generation are less likely to have done so. Four-in-ten Silents (40%) report owning a smartphone, and fewer (33%) indicate that they have a tablet computer or use social media (28%). Previous Pew Research Center surveys have found that the oldest adults face some unique barriers to adopting new technologies - from a lack of confidence in using new technologies to physical challenges manipulating various devices.

While generations differ in their use of various technologies, a 2018 Center survey found that younger internet users also were more likely than older Americans who use the internet to say the internet has had a positive impact on society: 73% of online Millennials said the internet has been mostly a good thing for society, compared with 63% of users in the Silent Generation.

Americans were also less positive about the societal impact of the internet last year than four years earlier. Gen Xers' views of the internet's impact on society declined the most in that time. In 2014, 80% of Gen X internet users believed the internet had been mostly a positive thing for society, a number that dropped to 69% in 2018. Millennial and Silent internet users were also somewhat less optimistic last year than in 2014.

Note: This is an update of a post originally published May 2, 2018, and written by Jingjing Jiang, a former research analyst focusing on internet and technology. See full topline results and methodology here.

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Millennials stand out for their technology use, but older generations also embrace digital life

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Millennials have often led older Americans in their adoption and use of technology. But there has been significant growth in tech adoption among older generations.

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Want to introduce "personal dressing"

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Michael Kors store | Source: Shutterstock

By Bloomberg November 1, 2017 14:10

NEW YORK, United States - Michael Kors Holdings Ltd.'s turnaround plan hinges on making its customers feel like they're being personally dressed by its namesake designer - even if they aren't.

The company is revamping stores and training sales associates to deliver personalized style ideas that are handed down from Kors. Example: how to match a black-sequined-and-cheetah-print dress to a pair of calf leather sandals and a pouch for a cocktail party.

The goal is to win back customers with experiences - the current holy grail of brick-and-mortar chains. With Amazon.com Inc. and other e-commerce players encroaching on apparel, retail brands are scrambling to offer something that you can't get with a mouse click.

"When each customer leaves, we want them to feel like they were styled by Michael himself," Chief Executive Officer John Idol said in an interview over email.

The Michael Kors brand needs a boost after an overly aggressive expansion led to years of flagging sales, heavy markdowns and slowing customer traffic. The company has shuttered stores to help give the business a more exclusive feel, but now it needs to show it can grow again.

In addition to redesigning its shops and increasing its product catalog, it's relying less on department stores - a channel that's marred the brand by associating it with deep discounts. And Michael Kors plans to add the personalized recommendations to a new mobile app, which will be offered next year.

"Personal service is an absolute need right now," said Pamela Danziger, founder of luxury researcher Unity Marketing Inc. Style advice and makeover tips in stores "could be a real powerful strategy and make the Michael Kors store a destination," she said, noting cosmetics retailer Sephora has used a similar recipe for success.

Investor interest seems to be rising: The value of Michael Kors shares has increased by about a third since the beginning of August. They surged 22 percent to $45.25 on Aug. 8 after the company reported profit and sales that exceeded estimates - largely by introducing new products and curtailing discounts.

The shares rose as much as 1.2 percent to $49.40 on Wednesday.

The company wants to cut revenue generated from retail partners to 30 percent from about 40 percent in the last fiscal year. To achieve this goal, Michael Kors is selling less to department stores that have been battered by falling foot traffic and working to draw shoppers into its own stores. To entice them to pay full price, it has started offering a wider range of products and has stepped up advertising for new products such as Mercer and Italian-made Bancroft handbags.
Glitzier Stores
Michael Kors also hopes glitzier stores will attract customers, and is using one located in an upscale mall in Short Hills, New Jersey as the template to follow. The 3,000 square-foot store recorded "strong" double-digit growth within three months of reopening, Idol said.

This bright spot amid a wider panorama of declining same-store sales has given the company confidence the format can be replicated as it revamps more than 100 stores over the next two years. Idol said the layout allows for quick reconfiguration so the stores can adapt to customers' preferences. Additionally, as many as 125 underperforming stores will be closed.

The company also wants to diversify its revenue stream by selling fewer handbags - instead it will offer more clothing for both women and men, and smartwatches and shoes. The latter will be boosted by the company's recent purchase of shoemaker Jimmy Choo for about $1.35 billion, including refinanced debt. Demand for handbags, which make up about 70 percent of Michael Kors' revenue, has waned in recent years.

Competitor Inc. has taken a similar track as it attempts to provide a wider range of goods, even changing its name to Inc. to reflect its move to build a multibrand conglomerate.
Fashion Makeover
But Michael Kors has to prove it can continue to cut down on bargain sales and navigate a rise in competition that has eaten into margins, said Arun Daniel, a senior portfolio manager at investment boutique J O Hambro Capital Management. More clarity is needed on its progress when it announces its second-quarter results on Nov. 6 as well as its performance in the holiday season, he said.

"That will be the true test for them. The Street has given them the benefit of the doubt," he said. "For the stock to move to the next level, they are going to have to beat all the metrics."

Danziger agreed that Michael Kors needs to show that the measures it's touting are connecting with consumers if it wants to return to growth.

"The jury is out whether it's enough to save Michael Kors," Danziger said. "It has a following. It's not dead, but it's not growing."
By Stephanie Wong; editors: Nick Turner, Jonathan Roeder and Lisa Wolfson.

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Michael Kors Hopes to Win Customers with Experiences

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Michael Kors store | Source: Shutterstock By Bloomberg November 1, 2017 14:10 NEW YORK, United States - Michael Kors Holdings Ltd.'s turnaround plan hinges on making its customers feel like they're being personally dressed by its namesake designer - even if they aren't.

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Michael Kors and how they capture the Millennial customer

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Michael Kors and how they capture the Millennial customer

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What's the story with Kors and Coach?

The question isn't flippant. In a millennial-driven market, stories and experiences drive purchases, and young consumers want to connect with companies that tell compelling narratives. Millennials, who reached adulthood 16 years ago and are now raising families of their own, are the first digitally native generation, but clearly not the last. Therefore, understanding the complex way they interact with the world is critical when it comes to building a brand that will appeal not only to today's omnichannel consumers, but to subsequent generations as well.

Although recent earnings reports from New York-based Coach Inc. and London-based Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. showed both companies exhibiting promising signs of life, the two giants still have trouble gaining traction with millennial consumers. That's in part because millennials don't see a material world so much as a digital one. They value the intangible aspects of brand - how it makes them feel, how it helps them self-define - as much, or more, than the tangible aspects, such as price point and quality.

For companies such as Coach and Kors, which have spent decades establishing luxury bonafides, it's understandable that they'd bristle at the concept of having to reinvent themselves for a generation that values connectivity over ostentation.

Posting Positives

To be fair, both Kors and Coach are on a slight upswing. In January Coach Inc., which declined to comment for this story, reported fiscal net sales of $1.27 billion for the period ended December 26, 2015, compared with $1.22 billion for the same period of the prior year, a 4% increase. However, total North American Coach brand sales decreased 7% for the quarter, a decline that was offset by marginal gains internationally. The company is still profitable, reporting a gross profit of $859 million versus $840 million a year ago.

Michael Kors Holdings Ltd., which also declined to comment for this story, reported earnings last week that were more encouraging. According the earnings call, total revenue increased 6.3% to $1.4 billion from $1.31 billion for third quarter ended December 26, 2015, and gross profit increased 4% to $832 million.

So what's the issue, exactly? According to some analysts, it's all about appearances.

"I don't think of Coach as true luxury product anymore because it doesn't have the cachet as a brand," Ben Smithee, CEO of The Smithee Group, a consumer consultancy specializing in millennial marketing, told Retail Dive. "Luxury is truly about an image. If I took the label off an Hermès belt it would not be worth $1,000. Kors has historically catered to the approachable luxury market, but there's no brand story. And what do they advertise? What is the luxury product on offer? You can get a $150 top at Zara, but the quality might be on par with low-end Kors."

This isn't to say that there aren't positives moving forward for both brands. On the heels of its upbeat earnings report, Coach announced it would be opening a new New York City Fifth Avenue flagship store to coincide with the brand's 75th anniversary. Still, integrating forward momentum into existing brand identity can be challenging, especially for brands with long-established histories.

"Millennials are digital natives, and brands like Michael Kors and Coach are investing strategically in delivering a seamless, blended multichannel shopping experience," Ray Hartjen, director of marketing for RetailNext, told Retail Dive.

Hartjen said that the lion's share of this investing leaned toward digital, and that to date, Michael Kors was seen as a digital strategy leader. However, Hartjen also noted that it was important to enhance brick-and-mortar channels moving forward. This is especially important in light of of razor thin online margins that even Michael Kors CEO John Idol acknowledged affected retailing in general.

"To spur growth, brands like Michael Kors and Coach need to organize their businesses to mirror the circuitous, multichannel journeys their shoppers - particularly millennials - are already undertaking," said Hartjen. "For that, they have to build greater value in the physical channel."

"Millennials don't have to shop in stores. It's paramount for brands to make them want to also shop in stores, and to do that, stores have to be blended with digital channels to form one branded experience."

Why Millennials Matter

For anyone who doubts the importance of gaining ground with millennials, the numbers are telling. According to a U.S. Chamber of Commerce report, millennials wield "$200 billion of direct purchasing power and $500 billion of indirect spending, largely due to the influence on the spending of their mostly baby boomer parents." Add to that influence the growth of the millennial market itself, which is projected to outspend Boomers by 2017, and the fact that mllennials are now becoming parents themselves, and this maturing consumer base becomes difficult to ignore, but almost as difficult to understand.

So what is a millennial customer looking for these days? It is, not surprisingly, complicated.

"Millennials are a tricky segment, and often misunderstood," said Hartjen, who explained that connecting with them involves a holistic approach. Integrated multichannels, differentiation through experience, stories and tangible value are all essential components.

This is where these approachable luxury brands seem to be struggling.

"Coach's brand got all over the place, and they tried to make it cooler and younger and hipper by changing the logo," said Smithee. "But it didn't work. So Coach needs to see what the Coach brand is now, and they need to really connect in the digital space to find out where they are."

Kors has struggled with similar branding issues, and both Coach and Kors have seen stiff competition from much smaller rival Kate Spade & Co., which has posted consistent gains. In November 2015 the company reported an 18.5% North American sales increase in its third quarter.

Of course, Kate Spade, founded in 1993, is a relative teenager of a company compared to Coach, which was founded in 1941, and Kors, which was founded in 1981. Seen in that light, it's perhaps not surprising that Kate Spade is experiencing an adolescent growth spurt while the other two brands are somewhat sluggish.

Smithee sees Michael Kors and Coach struggling in similar ways. Both brands have difficulties reinventing themselves after the market moved away from them. For Coach, Smithee saw the brand falter after it lost its cachet about eight years ago. For Kors, he saw the brand unable to fully recover its appeal after the watch market's decline. Both brands faced a tarnished image, and have not yet been able to polish it.

Contrast that with Kate Spade, which currently has an almost cameleon-like quality to shift with the market. "Kate Spade speaks to the millennial mom," said Smithee. "[It] has cachet as a brand, and it has the right price point. It's approachable luxury."

Beyond Borders

Despite millennial appeal in North America, brands such as Kate Spade will need to find footing internationally in order to be truly competitive with Coach and Kors, whose market caps are currently $10.11 billion and $9.27 billion respectively. Kate Spade has a relatively small market cap of $2.36 billion, and it's worth noting that North American makes up just over 80% of the company's sales.

"Millennial spending in the United States is important, but it's far from the only market opportunity," Hartjen said. "Data shows tremendous opportunity with millennials in China and other Asia Pacific countries, particularly with a fondness and growing appetite to consume luxury goods. Tech is high on their spending lists, but designer clothes and accessories are right up there."

Looking Forward

As encouraging as it was to see Kors and Coach rebound, short-term success in a quickly changing marketplace is not an indicator of long-term viability.

"For brands like Michael Kors and Coach to succeed even mid-term - much less long-term - they have to effectively address the millennial segment," said Hartjen. "Ignoring them, or even not making the segment a priority, dooms any chance at organic growth."

This means Kors, Coach, and brands like them will need to find ways to connect with millennial consumers sooner rather than later. That connection, made of digital filaments that marry tactile product experiences with shareable stories, will add brand value now-and will ultimately become cornerstones of the evolving multichannel marketplace.

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How Michael Kors and Coach can capture the millennial customer

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What's the story with Kors and Coach? The question isn't flippant. In a millennial-driven market, stories and experiences drive purchases, and young consumers want to connect with companies that tell compelling narratives. Millennials, who reached adulthood 16 years ago and are now raising families of their own, are the first digitally native generation, but clearly not the last.

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Michael Kors marketing to online millennials

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Michael Kors marketing to online millennials

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Michael Kors Holdings is tapping into mobile photo-sharing app Snapchat to try to attract more millennial customers.

The luxury brand last month launched a Snapchat profile during New York Fashion Week to give Snapchat users access to behind-the-scenes moments-photos of designers and shots from the front row-during events. Playing up the nature of the photo-sharing social network, the content was visible for only 24 hours.

"We're using the platform as a way to reach a new audience for the brand-with a particular focus on connecting with millennials," says Lisa Pomerantz, the retailer's senior vice president of communications and marketing.

Snapchat is the latest online social medium the retailer has used to connect with consumers. Each social network is different, which means the retailer has to tailor content it shares on each to to match the way consumers use the platform, she says. For instance, on Instagram, a social network for sharing photos and videos, the retailer posts engaging lifestyle images showcasing its products.

Because Instagram doesn't allow text, links and prices in organic posts, the brand late last year rolled out a workaround in an attempt to drive sales. Michael Kors seeks to convince Instagram fans to register for its program, #InstaKors, with an email address. When those fans "like" a Kors photo, the company emails them direct links that can be used to buy items in the photo.

Michael Kors is not yet trying to drive sales via Snapchat, but it might in time, Pomerantz says. "As Snapchat continues to grow and evolve, we believe our strategy will change and evolve as well," she says.

The retailer developed its Snapchat program in-house and is measuring success by tracking photo views and impressions, plus whether the photos help increase overall brand recognition, she says.

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How Michael Kors markets to online millennials

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Michael Kors Holdings is tapping into mobile photo-sharing app Snapchat to try to attract more millennial customers. The luxury brand last month launched a Snapchat profile during New York Fashion Week to give Snapchat users access to behind-the-scenes moments-photos of designers and shots from the front row-during events.

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In a time when customers are demanding more personalization in how they shop and the products they buy, it is luxury brands that have the advantage.

"In general, luxury brands are doing this better. That's the differentiator in luxury," said Anna Jensen, co-founder Snap + Style Business. "High touch, lots of handholding, walking you through the process - that's the just the definition of luxury. What brands that we see are doing well, like Michael Kors, is bringing that extra bit of help while still maintaining a large audience."

Michael Kors has beaten estimates for its earnings in the last two quarters.

But despite luxury's dominance in personalization, any brand can benefit from the deeper and more intimate connection between brand and consumer that this strategy can forge. Jensen's company, Snap + Style Business, has worked with brands both upscale, like Michael Kors, and more mass-oriented, like the Walmart-owned plus-size brand Eloquii, to offer stylists that help those brands' customers pick the right look for them.

In Jensen's view, personalization and the relationship that it can build with customers builds upon itself. Brands offering personalized recommendations or individual styling tips encourage consumers to voluntarily share more data about themselves - such as size, age and even life events like getting married - which brands can then use to further personalize the customer experience.

"Retailers have traditionally bucketed people into a one-size-fits-all situation," said Jensen. "But if retailers can offer a more personalized experience, then people are willing to give personal self-declared data. All of that information is super valuable."

The importance of personalization also extends to products that are Customized for customers
customized for individual consumers. Menswear brand Sene just launched its first custom made-to-order suit line for women last month, after scaling its custom men's clothes for a year and a half and raising $300,000 in funding.

Custom sneakers have been popular over the last decade, with major sneaker brands like Nike, Adidas and Vans all offering their own "design your own sneaker" option on their site. Even retailers have gotten in on the action. This past summer, multi-brand retailer Consortium opened in NYC's Soho neighborhood a pop-up shop of 10 different brands, all of which sold custom-made clothing. According to Consortium's founder Sam Payrovi, customization is something many retailers are missing out on due to its difficulty to execute.

"A store like Nordstrom doesn't have the knowledge to sell a customizable brand," Payrovi told Glossy in July. "Even if they trained their staff on one customizable brand, they'd never be able to do 10, 15 or 20. It would take 15 different tablets, whereas we're aggregating it all onto one platform."

Ultimately the trend toward personalization, like so many other changes in the fashion world, is being driven by the unique tastes and habits of young consumers.

Today, young consumers have more options, more brands and more ways to shop than ever. Amid the sea of things available to them at any given moment, brands have to adapt to how these consumers engage with brands now. Where once the in-store experience was the premier way to personalize each customer's experience, online shopping has overtaken much of the prominence that brick-and-mortar once held. Digital personalization offers a way to bring back some of that more intimate connection between brands and consumers while remaining relevant to how those customers shop. "The days of a consumer wearing one brand head-to-toe are gone," Jensen said. "A lot of the younger generation, they've got a Chanel blazer on with Keds sneakers. That high-low thing is important. But at the end of the day, they are just looking for a great brand experience. They want someone to listen to them, rather than tell them what to do. What we've seen through the brands we work with is that, because they are offering this great guided experience, they are seeing more brand loyalty."

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How brands use personalization to bring a human element to e-commerce - Glossy

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In a time when customers are demanding more personalization in how they shop and the products they buy, it is luxury brands that have the advantage. "In general, luxury brands are doing this better. That's the differentiator in luxury," said Anna Jensen, co-founder Snap + Style Business.

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They are good at connecting with older Millennials but need to work on connection with younger ones.

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A recent study by Hitwise shows that in terms of online market share, Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren and Coach reign supreme as the most searched-for luxury brands (as seen on the left chart below). In fact, the three of them take 63.5% of the share of online visits to the luxury apparel industry. Louise Vuitton, Gucci and Chanel are the next major set of luxury players.

Yet, on the right Hitwise ranks the top luxury brands based on the percentage of their audience that is 18-34 years old. Several luxury brands that fell in the middle of the pack in the rankings on the left, such as Versace, Tom Ford and Yves Saint Laurent, emerge with the largest proportion of Millennials in their audience on the right:
Millennial Market Share, Over Time
How did the top five Millennial luxury brands fare at capturing 18-34 year old luxury consumers over the course of a year in 2016? How did events, sponsorships and social media affect their ability to capture a larger market share of youthful consumers?

As you can see, Gucci captures a huge share of luxury Millennials, simply by way of being an older, larger company. Gucci has always maintained a youthful, edgy approach to high fashion, renowned for their progressive embrace of gender fluidity and androgyny, bold granny chic florals and Instagram-exclusive model interviews. However, it is interesting to note that Gucci struggles maintain their majority Millennial market share during the holiday season.

Meanwhile Versace-the luxury brand with the highest percentage of 18-34 year olds in their audience-saw a record jump in overall Millennial market share around June of 2016. It was during this time that superstars Gigi Hadid and Karlie Kloss modeled for Versace's fall campaign; a few months later the youthful " Versus Versace" line announced their recruitment of Gigi's popstar boyfriend, Zayn Malik.

Versace does an outstanding job leveraging megastars that young people idolize, and connecting with Millennials through racy videos, celebrity-laden social media content and digital experiences; Versace has similar traffic volume to Tom Ford, Yves Saint Laurent and Salvatore Ferragamo, and yet has more Instagram followers than all three combined.
Not All Millennials Are Created Equal
The term "Millennial" encompasses a vast, diverse segment of the population. 18-34 year olds includes young teenagers in high school, as well as 34-year-old career moms. How do these age demographics differ amongst luxury brands?

Versace's audience skews heavily Millennial, but a little on the older side; they are 47% more likely than average population to be older Millennials (aged 25-34), and 32% more likely to be younger Millennials aged 18-24. There are also 23% more likely to be 35-44 year olds, which means Versace engages younger Gen X consumers as well.

Meanwhile, although their Millennial index is not as high as Versace's, Gucci skews youngest first. The Gucci audience is most likely to be 18-24 years old, followed by 24-35 year olds and a very small over-index for 35-44 year olds. The greatest segment by far is 18-24 year old women-they are 58% more likely than the average consumer to visit Gucci.com.
Compare the above to Michael Kors, the largest luxury brand with nearly a quarter of the entire digital luxury market share. Michael Kors is doing well with older Millennials, but noticeably failing to reach 18-24 year olds. Young Millennials are less likely to engage with Michael Kors than senior citizens are, which does not bode well for the future of their brand.

Obviously, this Millennial 'lag' has not caught up with brands like Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren or Coach quite yet; their share of 18-24 year olds may be relatively small, but their market share still looms very large within the luxury industry.

And yet, there are hints that edgier, more Instagram-savvy luxury brands may be capturing the attention of the next generation of luxury shoppers. The age of the luxury brand appears to be irrelevant; Michael Kors has only been around since the 80's yet appears to have stagnated its hold on young consumers, while Gucci has been around for almost a century but manages to reinvent itself by pushing the boundaries of experimental, unapologetic fashion and modern marketing.

The fact is, Millennials care more about what luxury goods say about them than the luxury goods themselves. Luxury brands are about making a statement, creating an experience, building social capital and making an emotional connection to celebrities who lead incredible lives," says Ms Bailis in summary. "To buy a Versace dress that Gigi Hadid wore is to feel part of her world, connected to something more glamorous, opulent and beautiful than ordinary life (and of course, to capture your abundance on social media for all your friends to see).
Source: Data pulled using Hitwise's AudienceView tool, based on visitors to top luxury brand websites. Top luxury brand visit share and Millennial visit share lists pulled over the month of December, 2016. Millennial visit share graph charted over the year of 2016. Age demographics pulled over a 4-week period ending 2/18/2017.

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Which brands are reaching luxury millennial shoppers online?

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A recent study by Hitwise shows that in terms of online market share, Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren and Coach reign supreme as the most searched-for luxury brands (as seen on the left chart below). In fact, the three of them take 63.5% of the share of online visits to the luxury apparel industry.

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EDITED - reasons why using Instagram would help to generate sales

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Who are they?

Millennials are currently aged 20-35, or born between 1980 and the end of 1994 (with some more generous definitions taking in those born up to 2000). They also get called Generation Y, because they follow on from Generation X (born 1965-1979), and other, less flattering names.

What do others think of them?

Type "Generation Y are" into your search bar and Google suggests the following ends to your query: "generation y are lazy", "idiots" and "unhappy".

Millennials on their critics: 'I'm offended' - video Guardian

Though to be fair Google autocompletes a search on baby boomers (born 1946-1964) in similarly unflattering ways, offering: "baby boomers are to blame", "selfish", "the worst generation" and "entitled". Gen X fare better.

Millennials are accused of being lazy, self-involved, cosseted, politically apathetic narcissists, who aren't able to function without a smartphone and who live in a state of perpetual adolescence, incapable of commitment.

One commentator has called them "Generation Y-ny [whiny]", another common epithet is Generation Me, though Time magazine didn't think this quite captured the self-obsession of the generation and beefed it up to Generation Me, Me, Me as the headline of their feature on them.

By other accounts, they are a generation marked by creativity, flexibility, open-mindedness, a strong sense of social responsibility and concern for the environment. But that makes for less interesting headlines.

What do they think of themselves?

Perhaps because they are such a maligned bunch, millennials tend to have a much more negative self-image than other generations do. "Self absorbed" was how 59% of millennials described their own generation and 49% said they were "wasteful", compared with about 30% of Gen X-ers and 20% of baby boomers who were willing to ascribe these terms to their generation.

So pervasive is their negative view of themselves that many in Generation Y don't want to be identified as such. Nearly two-thirds don't consider themselves to belong to that generation, though this might partly be because of a confusion of categories, with 33% not realising they were millennials and believing instead that they belonged to Generation X.

What are their issues?

Spanning 15 years, different social classes, cultures and continents, it is ridiculous to imagine that millennials have a unified identity. In the UK, there are 13.8 million millennials, and a 20-year-old in Ipswich is no doubt facing vastly different issues to a 35-year-old in Glasgow, and that's without even looking beyond the borders of the UK.

As one Guardian reader wrote to us when asked to describe the main issues facing Gen Y in his country: "You want me to sum up the main issues facing an entire generation in an entire country? That sounds less scientific than a fucking horoscope, you mad bastards." Fair point.

But there are broader economic and political issues that have unified the generation in some ways. Many have graduated into a severe economic recession, they were the guinea pigs of extraordinary technological change, and have spent their formative years living under the pall of terrorism.

Readers also wrote to tell us about the lack of opportunities in Mexico, socio-political turmoil in Romania, political disenfranchisement in the Philippines and unemployment levels in Spain, so high that millennials feel lucky to have a job earning as little as €600 (£465) a month. In the US they are crippled by debt and stagnant wages, in the UK they have been hit with high house prices, which have locked them out of home ownership and into extortionate, dismal rental arrangements.

Throughout the Gen Y series we will be hearing some of these stories, about the issues millennials face, as well as examining exclusive data which tells us some things about this generation and how it compares to those that came before. The key finding? They are not doing well. They are, as Guardian journalist Shiv Malik wrote, the Jilted Generation, who are set to be the first generation to do worse than its parents as far back as data goes.

Gen Y becoming parents

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Generation Y: a guide to a much-maligned demographic

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Tech-savvy? Narcissistic? Open-minded? What does being a millennial really mean?

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Instagram is one step closer to becoming easily shoppable. Today, Michael Kors debuted #InstaKors, making their Instagram shoppable to followers. After signing up on michaelkors.com, with an email address and your Instagram handle, users can then shop the brand's Instagram. In order to turn the cult-favorite app e-commerce, users have to double click an Instagram with the #InstaKors hashtag and an email will be sent through with the direct shopping link featured in the photo.

Michael Kors spoke out about the brand's latest foray into the tech world, "I've said it before, but we really do live in a selfie world," says Michael Kors. "Everyone is on Instagram. It's inspirational, aspirational, and now, with #InstaKors, it's attainable. If fashion is a reflection of the world we live in, Instagram is the three-way mirror."

Although #InstaKors still won't be a one-click shopping feature on Instagram, it will be an effective way to get ahead on all your holiday shopping while scrolling your Instagram feed. Those likes can now serve a higher purpose.

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Instagram is one step closer to becoming easily shoppable. Today, Michael Kors debuted #InstaKors, making their Instagram shoppable to followers. After signing up on michaelkors.com, with an email address and your Instagram handle, users can then shop the brand's Instagram.

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On Friday, Michael Kors was met with a resounding chorus of boos from Instagram users after the fashion designer ran the first advertisement on Facebook's social photo-sharing app.

But while people on the internet are bound to hate pretty much every new feature a social media brand rolls out, it turns out the ad likely accomplished everything Michael Kors hoped it would.

According to the blog of Instagram marketing analytics platform Nitrogram, Michael Kors gained nearly 34,000 new followers in the 18 hours following its controversial sponsored photo. To put that figure in perspective, Nitrogram says Michael Kors added nearly 16 times as many followers with its sponsored post as it has usually added with non-sponsored posts.

The sponsored posts increase viewership by pushing them to users who do not already follow the @michaelkors Instagram account, which now has more than 1.3 million followers.

And in spite of the negativity aimed at Michael Kors by anti-advertising Instagram users, the post itself received almost four times as many likes as the average Michael Kors Instagram post.

The fate of Instagram ads, of course, will be borne out over time. For instance, it's possible that Michael Kors was able to gain an additional audience of people who were curious to see what an Instagram ad looked like, a novelty that will wear off for advertisers who make sponsored posts in the future.

As Nitrogram points out, it's also unclear whether the people who saw the ad were a targeted demographic likely to purchase Michael Kors products in the future.

This piece of information, along with the price Michael Kors paid for the ad, will help determine whether running ads on Instagram is a viable, cost-efficient play for ad buyers moving forward.

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Michael Kors' Widely Hated Instagram Ad Was Actually A Massive Success

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On Friday, Michael Kors was met with a resounding chorus of boos from Instagram users after the fashion designer ran the first advertisement on Facebook's social photo-sharing app. But while people on the internet are bound to hate pretty much every new feature a social media brand rolls out, it turns out the ad likely accomplished everything Michael Kors hoped it would.

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Consultants like tables, diagrams and charts... Fashion is not a science (some might disagree...) but using this "figure" makes easier to understand and organize something so complex as "needs". Maslow was an American psychologist and was best-known for creating in 1943 the hierarchy of needs, or Maslow's pyramid. As I said, using a pyramid is an easy way to understand something such intangible as human needs, from basic needs to abstract hope.

Does it mean that, if we are hungry and don't find food, we won't be able to dream? Not at all, but I suggest to understand the evolution of societies through this pyramid. From the invention of fire, Homo sapiens started to use heavy clothes made of animal skins and use efficient tools. From then, people, technologies and wars defined what we are today (Jared Diamond would say "Guns, Germs, and Steel"). I would simplify and mention Egypt, Rome, the Middle Ages, Religions, Migrations, Colonialism, the French Revolution, Industrial Revolution, Capitalism... From mass-production to mass-consumption. From Louis XIV, "le Roi Soleil" to the American Way of Life. From Versailles to McDonald's. Fashion is the consequence of refinement. Fashion retail is the business of it.

The late 19th century saw the birth of brands and retailers such as Levi's, Lanvin, Chanel and Harrods. Of course, before that, we had markets and craftsmen selling their goods locally. Nowadays, we have a workforce ready to consume.

"I consume, therefore I am".

And this is where brands create their galaxies. Just a few brands are surviving to the conglomerate era of LVMH, Kering, VF Corporation ...But private, family owned brands still survive because of their history, their stories, their charme.

The pyramid of fashion links to Maslow's needs. At the top of the pyramid, you will find the more intangible and exotic needs and therefore, supreme brand. This is a way to represent the hierarchy of brands according price and quality, but there is room for exceptions. In the internet era, some companies are offering high quality products at very good prices through selling directly to customers, without middlemen. These cost-effective fashion business models will be mentioned in the coming posts.

How did Luxury Fashion Houses reach the Olympus?

Retailers have historically measured growth in terms of the square footage of their store footprint. This means to grow through adding more points of sale: Direct owned stores, franchises, multibrand stores, store-within-store, department stores, wholesale, outlets...But coming back to the pyramid, we can see a clear segmentation of brands, from the "Gods" of the luxury industry (e.g. Hermés) to mass-market fashion retailers that are pushing to cover more than a basic need. This is what Zara is doing thanks to a fast-fashion business orientation, empowered with a best-in-class supply chain. The result is that can react to trends or be "inspired" by the top fashion designer brands (e.g. Gucci and its famous designer Alessandro Michele). Zara can deliver these new products to their more than 2.200 stores in less than 2 weeks.

What are the most important variables that differentiate and rank brands in the pyramid?

* Marketing: The most common tool and an important expense in the P&L of all luxury brands. (i.e. James Bond wears a suit from Tom Ford and the most famous celebrities are luxury fashion ambassadors).

* Flagship Stores: Luxury fashion retailers bet for high street presence. Location is key.

* Architecture/design: retailers are hiring well-known architects to create a special and unique atmosphere in their flagship stores (e.g. David Chipperfield, Renzo Piano, Zaha Hadid, Toyo Ito).

* Temples: By temple I mean the new " museums" of Luxury houses, merging art and grandeur (e.g. La Fondation Louis Vuitton by Frank Gehry)

* Customer Service: Best-in-class exclusive customer service and loyalty programs. (Some brands are doing exclusive sales in flats, just for a few customers. Others are coming to your place in order to provide a "made-to-measure dress or suit"). Read more about Fashion as a Service ( FaaS).

Source: La Fondation Louis Vuitton

* Experience: This concept has evolve because of the internet and brands are trying to offer an excellent customer experience in their stores, on the internet, thru their apps, in every single point of contact. This is why everyone is talking about the importance of Omnichannel. Brands are alive and storytelling it's a must if they want to keep their special approach to their loyal customers.

* Quality: It´s not all about marketing and experience. Quality is still a must in luxury fashion retailers. Customers are looking for handmade items and "Made in" is sacred (above all, Made in Italy and Made in France). This means that luxury retailers still produce most of their collections near shore. Off shore (e.g. China) is used to produce items for the aspirational customer, that is looking for an opening price level. In fact, Luxury retailers have evolved into vertical structured business in order to control the quality across the value chain. From fabric to retailing.

* Exclusivity: Uniqueness is given because of scarcity. This applies to raw materials, (vicugna, the South American camelids that give some of the finest fibers in the world, at a diameter of 12 μm), skilled handmade labor or type (e.g. customization) and production quantity (e.g. Hermés Birkin bag waiting list).

* Designers: Designers are the gods of the industry, with the permission of CEO that understand and make the business "possible". A designer can destroy or honor a brand. See the case of Moschino revival with Jeremy Scott.

Source: montaignestyle.com

* DNA: The fashion industry has something special compared to the rest of industries and this is DNA, roots and the history of their founders. Most of them are centenary, and they keep giving the essence of their founders. All have evolved and adapt to changes, as Darwin would suggest, but all are respectful with their values.

Top Luxury Fashion retailers from the pyramid - Update Pyramid (December 2020)

Is this pyramid immutable?

No. Brands evolve and consumers also. A wrong distribution strategy can have a negative effect on brand perception. This is the case of Ralph Lauren or Michael Kors, two premium brands that are struggling to compete in the luxury market because they are betting to every channel (wholesale, outlets, online...) and they are losing pricing control. When you are selling the same item in different channels, and price is different, customers will react. And Luxury is about uniqueness and if everyone has the same bag, it no longer becomes special. Brand positioning is flexible and to connect to new generations, to have a consistent distribution strategy and to deliver a unique and authentic experience are some of the key elements in order to succeed in the long term.

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The Fashion Retailer Maslow, evolution and Luxury Fashion

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Consultants like tables, diagrams and charts... Fashion is not a science (some might disagree...) but using this "figure" makes easier to understand and organize something so complex as "needs". Maslow was an American psychologist and was best-known for creating in 1943 the hierarchy of needs, or Maslow's pyramid.

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Michael Kors has certainly enjoyed its time in the limelight. Filling a gap in the market, the brand appealed to millions of consumers around the world who were ready to invest in luxury brands, but not quite able to afford their high prices. But a shadow over the company has been spreading as the brand's popularity in its home market of the US continues to wane. Some say that the brand has lost its once shiny luster and consumer interest in Michael Kors is fading, causing comparable sales to decline and its share price to slip. These issues, coupled with an aggressive expansion plan that was set in motion when the company went public in 2011, means that Michael Kors is currently expanding at a faster rate than it's business actually growing. With supply from the brand being larger than consumer demand, FashionUnited takes a closer look at the reasons behind these issues and how Michael Kors can turn things around.

Issues faced at MK: Popularity & Excess Stock

One of the issues linked to Michael Kors current woes could be tied in with what made it so popular in the first place: it's accessible product offering. Over the years, the brand has succeed in creating a very ubiquitous product assortment, with focus on its handbags in particular, which are now sold all over the world following the brand's expansion plan. Although this undoubtedly led to Michael Kors popularity, it has also lead to the consumers waning interest in the brand. How? Once seen as a symbol of status across the globe, interest in owning the 'it' luxury handbag is now dying.

According to a recent study from Goldman Sachs and Teen Vogue, many brands linked to the accessible luxury handbag market are "falling flat," as younger consumers favour smaller, less expensive handbags that are more versatile. This means that the once praised 'it' tote bag from Michael Kors is no longer seen as 'new' and 'hip' anymore amongst consumers - especially now shoppers everywhere have some version of the once highly coveted handbag and have one sitting in their wardrobes. With many consumers taking a step back from Michael Kors and his former iconic bags, the brand may have been given the "kiss of death."

Another issue within the company is the brand's rapid growth rate. Michael Kors has grown excessively over the past few years, expanding both its product range and its presence into new markets, and ultimately seems to have outpaced itself. Michael Kors ongoing expansion, in regards to both its store network sales capacity, means the brand has incurred mounting costs and a growing inventory it needs to maintain and oversee. The inventory for most healthy and stable companies tends not to be bigger than 80 percent of the total amount of cash held at the time, which is also known as the inventory/cash ratio.

From 2013 to 2014, Michael Kors managed to keep this ratio between 0.5 and 0.6. But as of the first quarter of its spilt fiscal year for 2016 (June 28, 2015), this ratio increase to 0.75. Although this growth is not alarming at first glance, by the second quarter of 2016 (September 28, 2015) this ratio skyrocketed to a whopping 1.65. During this quarter alone Michael Kors inventory has risen 37 percent, whereas its total cash decreased by 56 percent. This imbalance shows that the company is currently pushing its expansion plans forward, even though there is not enough market demand to fulfil or justify its expansion. This is reflected in Michael Kors sales, which only grew 6.8 percent during the second quarter of 2016.

Issues faced at MK: Social Media & Marketing

When it comes to social media and marketing, Michael Kors has been a pioneer for fashion brands. The company is one of the first accessible luxury brands to embrace Instagram as a social channel to run its ad campaigns and promote its products. Michael Kors love for social media only becomes clearer when studying its activity on several larger channels, such as Instagram, and the number of followers they have generated. According to FashionUnited most popular fashion brands on social media ranking, Michael Kors is not only one of the largest brands on social media channels and google search, but it also surpasses other higher end luxury fashion brands such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci in terms of followers. Only fashion giants such as Nike, Adidas, Victoria's Secret, can say they are more popular on social media than Michael Kors.

At first glance, Michael Kors popularity on social media channels seems to make it the perfect platform for the luxury brand to run its ads on, as the brand is likely to connect with not only its target audience, but a larger audience in general. However, Michael Kors should take caution when overly relying on social media in general for its marketing, as it does come with a price. The high and low of social media hypes can act as a mirror image of the current problems faced Michael Kors. For example, once social media hypes arrive on the market, they feel new and unique and everyone wants to be on them. (Myspace anyone?)

But after a while, the hype slows down, interest fades and people begin to notice that everyone is on Facebook or Twitter and therefore start to look for the next big thing. Therefore, if Michael Kors continues pushing its ads on social media, its sales are likely to make quick jump, for a year or two, but afterward they will become tempered and wane once more. Michael Kors seems to be having difficulty grasping this notion at the moment and appears to be pushing itself too far, too fast and is struggling with after effects now. So how can Michael Kors turn the tide in its favour once more?

Solution: Tapping in New Trends (with caution)
After years of success, Michael Kors products have begun to saturate the women's wear sector. Luckily the brand seems to have a new, growing trend to cash in on - men's wear and men's accessories. With more and more affluent men paying attention to how they dress and what they buy brand wise, luxury handbags for men, or owning more than one bag, appears to be a new, upcoming trend. A smart move for Michael Kors would be to tap this growing market to help boost its sluggish sales, which is what the company seems ready to do with the recent appointment of Don Witkowski. The retail veteran is set to join the company once more early next year as President of Men's. Witkowski has been charged with continuing the evolution of Michael Kors men' wear brand-building efforts and leading the category into "the next stage of growth."
A word of caution, however. Although moving into a new market is likely to help boost sales, this does not mean that Michael Kors current inventory, which mostly consists of women's wear and accessories at the moment, will decrease over night. Therefore, in order to shift more stock, the company might have to consider offering a higher discount on these items, or lowering their prices. Even though this would see the company losing some money on the products sales, it would mean that the products would also not cost Michael Kors anymore inventory costs.

Another thought Michael Kors should also keep in mind is the future of men's wear and how long the hype for men's wear handbags will last? For now there is still a niche market for men's handbags, but the market is likely to be saturated after approximately two years. Therefore Michael Kors will have to ensure it is also to keep consumer interest in the brand after these trends have reached their peaks.

Solution: Acknowledging its limitations

So, even though things may be looking gloomy for Michael Kors at the moment, the company still has time to turn things around and change direction. Best of all, Michael Kors does not have to sacrifice design, quality or expansion of product lines to do so. As the company becomes more and more conscious of how its overall brand popularity is wearing off as a result of its rapid expansion, Michael Kors Chief Executive Officer, John Idol, announced plans to stop rolling out more stores. This shows that the company has acknowledged its expansion limitations and is ready to turn over a new leaf and to focus on improving its current problems with cash and inventory.

Michael Kors is making a smart move by focusing on men's handbags and is likely to benefit from it. However, their sales and marketing strategy are still linked to short hypes, such as social media. Therefore the company will probably do better if they focus on improving current product lines, expand others and limit distribution. In this way, Michael Kors can get back to healthy ratios and remain stable in the future.

Photo credit: Facebook.com
This is the fourteenth and final episode of a new series based on FashionUnited's unique business intelligence Top 100 Index.

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How Michael Kors can change its current direction

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Michael Kors has certainly enjoyed its time in the limelight. Filling a gap in the market, the brand appealed to millions of consumers around the world who were ready to invest in luxury brands, but not quite able to afford their high prices.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Michael Kors has certainly enjoyed its time in the limelight. Filling a gap in the market, the brand appealed to millions of consumers around the world who were ready to invest in luxury brands, but not quite able to afford their high prices. But a shadow over the company has been spreading as the brand's popularity in its home market of the US continues to wane. Some say that the brand has lost its once shiny luster and consumer interest in Michael Kors is fading, causing comparable sales to decline and its share price to slip. These issues, coupled with an aggressive expansion plan that was set in motion when the company went public in 2011, means that Michael Kors is currently expanding at a faster rate than it's business actually growing. With supply from the brand being larger than consumer demand, FashionUnited takes a closer look at the reasons behind these issues and how Michael Kors can turn things around.

Issues faced at MK: Popularity & Excess Stock

One of the issues linked to Michael Kors current woes could be tied in with what made it so popular in the first place: it's accessible product offering. Over the years, the brand has succeed in creating a very ubiquitous product assortment, with focus on its handbags in particular, which are now sold all over the world following the brand's expansion plan. Although this undoubtedly led to Michael Kors popularity, it has also lead to the consumers waning interest in the brand. How? Once seen as a symbol of status across the globe, interest in owning the 'it' luxury handbag is now dying.

According to a recent study from Goldman Sachs and Teen Vogue, many brands linked to the accessible luxury handbag market are "falling flat," as younger consumers favour smaller, less expensive handbags that are more versatile. This means that the once praised 'it' tote bag from Michael Kors is no longer seen as 'new' and 'hip' anymore amongst consumers - especially now shoppers everywhere have some version of the once highly coveted handbag and have one sitting in their wardrobes. With many consumers taking a step back from Michael Kors and his former iconic bags, the brand may have been given the "kiss of death."

Another issue within the company is the brand's rapid growth rate. Michael Kors has grown excessively over the past few years, expanding both its product range and its presence into new markets, and ultimately seems to have outpaced itself. Michael Kors ongoing expansion, in regards to both its store network sales capacity, means the brand has incurred mounting costs and a growing inventory it needs to maintain and oversee. The inventory for most healthy and stable companies tends not to be bigger than 80 percent of the total amount of cash held at the time, which is also known as the inventory/cash ratio.

From 2013 to 2014, Michael Kors managed to keep this ratio between 0.5 and 0.6. But as of the first quarter of its spilt fiscal year for 2016 (June 28, 2015), this ratio increase to 0.75. Although this growth is not alarming at first glance, by the second quarter of 2016 (September 28, 2015) this ratio skyrocketed to a whopping 1.65. During this quarter alone Michael Kors inventory has risen 37 percent, whereas its total cash decreased by 56 percent. This imbalance shows that the company is currently pushing its expansion plans forward, even though there is not enough market demand to fulfil or justify its expansion. This is reflected in Michael Kors sales, which only grew 6.8 percent during the second quarter of 2016.

Issues faced at MK: Social Media & Marketing

When it comes to social media and marketing, Michael Kors has been a pioneer for fashion brands. The company is one of the first accessible luxury brands to embrace Instagram as a social channel to run its ad campaigns and promote its products. Michael Kors love for social media only becomes clearer when studying its activity on several larger channels, such as Instagram, and the number of followers they have generated. According to FashionUnited most popular fashion brands on social media ranking, Michael Kors is not only one of the largest brands on social media channels and google search, but it also surpasses other higher end luxury fashion brands such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci in terms of followers. Only fashion giants such as Nike, Adidas, Victoria's Secret, can say they are more popular on social media than Michael Kors.

At first glance, Michael Kors popularity on social media channels seems to make it the perfect platform for the luxury brand to run its ads on, as the brand is likely to connect with not only its target audience, but a larger audience in general. However, Michael Kors should take caution when overly relying on social media in general for its marketing, as it does come with a price. The high and low of social media hypes can act as a mirror image of the current problems faced Michael Kors. For example, once social media hypes arrive on the market, they feel new and unique and everyone wants to be on them. (Myspace anyone?)

But after a while, the hype slows down, interest fades and people begin to notice that everyone is on Facebook or Twitter and therefore start to look for the next big thing. Therefore, if Michael Kors continues pushing its ads on social media, its sales are likely to make quick jump, for a year or two, but afterward they will become tempered and wane once more. Michael Kors seems to be having difficulty grasping this notion at the moment and appears to be pushing itself too far, too fast and is struggling with after effects now. So how can Michael Kors turn the tide in its favour once more?

Solution: Tapping in New Trends (with caution)
After years of success, Michael Kors products have begun to saturate the women's wear sector. Luckily the brand seems to have a new, growing trend to cash in on - men's wear and men's accessories. With more and more affluent men paying attention to how they dress and what they buy brand wise, luxury handbags for men, or owning more than one bag, appears to be a new, upcoming trend. A smart move for Michael Kors would be to tap this growing market to help boost its sluggish sales, which is what the company seems ready to do with the recent appointment of Don Witkowski. The retail veteran is set to join the company once more early next year as President of Men's. Witkowski has been charged with continuing the evolution of Michael Kors men' wear brand-building efforts and leading the category into "the next stage of growth."
A word of caution, however. Although moving into a new market is likely to help boost sales, this does not mean that Michael Kors current inventory, which mostly consists of women's wear and accessories at the moment, will decrease over night. Therefore, in order to shift more stock, the company might have to consider offering a higher discount on these items, or lowering their prices. Even though this would see the company losing some money on the products sales, it would mean that the products would also not cost Michael Kors anymore inventory costs.

Another thought Michael Kors should also keep in mind is the future of men's wear and how long the hype for men's wear handbags will last? For now there is still a niche market for men's handbags, but the market is likely to be saturated after approximately two years. Therefore Michael Kors will have to ensure it is also to keep consumer interest in the brand after these trends have reached their peaks.

Solution: Acknowledging its limitations

So, even though things may be looking gloomy for Michael Kors at the moment, the company still has time to turn things around and change direction. Best of all, Michael Kors does not have to sacrifice design, quality or expansion of product lines to do so. As the company becomes more and more conscious of how its overall brand popularity is wearing off as a result of its rapid expansion, Michael Kors Chief Executive Officer, John Idol, announced plans to stop rolling out more stores. This shows that the company has acknowledged its expansion limitations and is ready to turn over a new leaf and to focus on improving its current problems with cash and inventory.

Michael Kors is making a smart move by focusing on men's handbags and is likely to benefit from it. However, their sales and marketing strategy are still linked to short hypes, such as social media. Therefore the company will probably do better if they focus on improving current product lines, expand others and limit distribution. In this way, Michael Kors can get back to healthy ratios and remain stable in the future.

Photo credit: Facebook.com
This is the fourteenth and final episode of a new series based on FashionUnited's unique business intelligence Top 100 Index.

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How Michael Kors can change its current direction

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Michael Kors has certainly enjoyed its time in the limelight. Filling a gap in the market, the brand appealed to millions of consumers around the world who were ready to invest in luxury brands, but not quite able to afford their high prices.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Once upon a time, loyalty programs use to be all about collecting information on customers so companies could market to them better.

Thanks to the proliferation of digital analytics, companies now have much easier access to audience information, and the primary purpose of loyalty programs has changed: It's all about getting customers to fall in love with your brand so they'll stick with you and buy more. Here are some brands that do just that.

Whether it's a small knitting business, dropshipping t-shirts, or Amazon Prime, loyalty programs give companies an edge over competitors, build a relationship with customers, and motivate consumers to spend more.

If you need some customer loyalty program ideas, inspiration, or just want to find a good program to join, this list is for you!

Click below to jump to the industry you want to learn about.

Apparel loyalty program examples

Clothing and apparel could be one of the most competitive direct-to-consumer industries in eCommerce. Because of all the other companies vying for customers' dollars in almost every niche, a great rewards program keeps people buying from you when there are so many alternatives.

Michael Kors: KORSVIP

Michael Kors' eponymous premium fashion brand has been going strong since 1981. It's probably most known for its handbags, but also sells all sorts of apparel. The KORSVIP loyalty program has some cool features.

Point earning

10 points for every dollar spent.

Points for downloading the mobile app.

Points for adding items to wish lists,

Points for submitting reviews.

Customer points reset every January 1, no matter when they signed up for it during the year.

Rewards

Points aren't redeemable for products or services. Instead, you get progressively more perks the more points you've earned.

You get more perks the more points you've earned, and you've got to love the fashion week inspired names of their tiers.

Studio - Free

Backstage - 3,000 points to qualify ($300 spent)

Runway - 6,000 points ($600 spent)

Red Carpet - 15,000 to qualify ($1500 spent)

Some of the more interesting perks are:

Free in-store stylist appointments.

In-app stylist chat that you can use in-app.

An annual member gift.

Birthday present.

Strengths

Mobile app gives customers access anytime.

Style Chat, where users talk to a fashion advisor through the app to get advice.

Like other great tiered loyalty programs, Kors offers its first tier, Studio, for free.
People who download the KORSVIP app on their phone probably get push notifications about offers and reminders to spend more to get to the higher tiers.

Resetting of points every year motivates members to consistently spend money to maintain their status.

Weaknesses

No cash back rewards.

No redeeming points for products.

Michael Kors offers some very unique rewards that help set them apart. It tries to make members feel like they're the stars of the show, but giving them the option to redeem their points for discounts would really set them apart as haute couture.

The North Face: VIPeak

The well-known outdoor apparel and equipment company calls their rewards program VIPeak, a clever name for a program who wants to be known as the go-to brand for mountaineers.

Point earning

8 Peak Points per $1 spent on the official site and official The North Face retail stores.

4 Peak Points per $1 spent at The North Face retail outlets.

Unspecified Peak Points for attending sponsored races and speaking events.

Rewards:

When it comes down to it, Peak Points get members dollars off their next purchase. Each tier, named to resonate with their target audience, offers a specific dollar amount off.

Strengths

Branding: the names and feel of the program are well branded.

The events are parallel with the brand, appealing to the target audience.

They have a mobile app that allows members to access their program.

Weaknesses:

Higher tiers get less value per point. Once you finally reach Summit, customer's are only getting 0.6 cents per point.

No good explainer page: if it's not clear right away what customers can get out of the program, then it's less likely that they'll join.

Makeup loyalty program examples

Makeup is another competitive market. But the real opportunity here is that makeup products are finite. Chances are that makeup maniacs are going to buy mascara, lipliner, and other products multiple times a year, so they want to get a little something back.

Here are some brands who have taken advantage of that to create rewards programs that build brand communities and motivate members to spend more.

Sephora: Beauty Insider

Experts often cite this one as a premiere reward program. Sephora's Beauty Insider has definitely helped them build a strong brand community. They know what rewards their customers want, and make it easy for customers to sign up for the program and redeem rewards.

Point earning

Sephora Beauty Insider program uses tiers, with members graduating to higher point-earning rates the more they spend.

Rewards

The points don't have a direct dollar translation, instead, members can redeem points on select products. The products in the Reward Bazaar don't have dollar prices, just point prices. However, the highest tier, Rouge, gives members the option to redeem their points for a purchase of up to $100.

Here's a list of the other rewards they offer across tiers.

Birthday gift

Tier celebration gift

Free shipping

Early access to products

Exclusive events

Trial-sized products and sets

Strengths

Know what their customers want: motivate customers to spend more with great rewards.

Simple explainer page.

They're easy to use online and in store with mobile device functionality. This allows members to scan their membership at brick and mortar locations.

Ascending tiered benefits that motivate people to spend more.

Redeem points for quality brands' products.

Weaknesses

Can't redeem point for discounts - only redeem them for selected products.

Changes every year have been controversial.

You can only use your points on specified products.

Users on Reddit and elsewhere have criticized the limited availability of reward products.

Analysis by some blogs have said that you get less bang for your buck compared to competitors' programs.

Ulta: Ultamate Rewards

Makeup consumers often compare Ulta's Ultamate Rewards to Sephora's Beauty Insider. Customers can easily use the program both online and in store to collect rewards. While the two programs are comparable, some experts say Ulta has the edge.

Point earning

Like Sephora, Ulta uses tiers: the more you spend, the more points you earn on every dollar.

Rewards

Unlike Sephora, and even KORSVIP, Ulta gives a straight cash translation for its points

100 points = $3

250 points =$8

500 points = $17.50

750 points = $30

1000 points = $50

2000 points = $125

Other perks include:

Free birthday gift (for all tiers!)

2x points during your birth month.

$10 birthday coupon.

Every day free shipping on orders over $25 (Diamond tier only)

Strengths

Customers can redeem points like cash.

Ulta knows what customers want: deals on their makeup. That's why they can redeem points on any purchase.

Mobile app for easy use in store and online.

Simple explainer page.

Weaknesses

Not as many perks as Sephora.

Some people say Ulta carry have premium brands.

Doesn't feel as exclusive. Kind of intangible, but as a brand the feel and wording just doesn't live up to Sephora.

Jewelry loyalty program examples

Most of us probably don't buy jewelry enough to opt into a loyalty program, but these brands know their audience well enough to cash in on their customers cravings for crystals, striving to shine brighter than the competition.

Swarovski Crystal: Be Swarovski

Swarovski really tries to give their brand a sense of exclusivity with their programs, matching the premium image they've curated for their brand.

Be Swarovski

This is their free tier which awards discounts and other "sparkling surprises."

Points

Be Swarovski doesn't use a point system, instead they reward customers with discounts and other perks when they reach spending goals and sign up for the program.

Rewards

Spend $350 for a 20% discount voucher

$700 for a loyalty gift voucher.

Surprise birthday gift.

Fashion news.

Exclusive invitations to design previews.

Priority access to members-only savings.

Strengths

Getting 20% off for spending $350 seems like a pretty good deal.

Weaknesses

True value of prizes hidden in a wordy terms and conditions document you have to save and open up. Being up front about rewards would make it easier for customers to make the decision to join.

What is a loyalty gift voucher? Being more open about what that gift is - and if it's worth spending the $700 to get it - would help motivate customers to spend enough to get it.

Page design looks unprofessional at times.

Swarovski's other loyalty program, Swarovski Crystal Society charges a yearly fee. We'll dive into that one another day!

Liquor loyalty program examples

People love tasting their different wines and whiskeys and liqueurs - but there's lot of competition. A great way to encourage people to keep buying and imbibing your products is by rewarding them with points and other perks that will keep them buying from you.

Wine Chateau

This New Jersey-based wine retailer has an easy-to-understand free loyalty program for its customers.

Rewards

Earn points $1 = 1 point

100 points = $1

The program basically gives members 1% cash back on purchases when they redeem points. But customers can also earn points through a variety of activities, like creating an account, sharing on social media, writing reviews, and referring friends.

Strengths:

Easy to understand.

Easy to redeem.

Good explainer page

Weaknesses

More value for points, or giving points more value once they reach a certain amount could help customers feel more appreciated.

Could use more perks - even just a newsletter, premium access, or exclusive tastings could make their program feel a little more exclusive.

What kind of perks and rewards do you use in your loyalty program? Let us know in the comments below.

Feeling inspired? If you want to try a rewards program on your store, try out Bold Loyalty Points for free today!

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Top loyalty program examples in eCommerce by industry

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Once upon a time, loyalty programs use to be all about collecting information on customers so companies could market to them better. Thanks to the proliferation of digital analytics, companies now have much easier access to audience information, and the primary purpose of loyalty programs has changed: It's all about getting customers to fall in love with your brand so they'll stick with you and buy more.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Many fashion retailers define their strategy starting from their value proposition and key positioning levers (assortment, price, experience, speed, channels...) to differentiate themselves from competition. It's part of their DNA but also define their purpose and business model.

The segmentation of fashion brands is illustrated on a pyramid where the more expensive brands are on the top. High price corresponds to high-quality fabrics, made-to-measure garments, exclusive customer service, and other attributes mentioned in previous posts such as Segmentation in Fashion or, in sportswear, Sports and Fashion in the Ironman era.

The Fashion Pyramid

The Fashion Pyramid corresponds to Maslow's pyramid in many senses. Luxury fashion brands are generally covering the self-fulfillment "desire" and mass-market brands cover phisiological needs.

The pyramid is illustrative for many reasons:

* Brands are positioned in the Pyramid as corporations or conglomerates. Many of these companies compete in more accessible segments, for instance, by selling specific categories (e.g. eyewear, perfumes) or brands (e.g. Armani Privé, Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani). Another strategy to move across segments is Capsule Collections (e.g. H&M x Moschino).

* Brands positioning or brand's perception evolves. A clear example of how a company can move across segments is Michael Kors, that after a huge expansion across many channels (mostly department stores), the "brand" was damaged. If loyal luxury customers see their same bag everywhere, the magic is over. Also Tiffany experienced a reputation damage when selling less expensive silver jewelry.

It's also interesting to note that brand's positioning in Maslow's pyramid is not a decision of the company. I've heard many colleagues from the business industry explaining their company's value proposition and mentioning competitors that were totally different from reality or from customer's perception.

In the end, customers position brands according to their experience, word-of-mouth, advertising, social media, customer service, quality of fabrics, loyalty programs, pricing and promotions, visual merchandising, amongst others. Brand awareness is decreasing, as commented in The New Fashion Retail Paradigm. According to Time Inc/YouGov Survey (2015), in 2007/08, 80% of US Customers remembered a favorite brand. In 2014/15, only 61%. Probably, new generations will embrace niche players in the long tail that are covering a mix of aesthetical and self-sulfilment need. Brands at the bottom of the pyramid will fight for a little space in customer's brain within the infoxication era.

This is a holistic approach to how fashion brands are segmented in the Fashion Retail industry current state:

SUPREME LUXURY: Hermés, Dior, Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Loro Piana, Versace...
Hermés Campaign © Eric Valli

ASPIRATIONAL LUXURY: Prada, YSL, Dolce & Gabbana, Brioni, Armani, Ermenegildo Zegna, Louis Vuitton, Fendi...
Ermenegildo Zegna

ACCESSIBLE-LUXURY: Ralph Lauren, Max Mara, Paul Smith, Stella McCartney, Dsquared2
Ralph Lauren

PREMIUM: Guess, Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Michael Kors, DKNY, Coach, Furla, Diesel...
Michael Kors

MASS-MARKET

Masstige: Massimo Dutti, Sisley, COS, &Other Stories

Mass: GAP, Zara, Bershka, H&M, Fast Retailing (Uniqlo), Mango, American Eagle, M&S, Superdry, Primark...

Mango SS19 Collection
In this segment, department stores like Target, JCP, Walmart, El Corte Inglés or Amazon are also selling private-label brands to compete to national brands, while supermarket chains like Carrefour or Lidl are increasing their apparel categories presence.

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The Fashion Retailer The Fashion Pyramid of brands

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Many fashion retailers define their strategy starting from their value proposition and key positioning levers (assortment, price, experience, speed, channels...) to differentiate themselves from competition. It's part of their DNA but also define their purpose and business model. The segmentation of fashion brands is illustrated on a pyramid where the more expensive brands are on...

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Helps to communicate with GEN Y as she is an idol to that generation

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Bella Hadid for MICHAEL Michael Kors Spring 2020 Campaign

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Few models are busier than Bella Hadid. Coming from one of the most famous families in fashion and with killer looks to boot, it seems she's always on the go, whether to a major runway show or an exclusive party. Because of this, when Michael Kors was looking to emphasize energy and movement for the brand's Spring 2019 campaign, it was only natural to pick the supermodel, who always looks put together amidst her busy schedule.

Shot by David Sims, the photos feature Hadid in action against a plain white background. She leaps and poses in earthy neutrals that seem ready for a safari or hike, carrying an army of flying purses in lieu of traditional luggage. The looks comprise tourist gear and activewear rather than the sleek, all-black ensembles many travelers prefer, but with their high-quality materials and Hadid's powerful poses, the pieces couldn't look more chic.

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Bella Hadid is a Jet-Setter for Michael Kors Spring 2019

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Few models are busier than Bella Hadid. Coming from one of the most famous families in fashion and with killer looks to boot, it seems she's always on the go, whether to a major runway show or an exclusive party.

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Spring is in: Bella Hadid stars in our new #MichaelKors Spring 2020 ad campaign. http://mko.rs/60021m756

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Michael Kors: Designer handbags, clothing, watches, shoes, and more.

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Shop Michael Kors for jet set luxury: designer handbags, watches, shoes, clothing & more. Receive free shipping and returns on your purchase.

# data[].attributes.body
Age - 25
Occupation - nurse
Likes shopping online - PLT, Zara, Topshop, Pull&Bear, Tommy Hilfiger, Marc Jacobs.
Uses Instagram and Facebook
She shops through Instagram.
-Lives at home with family.

# data[].attributes.body
Age- 26
Job - Paralegal
-Shops online at Zara & Topshop.
-She will shop more if she finds a discount code
-She watches Netflix
-Lives at home with family

# data[].attributes.body
https://slideplayer.com/slide/2539333/

Michael Kors can make an impression and input through the EBK model by posting appropriate images on social media to expose the consumer and encourage them to purchase.

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When analysing the VALS framework, Millennials can be included within the segments of traditionalists, activators and achievers.

https://www.marketing91.com/vals-values-attitude-lifestyle/

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https://www.segmentationportal.com