Millennials get a bad rap sometimes about their grit and perseverance.
The digitally native vertical brand (DNVB) is born on the Internet. It is aimed squarely at millennials and digital natives. It doesn't have to adapt to the future; it is the future. It doesn't need to get younger customers. It starts with younger customers.
Not all Millennials think alike. A demographic is not a psychographic.
Millennials, as others, want creative, durable, desirable, and beautiful products. But they do add a new criteria: respect.
Millennials are much more informed than they get credit for, and many are more politically knowledgeable than older generations.
The younger generation watches what's interesting, not whether it's presented by someone who is as old as I am or someone who is as old as a 21-year-old. It's the material. If I did a series of conversations on things most interesting to Millennials, they would respond to it, and I do.
Millennials regularly draw ire for their cell phone usage. They're mobile natives, having come of age when landlines were well on their way out and payphones had gone the way of dinosaurs. Because of their native fluency, Millennials recognize mobile phones can do a whole lot more than make calls, enable texting between friends or tweeting.
Millennials are often portrayed as apathetic, disinterested, tuned out and selfish. None of those adjectives describe the Millennials I've been privileged to meet and work with.
It's a widely-held belief that Millennials are obsessed with money. And it's also wildly true. Just don't mistake it for a fixation with getting rich.
Caricatured as navel-gazers, Millennials are said to live for their 'likes' and status updates. But the young people I know often leverage social media in selfless ways.
