Millennials are not penniless youngsters any more. The Gen Y is now made of people in their thirties, taking relevant life, family and work decisions. The share of Millennial consumers with a significant disposable income has become a key demographic trend, at least in Western Europe or in the US. According to Boston Consulting Group (BCG), about 50% of luxury product buyers will belong to the Millennial generation by 2024. 

As these consumers are heavy web and mobile users, most brands have tried to reach them through creative digital campaigns, but results have not always been rewarding. Millennials’ time across devices is highly fragmented, and they have a generally poor opinion of digital ads. Nearly 40% of Gen Y users in France, Germany and the UK uses ad blockers. 

Some companies have therefore tried to improve their offline experience, addressing those who appreciate the possibility to move from digital to real world. This means investing on stores and shops to create unique shopping paths, offering customized contents or exclusive after-purchase services.  

Think of Blome Uhren, leading luxury watches reseller in Germany: they do continue to promote their flagship store in Düsseldorf, but introduced digital commerce with special services for online customers. Millennials can even ask to be visited by one of their watchmaker masters when buying selected premium products. 

Mobile proximity marketing is another effective way to by-pass Millennials resistance to intrusive or standardized campaigns. As they do not want to be bothered by advertising, mobile platforms such as  Movibell allow them to get branded contents only when they are likely to appreciate them – that is, when they go shopping and find themselves at walking distance from their preferred store, or look for a certain product. 

Millennials have always been a tough target for marketers, who might have now find in mobile marketing the right clue to win them.