Laura Colton / Social Media and Content Marketing
As most people know, millennials and social media tend to go hand in hand. And as a proud member of Generation Y, I can attest that I tend to gravitate toward brands that encourage social interaction and work toward cultivating a community. I like feeling like I’m apart of something, even if it’s only from a distance. Spotify is one company that seems to truly understand its marketing strategy toward millennials and has done so in a way that stands apart from its competition. Here is the recipe for success that Spotify is using to target the millennial demographic:
Millennials Crave Community
It’s not exactly ground-breaking news that the majority of millennials are extremely social creatures who thrive off of social interactions and experiences. They value their friends, and even more importantly for this case, they value their friends’ opinions and feedback. So what better way to play off of the millennial need for camaraderie than by integrating a widely used social platform like Facebook with Spotify. By synching your existing Facebook account you are then able to see what others are listening to, or even access your friends’ playlists. What was once a deeply personal and private experience, has quickly transformed into a collective experience that brings people together and opens the door for sharing.
Use Social Media to Cultivate a Relationship
Just as it takes a certain amount of time for newfound friends to gain trust and loyalty, companies too must find a way to engage with millennials in a way that feels direct and authentic. Often times, companies tend to talk to people without actually taking feedback into consideration. Through the twitter handle @SpotifyCares, Spotify listens to customer’s experiences and concerns, as well as various technical problems, in order to keep the lines of communication open. Another way in which Spotify has used social media to its advantage is its recent team up with Snapchat. Spotify’s Snapchat channel engages fans with short messages that range from a quick holiday message from an artist, to a short music video clip. Spotify is wise to align itself with Snapchat, a platform many millenials are using throughout the day, to push out its exclusive content. This generation is in a hurry and desires the instantaneous. Anything that allows them to swipe through something quickly and browse through information fast is a winning strategy.
Connect with Current Culture Trends
As a promotional event celebrating ‘Game of Thrones’ return to HBO, Spotify has teamed up to create a sub-site that takes your music selection and matches it with one of 15 of the GOT characters to spit out a customized playlist. As a loyal GOT fan, maybe I’m biased in saying this, but the idea is genius. When a company is able to mix popular TV shows, celebrities, or even just embrace a funny viral phenomenon (left shark, gold/blue dress), the likelihood of millennial interest and engagement goes up.
Celebrities = Popular
The social media landscape has really allowed some of us to go overboard with our need to stay up-to-date with our celebrity idols and favorite stars. We live in a world where our celebrity fascination is at an all time high thanks to the technology at everyone’s fingertips. So when Spotify introduced the capability to listen to celebrity playlists it was no wonder that users were grateful for a chance to see what their favorite stars were listening too. Michelle Obama, as in the First Lady, released a list of her favorite female artist playlist to promote her “Let Girls Learn” campaign back in 2015. Her song selection included Beyoncé, Aretha Franklin, and Diana Ross, just to name a few. This innovative strategy of content marketing in music will continue to evolve and will allow brands, companies, and even celebrities to continue to find new way to connect with an audience.
