But, let me back up to the beginning of this story. My older son decided to go car shopping and I went along with him.   We headed to the local Toyota dealer to look at a Scion. Scion is the brand that Toyota specifically established [...]]]> Wow! I couldn’t believe the salesman said it! 

But, let me back up to the beginning of this story. My older son decided to go car shopping and I went along with him.   We headed to the local Toyota dealer to look at a Scion. Scion is the brand that Toyota specifically established to bring younger buyers into their dealerships.

But it was odd…the smaller building which said Scion on it was empty. So we headed across the parking lot to the bigger Toyota building to find out where the Scions were. Along the way we stopped to look at some of the new Prius, Corolla and other vehicles parked next to the building. We were met in the parking lot by a 50-ish salesman.

My son introduced himself. I introduced myself by my first name. No family relationship was mentioned.

“I’m here today to look at a Scion Tc, ” my son remarked.

“Don’t you want to look at any of the cars here?” the salesman asked a bit peevishly.

“I saw you and your Mommy looking at the cars. We do that, you know? We watch you from the windows.”

What???

How inappropriate was that!

The salesman tried to get us interested in a Prius C, but my son insisted that he wanted to see a Scion Tc. The salesman drove us too fast, with his seat belt alarm buzzing,  to another lot two blocks away where the Scions were hidden. I didn’t know whether to laugh or get angry.

It became very clear that this dealership wasn’t interested in selling Scions any more. The shiny new Scions were tightly packed in a lot behind another building. I scanned the area around me wondering how the salesman was going to get the car that  had caught my son’s eye out for a test drive.

Simple… he didn’t bother.

“You know you shouldn’t be thinking of a sports car that will cost more to insure. (The Scion Tc isn’t a sports car.) Isn’t that right, Mommy?” the salesman lectured, making me an unwilling participant in this weird conversation.  Then, he proceeded to tell us about his no-good nephew who made his brother buy an Infinity which got keyed (damaged) the first day the nephew took it out for a spin.

My son silently signaled me that we needed to get out of there.

We allowed the salesman to drive us back to the main dealership, lecturing all the way. My son ended the conversation  and we made a quick getaway.

“What just happened? my son asked as we drove to the next car dealer.

Are your or your sales staff ignoring the Millennial Generation?

Or, worse, driving them away? (pun intended)

Scion markets heavily to the leading edge of the Millennials, those born between 1980 and 1994. But apparently some of their sales staff didn’t get the memo that the company wants these customers.

Today, Millennials (also called Gen Y) have money to spend in spite of the economy. Even though the recession had 37% still looking for work after graduation in 2010 according to Pew Research,  many are now being hired (especially here in Silicon Valley) and getting started with their lives as independent adults. In my son’s case, he has a full-time job as an engineer (low six figure salary) right out of college. The credit union pre-approved his loan.

The Millennial Generation makes up 25% of the US population with 80 million people. In contrast, the Baby Boomers are just 76 million strong. Gen Y’s are just entering their prime earning and spending years. They are wary and skeptical and value conscious. According to Pew Research, 75% have social media accounts. Show that you  ”totally get” them and you will develop  loyal customers who will tweet, post and pin your company’s messages on every social media account they have.

Millennials like to connect with businesses through a variety of channels. Before we left the house that day, my son had spent some time on the Scion website. He was fascinated. “They totally get me,” he marveled.

But the online brand didn’t match the onsite experience. That positive feeling evaporated as soon as the salesman opened his mouth.

It is important to note that Millennials  like speed in their communications. Text messages are a the norm over email or phone calls in their personal lives. More than half (52%) have smartphones. Another dealer we visited had QR codes on the window stickers that linked to an interactive website for the vehicle. We didn’t need to take one of those glossy (and expensive) brochures that the dealers have about each car.

The bottom line of my cautionary tale: if you have products or services that are perfect for 18-29 year olds, make sure that your marketing and sales are in alignment on how to sell to Millennials.

Otherwise you could be pouring marketing dollars in the gutter.

How Millennial are you? Pew Research has a questionnaire that will tell you how much you have in common with Millennials. (I scored 85%.)

Do you market to 18-29 year olds? How have you adapted your approach for them?

The Millennials are coming…are you ready? Get help from an experienced marketer who has been  implementing digital marketing strategies since 1997. Don’t waste your time experimenting. We will help you set up the marketing and sales systems that can make a huge difference in staying connected with these customers and grow your business with them. Click here for your free consultation.

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