For a marketer to reach a Millennial, their message needs to be ring with “true authenticity, not verisimilitude,” said Michael Crosson, a publisher with SocialMediopolis.

Using terms such as ‘all natural ingredients’ won’t guarantee a product will be a hit with Millennials, but aligning the brand element with casual venues and activities that support the philosophy, such as music events or fundraising are prime examples of engaging Millennials and protecting brand loyalty, he said.

Recently, Daymon Worldwide released a market research study entitled “The Next World: How Millennials Will Shape Retail.” The global research endeavor, conducted in April 2016, surveyed more than 7,000 Millennials and GenXers from five continents and 14 countries worldwide.

“By the year 2030, there will be more Millennials than any other generation, including Baby Boomers, in the United States," said Vasco Brinca, Daymon Worldwide President of International, in a statement. "We have never experienced a generation like this, in large part because they have grown up with economic uncertainty, high unemployment, and are always-on digitally. It is critically important to study this generation and their culture today to discover the impact they’ll have on the world’s future in the years to come.”

Millinnials are less loyal consumers, according to the study. For example, 29% of Millennials say they normally buy the same brand, while 35% of GenXers do. Meanwhile, 26% of millennials say they are likely to "buy whatever brand they feel like at the time."

Because it’s no secret Millennials are incredibly reliant on their smartphones to receive and exchange information, it is imperative for marketers to establish a path for reaching them where they hang out virtually as they seek to build brand identity and customer loyalty.

And, if MarketingProfs is to be believed, marketers best not rely on email for a successful promotion campaign aimed at Millennials. That’s because 32% of Millennials surveyed by that site indicate that emails never impact their buying decisions while only 13% say they always relied on emailed promotions when making purchasing choices.

A Skewed Version of Brand Loyalty? 

Crosson doesn’t think Millennials are as much fickle as they are “brand fluid.” That is because they have many pivot points in their preferences which they exercise often. For example, “Any political statement made by a brand may turn them on or off in a split second, Cross said. "A comment, favorably or otherwise, made by friend, could have the same effect.”

To understand how to market to Millennials, Crosson said it’s imperative to appreciate how that group practices a “kind of activism encoded in their lives.” Despite that, Millennials often practice a skewed version of brand loyalty. For example, said Crosson, “they will purposely eschew loyalty to uppity brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, but have no problem paying $4.95 or more for a soy caramel low fat latte (with whipped cream. But, when their brands and purchases are tied to a core principle, such as protecting the environment, they can be fiercely loyal.”

He pointed as Subaru and Toyota Prius owners as good examples of that behavior. According to Bruce Law, President of Utah-based Sprout Marketing, Millennials earned the badge of being fickle because “they’ve been raised amidst a shower of almost constant praise. Sometimes called the ‘tada’ generation, Millennials were always on video cameras, their projects always won a ribbon, their soccer teams always got a trophy and their parents had money and praise to shower on them.”

However, in the real world, none of those cushions exist, and that reality is a hard pill for Millennials to swallow. Therefore, said Law, when things don’t go their way, “they tend to ‘leave’ and seek praise elsewhere.”

Knowing that, marketers would be wise to acknowledge that repeat business is all about connecting people, including Millennials, not just to your brand but also to others who are connected to it, Law said. “If they (Millennials) know others are involved, they will be more likely to be loyal and spread the news for you,” he said.

For a marketer to reach a Millennial, their message needs to ring with “true authenticity, not verisimilitude,” Crosson says. Using terms such as ‘all natural ingredients’ won’t guarantee a product will be a hit with Millennials. But, aligning the brand element with casual venues and activities that support the philosophy, such as music events or fundraising are prime examples for engaging Millennials and protecting brand loyalty, he said.

Despite the fact that Millennials can seem impatient, it’s imperative for marketers to try to capture their loyalty during that stage of their lives. “Millennials are important for marketers because they will grow up and be the largest spending audience in the future,” Law says.

In preparing to market to that group, Law suggested creating a customer panel first by seeing who in the market has already built a significant following. “Ask them their opinions on every aspect of the strategy. Test their opinions in real world campaigns and involve the mavens in being the mouthpiece to the audiences you are seeking to reach,” he summed.

Tami Kamin Meyer is an Ohio attorney and writer.