What Obama Can Teach You About Millennial Marketing†

Consistent Mass Branding Works -- but Can Backfire With Other Demographics

Advertising Age, August 11, 2008 — Baby boomers and Gen Xers declared mass marketing dead long ago. We live in a world of fragmented media surrounded by cynical consumers who can spot and block an ad message from a mile away. But what Gen Xers and boomers may not realize is that the unabashed embrace of select brands by millennials, from technology to beverages to fashion, has made this decade a true golden era of marketing for those who know what they're doing. And when it comes to marketing, the Barack Obama campaign knows what it's doing.

Generation Gab†

Brandweek, July 2, 2008 — For those who think media fragmentation and niche marketing have redefined marketing permanently, here's something to chew on. What if the microscopically splintered youth demo out there right now—recent college grads on down to kids riding the bus to preschool—ends up gelling, melting and solidifying into a uniform power bloc of consumers? And what if, contrary to popular wisdom, they're not self-important, undisciplined individualists riding on digital highs, but a team-playing, risk-averse group that fosters familial bonding? All this would mean that Gen Y actually looks a lot more like, well, AARP. It would mean that the billions of dollars'worth of microtargeted marketing being created right now just could be a . . . waste of time? Then what?