This excellent article by Lauren Friedman, Head of Global Social Business Enablement at Adobe, really resonated with me.  I, alas, am not a millennial (just a few years out...) but an increasing number of my clients, clients are.  I wholeheartedly concur with Lauren's observation that it has never been more important for brands to get their digital acts together. 

As a video content agency our focus is both on delivering audience focussed content and on the distribution of that content to that target audience. As that target audience's mindset changes, so must we as storytellers evolve - or quite simply we and our clients will get left behind.  

"Traditional ads don’t work anymore because 84% of millennials simply don’t trust traditional advertising. They don’t like the pushy, disingenuous nature of commercials and will do anything within their power to skip, fast forward, and even block any content that even hints at advertising. Of course, there are some brands that are good at creating digital ads; but being creative, emotive, and innovative while melding the components of a successful ad together is tough — and few brands succeed."

Being "creative, emotive and innovative" doesn't always come naturally to every business and I would say in particular professional services firms. The very essence of what they do, be it law, finance, engineering, is based on knowledge-based expertise. They are often inherently cautious businesses, operating in a world of numbers, facts and laws. For these businesses, connecting with their clients on an emotive level, embracing the power of engaging, inspiring video content as a means of communicating with potential clients, can feel counter intuitive. Yet it is, in my humble opinion, even more important for this sector to recognise who their clients increasingly are. 

Millennials are people born between 1980 and 2000. They are not "youngsters" the oldest of this generation are approaching 40 years old. They are now the decision makers. They are entrepreneurs with serious money to spend. For professional services firms, investing in millennial engagement is critical. 

1 in 2 millennials will read an email from a company if it includes a video. 1 in 2!

4 in 5 millennials find video helpful during initial research. So if a firm does not have video, they are not being helpful to this generation.

If you would like to see examples of professional services firms who are embracing 'creative, emotive and innovative' and who are reaping the rewards of video communication, drop me a line and I'll send you the evidence.