Marketing to Millennials in 2025: 4 Effective Marketing Tactics

Millennials are currently the largest generation, and their spending power is substantial. Their preferences differ from those of Gen X and Gen Z.

There are 1.8 billion millennials—or members of Generation Y—in the world. Needless to say, this age group makes for a huge target audience. Born between 1981 and 1996, this socially conscious generation constitutes 23% of the global population. In the United States, there are 74.19 million millennials, and they recently surpassed the baby boomers (born 1946–1964) as the biggest generational cohort.

Their demographic size and subsequent purchasing power make nailing millennial marketing critical, but winning them over is not always straightforward. Keep reading to learn how you can tap into the millennial mindset by creating content that resonates and building meaningful relationships with this expansive target market.

Who are millennials?

Forget the jokes about how millennials spend all their money on fancy coffee and avocado toast. In the past five years, they've been accumulating wealth. Millennials' total net worth has nearly quadrupled since 2019: It grew from $3.94 trillion in Q3 2019 to $15.95 trillion in Q3 2024, according to Federal Reserve data.

Relatability

While both generations gravitate toward relatable and authentic content, successful millennial campaigns lean more heavily into emotional storytelling, aesthetics, and personalized engagement.

Compared to Gen Z, who thrive on disruption and originality, maybe even quirk, millennials tend to prefer consistency, intentionality, and a sense of elevated style.

Social media consumption

Gen Z favors video-first platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat. Eighty-two percent of Gen Z are likely to have a TikTok account, which supports a generational shift in app preference. While not immune to the allure of video-based apps, millennials still engage with text and photo-based apps, such as LinkedIn and Meta's suite of Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

Gen Z is also more inclined than millennials to use social shopping, with 42% likely to buy holiday gifts through social media, while this behavior concerns only 26% of millennials, per eMarketer.

Financial responsibilities

Millennials and Gen X share substantial financial preoccupations. Both are now sandwich generations, supporting both their children and their aging parents. This is the case for nearly all sandwiched adults in their 30s (95%) and 65% of those in their 40s.

Key approaches to marketing to millennials

When it comes to developing your own marketing strategy, there are a few key approaches that can help you reach the millennial audience:

Invest in user-generated content: User-generated content (UGC) comes off as more thorough and genuine, and its value is projected to reach $32.6 billion by 2030. More than 78% of millennials feel UGC is more trustworthy and valuable than brand, retailer, or influencer content, with a preference for video as a medium.
Cultivate genuine influencer marketing: Millennials can detect inauthenticity quickly, so influencer marketing must prioritize genuine enthusiasm. The most effective campaigns involve creators who are real fans of the brand, who use their own voice and storytelling, and who aren’t overly scripted.
Curate your content and products: Curation is essential for millennials' self-expression, and this extends to marketing. Millennials love lo-fi authenticity over polish, but still with clean aesthetics—different from Gen Z’s proclivity for a more unfiltered, chaotic authenticity.
Offer rewards and discounts: Referral programs, discount codes offered during podcasts, and subscribe-and-save options are a good way to win them over.

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