A picture is worth a thousand words, and with today’s smartphones, it’s easier than ever to take that picture. And who best understands and uses this technology? Millennials. Not coincidentally, they also most want to see their peers’ visual content when shopping online, as gathered from our recent study. Oh, and they spend more money online in a given year than any other age group.
To better understand how visual content is changing the way consumers shop, PowerReviews conducted a survey of more than 1,000 American consumers, including those most desirable millennials. Overall the study results pointed to the increasing role of visual User Generated Content (UGC) when shopping online for brands and retailers. And nowhere is this trend more prevalent than with millennials – those aged 18-29.
Millennials Want to See Their Own Visual Content More than Yours
A perfect example: 72% of consumers say they regularly or always seek out visual content; however, younger shoppers are even more likely to search for photos and videos prior to purchase – a full 81%.
Brands and retailers, aiming to effectively reach younger consumers, must provide a means for them to submit photos and videos of products in action to complement or even replace professional visual content. While 42% of all shoppers say that it’s important or very important that a product’s reviews include user-submitted photos and videos, this jumps to 58% among millennial consumers. Almost as many millennials, 54%, find this user-submitted visual content more valuable than a professional photo supplied by a retailer or brand.
Tech-Savvy + $ to Burn = Millennials
Think it’s ok to ignore visual UGC when courting millennial shoppers? Almost a third (32%) of all consumers report they’re less likely to purchase a product if they can’t find photos or videos of the product from other consumers. Nearly one-half (47%) of millennials feel this way.
Want to ensure you’re doing the best you can to convert millennial shoppers? Start with these tips.
Tips for Targeting Millennial Shoppers
- Request photos and videos from your young shoppers. Your desired demographic is looking for product photos and videos from their peers. Start asking them to submit photos and videos as part of their reviews. And make it easy to do this directly from their phones – if you set it up, they’ll know how to use it.
- Prominently feature visual UGC on your product pages. Professional images can be striking, but the majority of millennials would prefer to see this.
- Leverage user-generated visual content in other marketing initiatives. This content can be leveraged on other areas of your website, including your homepage, category pages, and campaign-specific landing pages. And don’t neglect the stomping grounds of Millennials – think Twitter and Instagram.
Check out this infographic below or download the full report to understand the types of visual content different consumer segments are seeking and how it’s influencing trust and purchase behavior.
