Millennials have been a trending topic for the past 10 years. The intensity of interest in them is growing as their purchasing power increases, soon to surpass that of the Baby Boomers. Nearly every company has identified a need to connect with the millennial generation. A handful have defined an actual strategy around targeting and engaging millennials.
This intensity comes from a reasonable place – a desire to tap into a segment of the American population with both a high disposable income and a lifetime value to a brand that could span decades.
But here’s the problem: Targeting a loosely defined group of 80 million people doesn’t exactly classify as a marketing strategy.
While there is no official start and stop date, its widely accepted that consumers born between 1981-1999 represent the “true” millennials. That means that consumers as young as 18 and as old as 36 are all legitimately considered millennials. Some elder millennials have lived literally twice as long as their youngest counterparts. So, where does that leave us?
The secret to effectively leveraging this generation of consumers lies in targeting one specific group. Within this diverse mix of college co-eds and minivan driving parents, your real audience is hiding in plain sight. They are known as the HENRYs. HENRY stands for “High Earner, Not Rich Yet.” A HENRY (High Earner Not Rich Yet) is defined as: a household under 55 years old with an annual income between $100K and $250K, but that has not amassed investable assets of $1M.
Maritz Motivation Solutions, one of our sponsors here at The Wise Marketer, has published an eye-opening white paper which outlines who this valuable cohort is - and why marketers need to refocus their efforts toward them. You can download the white paper here.
