Millennials & Events: How Millennials Are Changing Events

Millennials & Events: How Millennials Are Changing Events

Senior level management teams have been struggling with the question on how to get younger generations more engaged with their brands. Well, HI! Luckily I am a millennial myself and can answer this question with a few different things to try at your next event.

Technology

First, step into our shoes and out of your own. We grew up surrounded by technology but were encouraged to stay active, learned independence at an early age, grew competitive to become the best and followed our dreams. We are not only millennials but trendsetters.

I know I’ve said it before in this series, but technology is key to attracting millennials. Technology is how we connect, how we grew up and were taught to connect; it’s not our faults that's just how it is. Having everything accessible for your event online, from registration to event photos is a sure way to promote millennial attendance. Everything at the touch of a button, super convenient, short and straightforward.

Technology also ties into having a social media presence. If we can’t find you on a platform, most likely we won’t be attending your event because we don’t know anything about your brand. Whenever I see a listing for an event, the first thing I do is check out their social media pages. Why? I want to witness the experience!! Is there proof of their event being fun or having everything it is promising in its ad? Social media is everything and I can't stress that enough.

Keep It Moving

Because I grew up with so much technology, my parents, teachers, the world couldn’t stress enough the importance of staying active and going outside; who wants to go to an event to sit and feel guilty about doing nothing.

Make sure your event encourages movement. If you have booths, spread them apart in an open area and encourage walking. Create a scavenger hunt, have a dance floor and music, do small team-building activities if it’s a conference or meeting. Keep it active, this is not only physically healthy but keeps our brains active and creates a more engaged audience.

Interactive Learning

Believe it or not, we love to learn. Millennials are really into anything that encourages brain growth on any subject. Podcasts, keynotes, guest speakers, fun facts apps, trivia games you name it. I guess we are somewhat millennial nerds, but it’s our way of improving ourselves.

Here are some examples of how you can make learning interactive at your next event; The 7 Most Interactive Sessions We've Seen at Innovative Events.

Competition & Teams

Color runs, mud runs, escape games, and courses for team building are super popular with this generation; especially when turned into a competition. However, I think every generation loves healthy competition not just millennials.

Depending on your event, offering small challenges and games throughout might be a great way to keep an active audience and give them something to look forward to. However big or small the competition it’s up to you.