How to Leverage Your CRM Strategy to Connect With a Diverse Millennial Audience

Editor’s note: This piece is part of our Columnist Network series, which explores the tactical thoughts and actions from Adweek’s community of high-level experts. Today, Hernan Tagliani, CEO of The Group Advertising, discusses the importance of a strong CRM strategy to harness the marketing potential presented by demographic shifts in the U.S. Below, in his own words, he illustrates opportunities for success through the example of specific consumer markets. The more you know about the consumers you serve, the better your chances to succeed as a brand. Take today’s millennials, for example: the most tech-savvy and diverse adult generation in American history. According to a report from Brookings, more than 44% of the millennial generation are minorities—U.S. Hispanics represent over 20% of millennials nationally, and more than half of the Hispanic population is millennial. Insights from Nielsen show Hispanics have a median age of just 28, and their purchasing power is expected to reach $1.9 trillion by 2023. As we face a significant consumer evolution, brands must reevaluate their go-to marketing strategies. This large segment of diverse millennials is immersed in technology and driven by experiences—how you make them feel. That is why the brand experiential is a key component for your business success. One way to understand your consumers is through customer relationship management (CRM) technology. A big challenge in corporate America is a lack of understanding how to leverage CRM within a marketing organization. It is possible to create experiences today's consumers expect, yet critical to exceed constantly shifting expectations, and you have to understand how to capture, cleanse and store the right data. As the mainstream becomes multicultural, there is a massive opportunity to find growth and create better experiences for all demographics. I am constantly reminding executives that their customers are in the driver's seat now, and this is why CRM and customer experience strategies are so vital to a company’s success today. Here are helpful tips for getting to know your audience through data science: Understand your markets One of the best things brands can focus on is putting the customer at the center of everything they do. To do so, you must study the customer by using the right data. For example, I worked with a pharmaceutical company that had been targeting the general market, predominantly older men, for one of its main product lines. However, when we dove into the data, we uncovered a huge opportunity to target younger adult females, especially millennials. We used the data to implement the right tech approach, digitally and socially, and not only did we better engage and activate Hispanic millennials in particular, but since more than 27% of the U.S. Hispanic population lives in multigenerational homes, the younger audience taught their older relatives about the products. Quantitative and qualitative market research will help you determine the way forward. Align resources and technologies and establish mechanisms to measure performance using customer-centric KPIs. All of this data and fresh insight will empower you to create a more meaningful experience that will engage more consumers right where they are. This level of focus on the customer will show you how to stand out, generate growth and create lifetime value. As a brand shifts to be more customer-centric by embracing new data science and technology, it’s important to have the resources to analyze, understand and implement consumer data. Plus, you need to make sure every department in your organization—from product development and operations to marketing—knows how to leverage that information for success at every level. Invest in CRM A successful CRM implementation offers brands the data and technology to understand growth and retention opportunities. The data will tell you where you are underpenetrated and will provide focus when thinking of data acquisition. A successful customer experience approach with the right CRM implementation enables a brand to have the dialogue a customer expects and the capabilities to engage all audiences. Pull in data from audiences you wish to develop more significant relationships with, and you will be equipped with the tools to turn them into brand loyalists. This advice recently empowered a luxury cruise company to increase sales across audiences, particularly Hispanic consumers. Global digital and data-driven activations enabled the company to segment audiences and determine how to communicate with them, based on self-reported preferences, to better target and personalize the overall experience. The team used data preparation processes such as data gathering, combining, hygiene, message testing and third-party data. Every step was valuable, led to greater efficiency in marketing efforts and bolstered the company’s global reach as it continually refined its engagement with different audiences. I see positive outcomes with companies that are open to evolving with their consumers at every touch point—they get straight to their target consumers, reach maximum impact and build meaningful, long-lasting relationships. In the end, it is not about creating something new. It is adapting and adjusting your existing model to meet and exceed the wants and needs of customers by basing it on data you’ve captured from them. The great diversity evolution within our community is a remarkable opportunity for marketers. But if you don’t adjust your approach now, you will alienate one of the fastest-growing consumer segments in America. Brands that choose to be guided by customers' voices will launch to the forefront and ensure sustainable growth.