It’s a myth that younger generations dominate social media—even moreso in this post-Covid world that’s emerging from a prolonged period of social distancing.  The fact is that social media usage among Gen Xers and Baby Boomers is also, well, booming—but for different reasons.  With all generations taking to social media in some form on the daily, social media should be a key part of any forward-looking marketing strategy.

“If you’re still marketing to a specific maturity level instead of a mindset, you may be missing out.”

Here are 5 things to consider for communicating effectively across generations through social media:

  1. Presence. Each social media platform has unique benefits and audiences. Different generations are drawn toward different platforms—typically the more established a platform is, the greater the chance of older-generation engagement.  YouTube is a crowd-pleaser across the board.  While Baby Boomers far outpace Gen Zers when it comes to Facebook usage, and vice versa when it comes to Instagram, these platforms plus LinkedIn have cross-generational appeal.  It’s easy to meet your users wherever they’re at if you create one message and publish it across different platforms.
  2. Purpose. Generations tend to interact with social media in different ways. For example:
    • Members of all generations are increasingly shopping online—even if the transaction doesn’t occur virtually, the research typically starts there. Baby Boomers use social media as a research tool, complementing their brick-and-mortar experiences.  Gen Xers are also researching online, often with deeper dives demanding more educational and exciting brand content.
    • Millennials tend to use social media as a primary means of connection with friends, family, and the world, engaging with brands and their communities in a potentially viral way.
    • Millennials and Gen Zers view social media as a mechanism for responsive customer service.
    • Gen Zers turn to social media for two-way brand interaction, learning about new brands, and social commerce. As digital natives that have grown up with social media, Gen Zers expect a level of sophistication based on data analysis and personalization, that will result in a meaningful yet unintrusive brand experience.

What do all these differences imply?  Focus on the least common denominator that will be positive (or neutral) to all generations: provide access to in-depth brand content that educates and motivates, comprehensive customer service, and opportunities for user-created content and social commerce.

  1. Pictures. All generations appreciate visuals—whether it’s a photo or a video. To span generational and social divides, visuals should feature diverse models and ideas.  Younger people enjoy dynamic visual content, while the unyoung tend to prefer slower-paced, informative videos.  Incorporating both elements into your social media strategy can ensure you’re reaching both types of consumers.
  2. Messaging. Headlines targeting a specific generational cohort can be an unintentional turnoff to other generations. You’re better off crafting headlines that are not generationally-based to avoid alienating any users (or potential users).
  3. Accessibility. From captions to alt-text, your posts need to be accessible due to the increasing social adoption across all age groups. It’s important to think about elements like color contrasts, font sizes, and type to ensure legibility of any text that you’re using to complement your visuals.

If reaching a multigenerational audience is important to your organization, we can help you craft a strategy that incorporates on point design for social media.  Let’s connect!