When we leverage life-stage marketing, we’re able to reach our targets at the right moment in time with the right message. Case in point? Let’s look at two Gen Zs. One is a 13-year-old girl making an inspo board for her blowout bat mitzvah. The other is a 25-year-old woman planning the wedding of her dreams. Both are from the same generation. Both are seeking a venue for a milestone event. But that’s where the similarities end.
What’s in a number? Not much.
As travel and hospitality marketing experts, we zero in on a specific life stage within a generation. Below is just a small taste to show how ages may overlap, but where individuals are in life holds far more meaning – and far more sway over how to appeal to them.
Any one of these targets can travel to your destination or stay at your resort, but they each require their own personally relevant messaging. Where an Affluent Family 32-year-old looks for a zero-entry pool with water spray features and age-appropriate slides for their little ones, a Young & Free 32-year-old is seeking a serene adults-only pool with beverage service to keep those frozen cocktails coming.
Data, data, data!
Just because someone searches for a Disney Cruise does not mean they are an Affluent Family. They could, for example, be a Multigenerational Family or in another life stage segment altogether. At Dana, we use statistical analysis to help us home in on the right targets. Once we have identified these targets, the next and most critical step is delivering perfectly-timed communications.
Exponential value
Let’s circle back to our bat mitzvah teen and say she gets served an ad for a luxury resort ballroom. She shares this with her parents as “the place” she needs to hold her party, then has an amazing time with her friends, who all post about the event on social media. This user-generated content triggers interest among even more targets in the same life stage (with sweet 16 bashes not too far down the road). Someday, she and those friends (and those friends of friends!) may also become starry-eyed brides in search of a reception venue. Remembering that blowout bat mitzvah, they’ll hit TheKnot.com to check out that same resort ballroom for wedding details. Of course, if that resort has been effectively employing life-stage marketing, their message should already have captured their attention.
All the world’s a (life) stage — and Dana has the script. Contact Lynn Kaniper at 609.466.9187 ext. 117 or lkaniper@danacommunications.com today to learn how we can help you design a successful life-stage marketing strategy.
