If Millennials don't like your brand, should you buy a brand they like?

I've noticed a trend lately.  Unilever bought Dollar Shave Club.  Estee Lauder bought Too Faced Cosmetics.  And this week Neiman Marcus announced a new partnership with Rent the Runway.

Rent the Runway is an online company that rents designer apparel and accessories.  It has recently  begun to expand into brick and mortar locations and now Neiman Marcus is incorporating Rent the Runway units into their stores.  

The idea is to surround the rental clothing with appropriate accessories that the customer can buy to enhance their rented designer items..  There will be in-store services such as styling and purchasing advice, and an app for checking avails and reserving merchandise.

Currently the average age of the Neiman Marcus customer is 52.  The average age for a Rent the Runway customer is 29.  Of course they are hoping that once they have gotten Millennials into the store they will become customers. 

So what do you think?  Do you shop in department stores?  Will you go to Neiman Marcus?  Do you think this idea will work?  And what about the other brands I mentioned?  Is buying brands popular with millennials the best way for companies with Boomer brands to remain in business?

Loeb, W. (2016, November 22)  Neiman Marcus Partners With Rent the Runway To Attract Much Needed Millennial Consumers.  forbes.com.  Retrieved November 23, 2016, from

http://www.forbes.com/sites/walterloeb/2016/11/22/neiman-marcus-partners-with-rent-the-runway-to-attract-much-needed-millennial-consumers/print/

Is web site design impacting your choices?

I was looking for a topic for this week's blog, so I went to adage.com.  I haven't visited in a while.  In the interim, they redesigned their site. 

It's an interesting approach.  The landing page is fairly typical - with one ad in a box.  No banners.  But if you scroll down you get a series of squares with ads intermingled.  I find the ads less intrusive in this environment.  And at the very least I am looking at the visual and registering the brand name.  I tend to tune the boxes out when they are along the side.

The ads were a mix.  The first was for a company I buy from regularly.  The next one was from a site I looked at, but didn't buy from.  The last was for Cats -- been there done that, showed no interest online.  But I do live in Manhattan.

You can take a look at the design here...

http://adage.com/

This got me wondering about your favorite website designs and how you think they are impacting your decision-making when they serve you ads for other products.  Are the ads integrated?  Are they still using banners?  What about pop-ups? Do you have a preferred approach?

Blue Cross Blue Shield wants you to floss.

Despite evidence that not flossing can cause heart disease, 80% of people don't floss.  Based on the belief that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, BCBSA has just launched a wellness campaign.  Other topics to be covered include sleep, balance and sitting.

Interestingly the communications strategy targets thought-leaders and influencers -- teachers, CrossFit and other fitness enthusiasts. 

Here's the video. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28rWjlIaAaQ

So what do you think?  Will it resonate with the target?  Was it a smart move to target mavens instead of end users?  Why or why not?  Will it persuade you to start flossing?

Faw, L. (2016, November 9)  Floss To Be Fit: Blue Cross Blue Shield's First Foray Into Video.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved November 11, 1016, from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/288730/floss-to-be-fit-blue-cross-blue-shields-first-fo.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=97984