Updated: May 4

To say that marketing has evolved greatly over time is an understatement, and there are numerous factors that play a role. First, it is crucial to know what causes general changes in marketing.

Reasons for Changes in Marketing

· Social changes

Consumer tastes and demands are constantly changing and being shaped by social trends (as well as legal, economic, environmental).

In the recent years, new promotional methods such as influencer marketing have grown exponentially, and according to Forbes, 2/3 of shoppers today use social media for shopping (2021).

Such changes can also affect customer demand for products and services, resulting in a shift in the demand curve (BBC, 2022).

· Technological advancements

We are currently living in a highly digitalized era, being introduced to innovations in technology that previous generations did not witness until further on in their careers.

Because of this, businesses modify their marketing mix to leverage the marketing opportunities that new technology brings in areas such as communication, digital advertising, distribution, product and service development, and customer reach.

The marketing mix is a set of controllable variables that a business can use to influence consumer response, in this case referring to product, price, place and promotion (Kotler, 2021).

How has Marketing Changed Over Time?

As stated above, technological advancements have shaped the way businesses operate in terms of marketing.

New innovations in technology have provided companies with new means of communications with their customers, such as social media platforms and email marketing, as opposed to traditional marketing methods of the past.

Technology has also provided businesses new channels and devices that provide the ability to increase the level of personalization within marketing campaigns, supplying relevant and consistent personalized interactions and promotions that result in augmented lifetime value and customer loyalty (Jackson, 2007).

Today’s digital marketing can also reach a wider audience than traditional marketing; e-commerce platforms have the ability to sell products worldwide, rather than a physical store only being able to sell within the local area, for this reason marketing had to (at times) be adapted to suit a wider range of demographics (Salesforce, 2022).

Focus has shifted a lot towards establishing their brand philosophy; in other words, marketing not only their products and services for profit but also their brand purpose (KelloggInsight, 2022).

As Kotler stated, “today’s companies promise to deliver beyond functionality and reflect certain aspects of customers’ identity”, whereas in the past, the main aim of marketing was to state what the product or service does for you and how much it costs.

One thing that has not changed despite the rise of technology, social media and e-commerce is customer-centricity and the fact that a company’s key purpose is value creation for customers (Kotler, 2022).

However, the introduction of new tools such as artificial intelligence and automation have altered the way companies create value (Chernev, 2022).

What is Generational Marketing?

The meaning of generational marketing refers to segmenting customers into various groups based on their age (Thomas Jefferson University, 2020).

As stated in ‘Marketing to the Generations’ from the Journal of Behavioral Studies in Business, “not every generation is alike, nor should they be treated by marketers in the same way” (Williams, K.C. & Page, R. A., 2011).

For this reason, companies may opt for a multigenerational marketing strategy; the execution of appealing to the unique needs of individuals consisting of or relating to more than one generation (Cambridge, 1995), (Morris, 1982).

To put things into perspective, targeting today’s 19-year-olds with the marketing methods that were used for past generations when they were 19 years old is unlikely to be efficient due to these generational changes over time. What differentiates each generation is divergences regarding their:

– experiences

– expectations

– ways of life

– generational history

– demographics

which shape their purchasing behavior. Consumer culture is constantly changing, so to keep up and execute efficient marketing, it is crucial to know and understand the different generational customer segments.

What are the Different Generations of Marketing?

You can interact with the timeline below, just hover over to see the various generations of marketing and key characteristics that impact and differentiate marketing towards each generation.

Every successful business must consider generational marketing changes and the different methods used to target each generation efficiently. Luckily, BrandTrends is here to help.

On the 9th of November, CEO Philippe Guineadeau will be partaking in the BLISS Conference, where he will discuss specifically how to market to Gen Z & Alpha. Don’t miss out and learn more (https://www.brandlicensinginnovationsummit.com/en/attend-north-america/agenda.html#day2).

Additionally, follow BrandTrends on LinkedIn for updates.