How brands can engage the parents of a new generation
The next generation are a key demographic for many brands and marketers, but Generation A has little-to-no spending power; it's their parents who hold the pursestrings. So, asks Clare Turner, Chief Commercial Officer at Pearl & Dean, how do you engage them?
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Generation Alpha, the generation born since 2010, is the talk of the town among many marketers lately. Whether that’s understanding their viewing preferences to see how best to target them, or figuring out how to differentiate them from the generations that came previously, this demographic is a hot topic.
While it's important to understand how brands meet the needs of children today, it is their parents who currently hold the spending power.
However, while it's important to understand how brands meet the needs of children today, it is their parents who currently hold the spending power, and this is an audience that may be overlooked by some marketers.
As a parent of a Gen A child myself, I know how busy life can be; managing my own schedule as well as my daughter's (and Gen Z son) is hectic, to say the least! Our lifestyles mean I prefer concise, clear and supportive communications from brands. We value products or services that offer convenience, safety, and value for our families.
Above: 66% of families in the UK say that a trip to the cinema is one of the best ways to spend quality time together.
Engaging parents of Generation A involves building trust through empathy, personalised content and practical solutions to everyday life. We appreciate brands that respect our time and make purchasing decisions easier and, to fully capitalise on this, brands need to tailor their approach to target parents effectively.
A magical family experience
One of the most impactful channels through which to reach parents is cinema. Think about it - for parents, the cinema represents far more than just an outing. It's an opportunity to step away from the hustle and bustle of daily life, bond with their children and share moments of awe and wonder. In fact, 66% of families in the UK agree that a cinema trip is one of the best ways to spend quality time together.
Cinema has become much more than just a place to watch the latest movies.
Cinema has become much more than just a place to watch the latest movies. The shared sensory experience of cinema-going is also a form of emotional memory-making, from buying snacks finding your seats, enjoying the experience and switching off. Yes, it's a rare time away from mobile devices.
In this relaxed state, it is also an ideal environment for brands to reach parents through highly targeted advertising that resonates. In fact, according to recent Film Audience Measurement and Evaluation [FAME] data, 70% of families agree that cinema adverts are trustworthy, with half (50%) of families surveyed saying that adverts at the cinema tell more of a story than adverts on other media.
This creates a valuable environment for brands aiming to build trust and engage meaningfully with both parents and kids.
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Above: Soltan embrace the Minion mayhem with the release of Despicable Me 4.
An example of this is Fisher Price, which collaborated with Showcase Cinema to sponsor its Baby Cinema screenings. These screenings were adapted for parents with babies by adjusting the environment with softer lighting, lowering film volumes and allowing free movement within the cinema.
Partnering with bespoke screenings like this was a creative way for the educational toy brand to get in front of this highly targeted and engaged audience, which helped foster brand loyalty by associating the brand with such a memorable, stress-free outing for parents.
The power of partnerships
Beyond the cinema, brands can reach family audiences effectively through creative partnerships with popular film franchises. Aligning with beloved family films and their characters allows brands to tap into the emotional connection that audiences already have with these stories.
Strategic partnerships have the potential to transform how parents perceive a brand.
Boots did this to fantastic effect when its suncare brand Soltan collaborated with Despicable Me 4 to encourage families to take care during their summer holidays with sun protection. The partnership featured an extensive campaign harnessing the power of the iconic Minion characters from the film franchise. By partnering with a character that both parents and children love, Soltan was able to capture the attention of family shoppers while also conveying a valuable message to families about sun safety in a fun and relatable way.
These kinds of strategic partnerships have the potential to transform how parents perceive a brand. By leveraging the built-in excitement and emotional connection audiences have with family-friendly films, brands can amplify their messaging and create memorable moments that stick with families long after they leave the cinema.
Above: Universal utilised characters from their film Migration to create a playful spin on the classic Pearl & Dean ident.
Looking ahead to this winter and to early 2025, brands have a wealth of opportunities to connect with upcoming family films through smart partnerships that can help a brand amplify its reach while delivering a solid return for both brand and film. For example, Moana 2, offers real opportunities for brands to create authentic connections with their audience. From travel brands to eco-friendly brands or organisations, running advertising around the film could allow real connection between the brand and consumers.
In our house, the excitement is mounting for Wicked, and there is also huge potential to leverage the iconic characters from this film, with a plethora of opportunities for brands to tap into that signature shade of green.
In a world dominated by digital media, the cinema continues to hold a special place in family’s hearts.
With 56% of families surveyed in FAME believing that adverts and trailers are an integral part of the overall cinema experience, brands could leverage the musical element of a film like next year's Smurfs: The Musical to create a playful spin to ad-reel creative, or amplify this further by taking ownership of an ident, much like Universal did for their release of Migration. They created a bespoke P&D ident [above] that was played before Wish and Wonka to promote the future release. Similarly, Hovis took this approach with Sherlock Gnomes, partnering with the film through on pack promotion and creating a unique cinema ident.
In a world dominated by digital media, the cinema continues to hold a special place in family’s hearts. Brands which are unafraid to be a bit more playful and creative with their cinema advertising and partnerships have the potential to forge deeper, more meaningful connections with family audiences.
Now is the time for brands to tap into the magic of cinema, build relationships with parents – the true gatekeepers of family spending – and create campaigns that resonate far beyond the theatre walls.
