As Theo Scholze was preparing to write this month’s blog post, he was expressing concern over the marketing campaign that is currently being funded by our checkoff dollars through Dairy Management Inc. (DMI). He felt that they were missing the millennial audience, and he was concerned that while they are working with the NFL, they aren’t associated with any “one name” athletes or their sports – Lebron, Michael, Pele or Ronolodo.
As a result, he asked me to provide a millennial take on DMI and their campaigns, and provide recommendations that I may have for reaching my generation to spread the good news about dairy.
DMI does a great deal with their promotion to live healthy and for children to “Fuel up to Play 60.” However, that does not pertain to us millennials. Upon reflection, I realize we are a difficult generation to inform. We are consumed by technology and rarely think about reading a newspaper or even a magazine, which used to be a great outlet for the “Got Milk?” campaign, which I have not seen since I was in third grade. Regular television is even becoming obsolete with the introduction of Netflix and Hulu. This begins to raise the importance of how DMI could and should reach out to the millennials.
The fact that technology is a part of the everyday routine of the millennials provides the fact that the focus for reaching this generation should be through the use of technology. Yes, Facebook is a viable option for DMI to reach out, but even Facebook is being utilized less by the millennials and more by the baby boomers. Keeping this in mind, the preferred social media outlets for the millennials are Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr.
Instagram being primarily pictures allows for a quick and simple outreach that can be done in seconds. Twitter can be used for a variety of mediums, such as articles, personal opinions and pictures. Tumblr is a blogging site. This can prove to be greatly beneficial because this provides an environment to get an important point across in a casual manner. However, the main drawback for using social media is that individuals have to choose to follow the account in order for those individuals to be informed about the efforts DMI is making to improve the advertisement of the dairy industry.
Although Netflix and Hulu have become the most popular ways to watch television, this does not include sports. If DMI were to put funding toward a commercial, it could be aired during sporting events. This could even branch out from the NFL and lead to ties with the NCAA, MLB, NBA, MLS and NHL, which would allow for a wider audience reach.
Even though reaching the millennials seems to be more hassle than desired, it is essential that they are reached and educated about the interworking of the dairy industry. Social media may seem like a dead end, but then again, nothing comes easily. As a millennial who is entering the industry, the importance of education and advertisement is becoming a more pressing issue. Creating and continually posting on accounts for Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr and even Facebook will prove to be important. The most important aspect for social media is to keep up with demand and to continue to post regularly so information is out and circulating in the public, especially to the millennials.
In conclusion, I think that DMI needs to make a more concentrated effort to reach us and work with our preferred vendors, Chipotle, Starbucks, etc. Our hope should be by getting this generation to demand and consume more dairy, we can push the supply side of the demand curve and help all of us out! PD
Elizabeth Moseley is a junior at Mississippi State, pursuing a degree in animal and dairy science. She is currently interning at Theo Scholze's dairy farm in Humbird, Wisconsin.
Editor’s note: Progressive Dairyman reached out to Elizabeth Moseley and Theo Scholze with this follow-up question:
Q. The Dairy Good website (which is run by DMI) does have social media accounts, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. They also recently launched the Udder Truth series to reach millennials and dispel myths about dairy. Can you comment on how effective (or not effective) you think those campaigns have been at reaching millennials?
Scholze: I can tell you that the videos are too long; very few people are going to sit through them. As far as social media, I don’t think they’re active enough. They’re not utilizing what is trending to get their posts seen, and they’re not participating in things like #agchat or #foodchat, which are heavily viewed by younger audiences. This lack of participation makes their social media presence a total miss. They need to understand something: Social media is 24-7, not 9 to 5.
It would help them immensely if they listened to members, as there are lots of good ideas out there, but a general unwillingness to listen is limiting their effectiveness.
