Helping Parents of Gen Yers Represents Huge Business Opportunity
Heard any parents talking lately about their child’s money management skills ... or lack thereof? We have. PSCU-FS recently took to the streets to speak with parents about their Gen Yers. Click and hear real parents seeking help.
A major part of our ProjectNewAge Initiative is helping CUs leverage parents as a channel for reaching Gen Y. You can best do this by providing parents with relevant information (and effective tools) for educating their Gen Yers on important money matters.
That’s what our newly launched Web site, GiveMe20.com, is all about. Because what parents need most from you is valuable tips and information. To help CUs provide just that to parents, we’ll be producing a series of Parent-to-Gen Y blog post tips over the next couple months.
Many parenting experts today feel it’s important that parents encourage (even require) their Gen Yers to earn some of their own money ... and becoming a young entrepreneur is a great approach for some Gen Yers. Here are 5 ideas you can share with your member parents to get their Gen Yers “in the business” of making their own money.
Entering Contests.Today’s Gen Yers can enter “business entrepreneur” competitions like those found at NFTE.com. The financial or scholarship prizes are just the beginning ... many businesses enthusiastically sponsor local Gen Yers to help get youth business ideas off the ground. And having won such a competition looks pretty impressive on a resume. It’s something a Gen Y can carry with him/her forever. Or, the Gen Yer could even attend the upcoming National Youth Business Conference.
Generating Ad Partnerships.Gen Yers can seek local sponsors and advertisers for their products or services, e.g., selling advertising space on flyers, postcards, Web sites and blogs. Ad dollars generated can even pay for production, printing and distribution of the Gen Yer’s own company promotions.
Show Their Gen Y’ness.As a member of Gen Y they have uncanny abilities to work online ... and there are lots of people (customers) willing to pay for various “Web Lessons”. Gen Yers can even offer free Web lessons for small businesses at their local library ... and at the end of the class they can offer to sell that Web expertise to any and all interested companies.
Sleeve Rolling. Good ol’ odd jobs like cutting grass, raking leaves, dog walking, shoveling show, etc., may not be the coolest ways to make money, but they’ve been around forever because they work. This type of work may not be directly related to their business, or business idea, but they can rest easy knowing their effort is raising funds for that burgeoning business.
Spreading The Word.Gen Yers can get the word out about their business endeavors by writing articles on the subject in your local newspapers. They can write about their own experiences starting a youth business; small local newspapers are always looking for “filler” content. And it’s a great way for Gen Yers to get some free promotion—with a single publication credit, a Gen Yer can become known as an expert at whatever they do.
For Gen Yers to make a little extra money on their own, all it takes is a little innovation and a willingness to make it work. With their parents’ help, Gen Yers can learn to be resourceful and creative about making money. Remember, your member parents of Gen Yers are looking for help and ideas, so provide it. PSCU-FS will help too.
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