Learning to technovate: decoding the new consumer mind with Kit Yarrow

Before Kit Yarrow's presentation even began, I could tell we were in for a treat.

The auditorium was buzzing with an excited energy when President White took the stage to introduce Kelly Mooney, CEO of Resource Ammirati (the country’s largest independent digital marketing agency).

Mooney’s introduction of Yarrow as an authority on consumer psychology was both informative and funny, much as Yarrow’s own presentation was. Did you know that we (Millennials) check our phones, on average, 150 times per day? Apparently, 20 percent of Millennials have even checked their phones while having sex! Yarrow says we’re not doing it right.

Enlightening statistics, sharp humor, and adorable dog photos (she’s a self-proclaimed canine lover) drove home Yarrow's main point: we are being rewired. And it’s not just young people. It's everyone.

According to Yarrow, technology is rewiring the brains of every generation. She suggests that in order to successfully market to Millenials and Gen Y, companies must “technovate”—a term Yarrow coined to describe the action of creating consumer engagement through technology and social media.

As a fashion design student, Yarrow’s presentation offered valuable insight into the mind of my customer. Most of the collections that I design cater to a Millennial or Gen Y audience. The use of color, for example, is pivotal in fashion design, perhaps even more pivotal in lingerie design. We all know that red is a sexy color, but did you know that waitresses wearing red receive 16-24% higher tips from men? Most men would never admit to this and may not even be aware of it, but this just goes to show the importance of consumer psychology in marketing.

The trick is in knowing your customer better than they know themselves; that’s where Kit Yarrow comes in.

Sarah Ribble is a CCAD senior fashion design major who enjoys designing lingerie, drinking tea, and collecting new baubles for her ever-growing charm bracelet.