Marketing Wedding Registry Trends

Just as millennials have a unique way of customizing their weddings to reflect their personalities and lifestyles, Millennials get married later in life and this leads to different expectations for the wedding registry business. These generational differences are having an impact on the wedding registry which will only evolve more as Generation Z grows.

Millennials do weddings their own way, while still following somewhat traditional and the same reflects of modern wedding registries. Couples are still creating registries at traditional venues like department and home stores, but are also doing registries at online stores, including Amazon, as well as stores that speak to their personal interests, such as outdoor stores like REI. Millennial couples are getting married later in life and many also have previously lived together, and their wedding registries are reflecting that. Since many couples already have traditional registry gifts like cookware and linens, Millennials are building upon their desire for meaningful experiences and registering for unique destination trips for their honeymoon and choosing experiences over linens and cookware. Also, there is a shift from traditional gifts like sets of china to more tech gifts like smart home gadgets such as a smart thermostat or wireless speakers.

Additionally, including the trends mentioned above, Millennials are also seeking alternative directions to registering, using sites like Zola or Honeyfund to explore their desire for unique ideas and guests on these sites, can donate to the couples’ honeymoon, make a cash donation for a specific experience or wedding costs, or make donations to charities and causes important to the couple instead of traditional registry. A recent survey reveals the Millennials’ guests want to offer a gift unique to the couple and in hopes the gift can give back. The survey found that people ages 18-39 are more likely to donate to a charity the couple has included on their registry, rather than gifting a traditional item.

In order to compete for the modern couple, wedding registry companies are constantly evolving to address consumers’ changing needs, making it easy and convenient for customers to shop with a streamlines process. Sites like Zola and Amazon give Millennials the ability to create a registry from dozens of retailers, versus a traditional registry that is established at a particular retailer. Direct navigation, easy search, strong product information and visualization, all aid in creating a streamlined, seamless and ease of convenience process for consumers. Additionally, the expansion of offerings beyond physical goods to services and donations appeals to consumers’ increasing desire for experiences and that their purchases are a reflection of the couple’s values and truly offers a unique experience that reflects on the couple’s personality and lifestyle.