Millennials are making their mark as consumers to watch and the beauty industry is working overtime to create relationships with this new generation of savvy, opinionated, value-driven shoppers. Often defined as those born from 1980 to 2000, this generation is all about buzz, listening to it and most importantly, creating it. But they’ve been hit hard, according to LSN’s Trend Briefing Autumn/Winter 2013. “About 53.6% of U.S. graduates are in unskilled jobs or unemployed,” stated the report.

With that, Millennials want to be dazzled and engaged by a brand before becoming loyal. And it’s not just their opinions that matter: Millennials are proving to be an economic powerhouse. According to Time.com, they represent roughly 80 million Americans, spending $600 billion annually; expected to hit $1.4 trillion annually year by 2020 – about 30% of all retail sales.

And the Millennials conversation isn’t exclusive to the U.S. Countries from around the world converged in Cannes in October to attend the TFWA World Exhibition. There, big buzz circulated around Tweezerman’s announcement that it’s bringing international brand UBU (Urban Beauty United) to the U.S. in an effort to target Millennials. UBU offers a lower price point, vibrant attitude and products for the bold, yet frugal Millennials. Colorful application tools and copy writing, much like its namesake “UBU,” tap into the Millennial’s desire to engage. The bold and fashion-forward cosmetic tools are “designed to make some noise and break some rules.” Tweezerman was also seen targeting this value conscious generation with mani and eyebrow DIY kits fit for the busy Millennial on the go.

“When creating marketing strategies and designing products for Millennials, it’s more important than any other generation to understand their behavior,” said Heather Strauch, U.S. Marketing Manager for MaCher, which designs and manufactures custom incentives and premium packaging for a variety of fashion, lifestyle and beauty brands. “They’re connoisseurs of technology, social media mavens, and a new and very different breed of shopper,” Heather added.

In turn, brand marketers are shifting the focus of promotions towards building more personalized experiences, and seeing the conversation change from “enjoy a free gift with purchase” to “your opinion matters to us.”

The above infographic was created by Lab42, a provider of social media and market research news. To access more infographics by Lab42 click here.