As any marketing maven worth her salt will tell you, millennials merit attention:  Millennials eat out more than any other generation.  They may be broke, but they have expensive tastes and they aren’t afraid to indulge themselves.

Millennials, also known as Generation Y, are the population segment immediately following Generation X.  While there are no hard and fast dates defining Gen Y, any individual born between the early ‘80s and late ‘90s is commonly considered a millennial.  Generally speaking, the term “millennials” embraces individuals between the ages of 13 and 30 in 2012.

Technomic’s Darren Tristano contends that “success with today’s millennial consumer will depend on making an emotional connection.”  Take that emotional connection one step further and promote it across your social media outlets.

Woo millennials (and their dollars) to your establishment by speaking their lingo.  Engage them with Twitter by tweeting fun facts about your community, daily specials and upcoming events.  Appeal to their aesthetic with sumptuous Pinterest boards.  Make them feel like VIPs with behind-the-scenes shots on Instagram.

Social media-loving millennials are consuming the world one tweet at a time.  Be at the ready with open arms–and an appreciative retweet–when they look your way.