Gen Z is getting older, which means they are beginning to enter the workforce and possess buying power. You might recall how marketers scrambled to understand millennial’s, so now is the time to pay attention to Gen Z.
It’s difficult to make monolithic statements about members of the second-youngest generation, but you should remember a few things:
They seek authenticity.
- They prefer socially responsible businesses.
- They’re growing up in a scary world and a struggling economy, so they’re more likely to turn to companies that make the world a better place.
Gen Z have been digitally connected since birth:
So what do we know about Gen Z? The biggest difference between Generation Z and other generations is how connected they are and have been since birth. On average, young people in the UK, aged between five and 16, spend three hours online every day. Connectivity permeates their lives from friendships to relationships, news, entertainment, shopping and has transformed how they interact. The most popular apps are Snapchat, Instagram and messaging app Kik. The average teenager has at least 150 followers on Instagram and spends around half an hour a day on Snapchat.
The best way to engage Gen Z is through Content:
Generation Z are spending 10.6 hours consuming content, with UK millennials are spending 8.5 hours according to new research. The findings come from Adobe’s latest report into the UK’s content consumption habits, which found the UK average for content consumption is 6.9 hours. Gen Z spend on average 5.9 hours consuming content specifically on mobile, and over 54% of those from the study said they used multiple devices at any one time, with 1.8 devices being the average. So, marketeers and business need to be targeting different device types as part of their digital strategy.
The study also revealed that brands must pay attention to emerging content channels. When asked about how they would prefer to consume content in the next five years, four-fifths of the consumers polled (79%) said they would like to engage with content via a home entertainment streaming device, two-thirds (63%) would like to use a Voice Assistant, while half (51%) are looking towards connected home devices.
This insight is extremely important as it brings to attention emerging digital channels like Voice Search and Augmented Reality, 2 channels we will continue to monitor closely as they develop. So now is the time to focus your content around authenticity, focusing content around the good your business does socially but also environmentally. This will help your brand build a reputation with Gen Z as they enter the workforce and gain buying power.