As a 20-something Gen Zer, I can confirm that Gen Z is quite possibly the hardest market to target.
Born between the years 1997 to 2012, Gen Z is the largest generation in history. This generation currently makes up a whopping 25% of the global population.
Labelled the most multicultural generation in history, almost half of the generation is nonwhite. 7.7% identify with the LGBTQIA+ community and a lot of the generation are the least likely to affiliate with established religions.
They are becoming the key demographic to market to, with a projected spending power of $12 trillion USD ($180 trillion AUD) by 2030.
Gen Z is also the first generation to be brought up in a purely digital world. We grew up with the internet in our pocket. I remember getting my first cell phone and making my first Facebook account.
As a digital savvy generation, that makes us incredibly hard to market to. We are a complex generation that businesses are vying to tap into.
Gen Z is completely unique to other generations – not just for their social structure, but also their spending habits.
According to Statista, Gen Z is the least likely to buy a product after seeing an ad on TV.
Social media, however, does not suffer the same fate. A 2024 report found that 35% of the generation spends over 4 hours a day on social media. Two thirds of Gen Zers said social media influenced them to make a purchase. 33% are more likely to buy a product founded by an influencer.
Social media is an important part of their lives. Knowing social media is so important in their daily lives proves the need for marketers to learn how to use it. Just as SEO does a great job of top of the funnel content, social media can drive a really good bottom of the funnel content.
Just like how marketers found a way to target Millennials, marketers will need to find a new way to market to Gen Z.
With a unique set of values, ideals, and interests, how can we be marketed to?
This broad question has a multitude of answers, and not all of them are one-size-fits-all.
Think Creative
If you cannot capture Gen Zers attention, your brands will never gain traction.
You have to think like a content creator to get somewhere. Think about how you can create platform-specific, attention-grabbing content.
More and more often, we are seeing brands become their own influencers. A key brand that comes to mind is Duolingo.
Duolingo is a language learning app, but has long surpassed that. Known online for their online mascot Duo the Owl, it consistently makes freaky and unhinged content. This has gained them over 6.5 million TikTok followers and millions of app downloads.
The thing that Duolingo does really well is understand its target audience. Audiences know what Duolingo is, so it leverages this by driving engagement through humour rather than pushing its services.
Engagement Comes First
Gen Z is a lot less brand loyal than the previous generations.
They are shown so much marketing material and influencer recommendations on the daily. Creating brand loyalty with Gen Z comes from a built foundation of trust and community.
Successful campaigns show Gen Z consumers rally behind an inclusive, collaborative, and authentic brand.
Authenticity is something Gen Z values in a good brand. When something is authentic, it brings people together who can genuinely attest to the quality of your brand.
This can be done a couple of ways:
- Listen to your audience: When someone comments that there was an actual issue with the product/service they received; listen, respond, adapt, and overcome. Getting your audience to respond should never be the only goal. The key to developing an authentic brand is listening to what your consumers are saying and finding ways to improve. This is what Gen Z values almost above all else.
- Leverage User-Generated Content (UGC): Utilising your consumers through UGC is an excellent marketing strategy. Word of mouth is a powerful thing. When you have millions of people sharing how incredible your brand is, that grabs Gen Zers attention.
Choose the Right Platforms
Knowing your target audience also means knowing what platform they value the most. Everyone knows that most Gen Zers spend their time on Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and Youtube.
When marketing to Gen Z, you need to pick and choose which platforms you use. The advantage is that you gain an excellent brand presence on whichever platform you choose.
Here’s how to do it:
- Explore New Platforms: As the most tech-savvy generation, Gen Z is all about new and emerging platforms. Joining new platforms as soon as possible gives you an edge in a highly competitive market.
- Repurpose Content: The great thing about social media is that it tends towards being homogenous. Content that you use on one platform (like user-generated content) on TikTok can also be used on Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. This increases your reach to include users who aren’t across all platforms.
Sell, Sell, Sell is Not the Way to Go
If you are using social media as a way to sell, sell, sell to Gen Z, you won’t get anywhere.
Pushing sales content rather than organic content will kill your business. There is a way you can mix your organic social strategy with other conversion-optimised strategies.
An excellent example of this is using influencers to give your products and services a platform to thrive.
If you are focusing on immediate sales from social media, you will over-rely on paid ads at the expense of building a community of loyal consumers.
Don’t be Afraid to Address Social Change
As the most diverse generation in history, a big portion of Gen Zers are staunch advocates for social change.
A study in 2022 found 72% of Gen Z consumers thought it was important for brands to take a stand on social issues.
The most common example is Pride Month. Every June, brands dust off their rainbow flags and show their support for the LGBTQIA+ community. Authentic support for social issues is always the way to go.
Gen Z can smell virtue signalling a mile off and are not afraid to do their research. If they find a brand supporting something they exclude within their own company or community, Gen Z is quick to get them cancelled.
Gen Z is increasingly becoming a difficult market to target. Digitally savvy, they can navigate their way through a marketing minefield with their eyes closed. Attention grabbing content that boasts social values and boost community engagement will be the way of the future.