Why Gen Z Matters To Your Marketing Strategy

Gen Z is an important up-and-coming market segment and it’s not too early to start to think about this generation in your marketing efforts.

What is Gen Z and why is it important?

Gen Z is the group of people born between 1995- 2010. As of this year, Gen Z makes up 41% of the world’s population. In North America, people under 25 make up one third of the population. Gen Z is set to become one of the fastest-growing consumer markets, so now is the time that marketers should begin advertising to this group. Even though they may not have a large disposable income yet, it may not be that way for long. It’s important to consider this new audience in marketing strategies to get a head start on their attention and loyalty.

With Gen Z, and unlike any other generation before them, social media is second nature. They haven’t lived without it. Therefore, the lines are blurred between online and offline life, but that’s not a bad thing from a marketing perspective. In fact, it shows their desire to engage with creators and communities that they wouldn’t have had the opportunity to before, and this includes your brand and community.

Since social media gives young people a platform unlike ever before, anyone with a social account can have influence. An influencer is someone that marketers can find great value in no matter how big or small, because word of mouth is very important to the Gen Z generation. They like to have a product recommended to them, and they like to see that product in use. Marketers can use this influence to bring their product or services into the lives of millions of Gen Zers and potential customers.

Capturing the attention of any generation or audience can be a challenge in today’s environment. Brands can be in and out of customers’ minds in as little as eight seconds. With Gen Z, authenticity is key. They want to see real, genuine content they can relate to. If they sense that a brand’s content or messaging is otherwise, they are likely to be out the door, fast.

Here’s another interesting statistic–37% of Gen Zers surveyed in the United States said they’ve used a messaging app to contact a business, with 15% completing a purchase via messaging. With the Gen Z generation, it will be important to make your brand available in many ways and across a variety of platforms.

Gen Z prefers to see themselves as leaders, thinkers and writers of tomorrow, and more than a generation. To effectively reach and connect with this audience, it can be valuable to ask yourself a few questions about your brand:

• What value are you going to add to young people’s lives?
• What is your brand’s purpose to Gen Z?
• How can you connect in a real and meaningful way with these young consumers?

Answering these questions can help you develop a marketing strategy to connect with the Gen Z audience and position your company for growth.