Generation Z

Generation Z
Post-Millennials, Centennials, iGeneration

Key Learnings
Formed Current Future Connection
Their world has been
shaped by many
tragic events during
recent times and with
the advent of
technology at their
fingertips, they have
a different view on
the world and how
they should
maneuver in it.
Gen Z has a big
impact on the world
right now, so how
they go about
interacting with it
very differently. With
the “always
connected” life, they
have a different
mindset than
millennials.
The public has high
hopes that Gen Z will
bring about a lot of
change.
Entrepreneurial, and
Cultural awareness
mindset are what this
generation has going
for it.
With this new
generation at the
forefront, brands
need to learn the
ideals and
personality this
generation has. In
what way can brands
connect with them?
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Gen Z, the Younger Siblings of Millennials
Millennials Gen Z
Born between: 1981 to
1997
Ages: 18-34
Population: 75.4 million
Born between: 1998
and now
Ages: Under 18
Population: 78 million
Key Differentiating Factors
● Self-centered
● Entitled
● Idealist
● Creative
● Dependent
● Self-aware
● Persistent
● Realist
● Innovative
● Self-reliant

5
Societal Changes Set the Stage for Gen Z’s persona
Gen Z grew up in a volatile time in history,
● Post 9/11
● Recession
● Complex Socio-economic Environment
● Struggles of Parents/Millennials
But they also grew up in a time of many positive
changes
● African American President
● Same-sex marriage less controversial
● Gender Identity becoming more
important
73% of americans
personally affected
by the great
recession

6
Pop Culture Reflected the Struggle of Young Teens
Blockbusters films like Hunger Games and
Divergent portrayed teenagers enduring
hardships that the world was taking place in.
These teens would often have to kill one
another to survive. Because of the mainstream
films and it’s popularity with the kids, it’s no
wonder that they have developed coping
mechanisms that allow they to persevere.

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Ultimately, the messages of these movies is that everything’s not
going to be OK
Riddled with anxiety, images on the
television of the events post 9/11
and distrust of traditional institutions
like government and marriage, they
have a strong moral compass. These
movies imitated what they were
seeing on the TV screen. Hunger
games showed them that they can
rebel against the traditional
establishment.

8
Core Values of Gen Z
Openness
Centennials live by the
motto “You do you”, it give
themselves and others
permission to be different,
and express those
differences how they see
fit.
87% of Centennials would
prefer to live in society where
people accept different beliefs
and values
Resilience
Coming of age during
challenging times has made
Centennials learn that hard
work and grit are the keys
to success in today’s world;
they know they will face
roadblocks, but are
prepared to overcome
them.
87% of centennials agree that
they enjoy and celebrate life
despite its many challenges
Realism
Well acquainted with limits
and constraints,
Centennials have
grounded, realistic
expectations for
themselves and the way
the world works.
70% of centennials agree that
it’s really hard to get ahead in
life without a college degree

9
Gen Z is Diverse with Many
Children Coming from a
Multiracial Background
+400%
Increase in multiracial
marriages (black and
White) in the last 30
years (with a 1,000%
increase in Asian-
White marriages
+50%
Increase in the multiracial
youth population since
2000 (to 4.2 million)
-1.5%
decrease in the
caucasian 6-17 year
old population
projected by 2018
+7.6%
Projected increase in
the Hispanic teens
population over the
next five years, the
fastest growing
population in the US

10
The “You do you” Motto, Self-Expression Over Mimicked Trends
Young people feel much
more emboldened to
express their own sense
of style rather than
mimicking a peer-
accepted uniform or
dress code. But their
openness and “You do
You” mentality goes
beyond just style and
clothing, They challenge
the gender binary by
being more open
minded to gender-
neutral pronouns, roles,
and expression.
Normcore is a collective, neutral
blandness – eschewing obvious
markers of luxury, fashion and
distinctive style and instead opting for
a more low key, cool look with a dash
of athleticism and a whiny of the ‘90s.

11
Gen Z are Pragmatic/Realistic, so They are Concerned About Their
Future
Gen Z are self aware of the
world around them. They grew
up in turbulent times. Gen Z
has learned the value of a
dollar at a young age. Saddled
by this financial weight, Gen
Zers are concerned about their
future.
63%
Of teens are
worried about their
future
58%
Of teens aged 13 to
17 say they’re
already saving
money

13
Gen Z has an Education System Focused on Inclusion and
Collaboration
While still being self-reliant in
finding answers, Gen Z has a
learning environment of openness
and interaction. They see face to
face conversations and studying to
be beneficial in their education. But
make no mistake that a multi-
faceted experience connecting
social, academic and professional
interest is the way they prefer to
learn.

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They are Already Gearing up for Starting College while still
Attending High School
Gen Z are laser-focused in their
education and career goals. A
growing number of students are
taking college courses early in
order to get a jump start in credits.
They saw what their parents went
through with their jobs and want to
push to have a good long term
career.

15
Stem Studies are among the top subjects teens are interested
about
Gen Z Dream Jobs

17
They are Digital Natives. There never was a time they were not
without their devices
Gen Z is growing up with a range of
electronic devices at hand. Not
surprisingly, the key device for
teens is the mobile phone, and 4 in
10 tweens also use a mobile
frequently. Gen Z tends to regard
most electronic devices as
important, whether or not they are
used frequently.

18
Parents have mixed feelings about their children's online
presences
Parents recognize the value
of social networks to their
child and almost all trust
their child to use them
responsibly - but they’re also
aware of the danger they
pose, with 8 in 10 parents
paying close attention to
their tween’s social
networking.

19
They feel that social media has an impact on their lives
37% percents
of Gen Z say
that social
media has a
direct impact
on their
happiness

Gen Z also spends more time on social media, that can lead to
poor mental health
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There is a significant associations
between the hours per day spent on
social media and various mental
health indicators. Students surveyed
reported that reported spending two
or more hours per day on social media
- and especially those spending five or
more hours per day were significantly
more likely to report a moderate or
high level of psychological distress.

21
Gen Z is more device dependent and have higher expectations of
information on demand
Device
dependence
70% percent of
young people
displayed
symptoms of
emotional distress
when kept away
from their personal
dives
Expectation of information
on demand
For most information - be it
studies, hobbies, products, and
careers - the starting and ending
points for most Gen Z kids is the
internet.
An Emotional
Connection with the
Digital World
Research study of 800
respondents in the United
States and United
Kingdom, reported that
most of the Gen Z youth
attached more importance
to digital connections than
to money, music and
movies.
More Trust in
Digital Sources
of Information
A November 2011
report by Grail
Research,
suggested kids
prefer the digital
approach and find
it easiest to learn
from the Internet

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Mobile and Social content have higher trust with Gen Z
Highest trusted digital channels
● Professionally written
reviews
● Consumer written reviews
● Natural search engine
results.
Lowest trusted channels
● Posts by companies or
brands on social sites
● Info from mobile apps
from brands and
companies
● Text from Brands and
Companies

23
Gen Z social media breakdown
Facebook is used
by teens
primarily for
keeping tabs on
extended family
and
acquaintances.
Instagram is less
about keeping a
personal photo
journal, and
more about
sharing
interesting visual
life moments
Twitter is a place
to stay informed
and to follow
trusted digital
curators of
culture and
information
Snapchat is
more for a
private mode of
communication
to share silly, or
candid moments
with their inner
circle of friends

24
They are their own social media managers and take special care
of their personal brand
Teens are best thought of as
their own personal social media
managers. For them, it is more
than just multitasking and
multiple screens. Teens are their
own eagle-eyed editors,
programming content, limiting
the volume of posts and paying
close attention to quality
content.
75%
of teens between 13 and
17, use some form of
visual social media
25%
of teens have multiple
facebook and instagram
accounts
50%
of teens post during the
evening time to have the
maximum engagement
from their peers.

25
Online privacy is an concern of Gen Z
Teens share a wide range of
information about themselves on
social media sites. However, few
teens embrace a fully public
approach to social media. Instead,
they take an array of steps to
restrict and prune their profiles,
and their patterns of reputation
management on social media vary
greatly according to their gender
and network size.
Teens take other steps to
shape their reputation,
manage their networks,
and mask information
they don’t want others to
know; 74% of teen social
media users have
deleted people from
their network or friends
list.
60% of teen
Facebook users
keep their
profiles private,
and most report
high levels of
confidence in
their ability to
manage their
settings.
“As far as privacy,
they are aware of
their personal brand,
and have seen older
Gen Y-ers screw up
by posting too
openly.”
— Dan Gould trend
consultant for Sparks
& Honey

26
Teens claim Snapchat as the most important social media
platform
7 reasons why Snapchat is
important to teens:
● Intimacy
● Less Social Pressures
● Privacy
● Fast and Visual
● Generation Differentiation
● Exclusively Mobile-Based
● Trends and Fads

27
How does Gen Z spend their time?

28
Youtube and Netflix are the most watched media by Gen Z
Gen Z’s dependence of video
content goes beyond
entertainment
● 57% say it serves as a
mood lifter
● 61% say it serves as a
stress reliever
● 60% use it to keep updated
on news and trends
● 47% use it to lull
themselves to sleep

29
Entertainment media accounts for a majority of time Gen Z
consumes
● Tweens (8 to 12) use an
average of 6 hours
worth of entertainment
media daily.
● Teenagers (13 to 18)
average about 9 hours
of entertainment media
use.

Gen Z social media usage averages in about 2 -3 hours a day
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Youtube celebrities earn big bucks for their videos
Felix Kjellberg a.k.a.
PewDiePie - had garnered
much attention for being
the world’s richest
youtuber. He boast over
44 million subscribers on
his video game channel
and earn $12 million
yearly.
Lindsey Stirling is the
richest musician on
Youtube. Her videos
playing the violin and
dancing had let her to
acquire nearly 8 million
subscribers. She earns $6
million per year from
Youtube.

33
Youtube success has lead many kids and teens to also show
entrepreneurship
Channel: Kids Toys Channel
Sisters review and play with different
toys and online games
Subscribers: 2 million
Channel: EthanGamerTV
This nine-year-old boy plays popular
games such as Roblox, Minecraft, and
other mobile games.
Subscribers: 2 million

34
Youtube helps young adults find an outlet
for expression and self entrepreneurship

One teens live news antics skyrockets him to internet fame
Brendan Jordan, 15 years old
Gained internet fame with
his dance that was broadcast
on live television.
Using his new found popularity, he
created a youtube channel that discusses
his life. With topics about his coming out,
LGBTQA+ issues and fashion, he gained a
very diverse following.
35

Young women gains popularity with her slam poetry
Savannah Brown, 20 years old
Self described as “liking poetry”
and “talks weird”, this youtuber
creates videos about her poetry.
Her videos range from topics of sexuality,
temperaments, and other social issues
that all include her poetry about the
subjects. She has earned almost half
million subscribers.
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Teen Entrepreneur Megan Grassell Used Her Frustration To Fuel
A Business
When Megan Grassel went
shopping for bras with her pre-teen
sister, she was struck by the lack of
age-appropriate choices. She
decided to create her own line of
bras for teens that are modest and
pragmatic. She went to kickstarter
with a goal to raise $25,000 to start.
She ended up with $42,000 in one
of the sites most successful
campaigns.

38
Yellowberry shows Gen Z’s core values in action
Openness
● Talks about a
subject that
is important
● It’s a bigger
issues that
deals with
self-esteem
Resilient
● Was turned
down by many
companies
● Did not stop
pushing her
idea
● Used to
kickstarter to
fund her project
Realism
● Product is
made for a
demographic
who needs it
● The
conception of
the idea is
appropriate to
the creator

39
Gen Z has a socio-empathetic view on how the world should be
26% are currently
volunteering.
76% are concerned
about man’s impact on
the planet.
60% of them want to
have an impact on the
world

Volunteering helps with their eagerness to join the workforce
77% of high school
students are either
extremely or very
interested in
volunteering to gain
work experience
compared to 63% of
college students.
60% of them want to
have an impact on the
world, compared to 39%
of millennials
40

$44 Billion
Is the yearly projection spending money of Gen Z consumers on a
$16.90 weekly allowance.
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Food and Clothing are their main spending habits, although they
are very “price-conscious” about spending
89%
Gen Z says they are “very
price-conscious”
64%
They like to pay with cash, as
opposed to credit or debit
cards
81%
Gen Zers said they would
drop their favorite brand if
they found a similar product
at a better value or higher
quality

Gen Z is conservative when it comes to their finances and gained
a better understanding of it through their parents
Seeing their parents going
through the financial crisis of
2008, Gen Z are more aware of
how important it is to start
saving.
51%
report that their
parents are the
number one
resource for
learning about
finances
84%
of Gen Z say
their parents
discussed the
importance of
saving, on
average, by age
14
46%
are worried
about
accruing
student loan
debt
A study by Adecco
showed that Gen-
Z’ers are more
concerned about
the cost of
education than
Millennials.
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Virtual Reality is not a gimmick but a viable product Gen Z is
interested in
While Virtual Reality is still in its
early stages, consumer interest on
the concept is growing. Gen Z has
the biggest interest in Virtual
Reality. This goes hand in hand
with their love of gaming and
media consumption. The same
research also says that while
gaming is a popular use of virtual
reality, TV, movies, video content
on VR holds interest as well.

Immersion with content is what Gen Z wants
360 video, virtual reality, and
augmented reality are the new
ways we share content and videos.
They have been shown to have a
great interest with Gen Z and how
they consume media. They do not
engage with just “One screen”, but
multiple screens with different
purposes.
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While attention spans are shortening, it has evolved to hyper
data consumption
Speed matters. Research studies
suggest that their brains have
evolved to process more
information at faster speeds,
and are more cognitively nimble
to handle bigger mental
challenges. That coupled with
the high amount of gadgets and
devices they spend their time on
gives them a greater sense of
information processing.

To market to Gen Z, you must be agile, programmatic,
have it be snackable, and have mobile messaging
Agility Marketing
Generation Z are
avid social media
users with short-term
thinking.
Programmatic
mobile marketing
The term programmatic
simply means automated, and
programmatic marketing
describes the use of data
driven software to automate
online advertising.
Snackable
Content marketing
With an attention span of only
8 seconds Generation Z aren’t
all that interested in long-form
content.
Text
Message Marketing
For generation Z, their
smartphones are an extension
of their arms, and manage
every aspect of their lives
through their phones
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Snackable content is the way to reach Gen Z
● Bite-sized nuggets of
content
● Images, Videos, Memes
● Whose meaning can be
grasped quickly
● Often creates deeper
meaning through
references to shared
stories or experiences
● Faster than reading an
explanation of the same
information

52
With 5 different screens used daily by teens, it is
important to have content that is “attention grabbing”
Generation Z’s attention span
is short and they use as
many as five different
screens during the day.
Focus on short messages, front-
loaded with enough attention-
grabbers and “click bait” to
entice even the most distracted
minds.

Feed into their curiosity and entrepreneurial side
Tap into the entrepreneurial
spirit. Make stuff and help
Gen Z make stuff.
Collaborate with them and
help them collaborate with
others.
53

Let Gen Z control the the spread of your brand
Gen Z can become excellent brand
ambassadors, using their social
influence to spread the word
Using Taco
Bell hot sauce
pockets as
part of a
“promposal.”
Ivivva, the sister
brand of Lululemon,
encourages girls to
upload photos of
themselves wearing
the brand’s clothing
while doing an
activity. The best
photos are then
reposted to Ivivva’s
Instagram account.
Target post eye
catching photos,
like method soap
bottles being used
to hold flowers
posted on their
instagram page.
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Prove your message as an impact, and be transparent with them
Gen Z has grown up in a world they
felt was corrupt. They are worried
about the future, but also want to
take action. But it is also important
to be honest, transparent, and
authentic with them. If you want to
implement these traits, you have to
connect with them on their terms.
Taking that extra step to not only
capture their attention but to bring
value to the interaction is crucial
Mcdonald's “First Customer”
ad campaigns shows a
young man starting his first
job at the restaurant.
Boxed water comes in paper
containers as opposed to
plastic as it is easier to
recycle

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Gen Z marketing checklist
● Depict them as diverse
● Remember they are not Millennials
● Talk with images
● Snackable content
● Tap into their entrepreneurial spirit
● Be humble
● Tell your story across multiple screens
● Talk to them about value
● Include a social cause they can get behind
● Feed their curiosity
● Assume they have opinions
● Makestuff - or help Gen Z make
stuff(they’re industrious)
● Collaborate with them - help them
collaborate with others
● Optimize your search results
● Feed them

Generation Z

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