As companies’ marketing campaigns gradually shift to target and include this new generation of tech-savvy young adults known as Gen-Z, or “zoomers”, it’s easy to feel lost in terms of where to even begin.
However, with the right tactics, it’s possible to effectively reach this demographic and encourage them to engage with your brand.
According to a recent Bloomberg report, Gen-Z has over $360 Billion in disposable income. Since the use of traditional marketing methods isn’t working for Gen-Z, marketers have developed new methods to reach them and, in turn, benefit from their large spending capacities.
In this blog, we’ll break it down with 5 easy strategies you can implement in your marketing campaigns to capture the attention of this generation.
1. Keep it short
With the mass amounts of content Gen-Z is bombarded with online on a daily basis, if it’s too long or too time consuming to understand, chances are, they won’t be interested.
Leverage video content (specifically mobile-optimized video) to its full potential. With apps like TikTok and features like Instagram Reels taking over the internet, creating engaging content in video format is a more effective way to grab their attention.
Aim to keep video content under 30 seconds, and text to a few sentences maximum. Including audio and compelling visuals where appropriate can help with keeping things interesting, yet still to the point.
2. Be authentic
If there’s one thing to note about zoomers, it’s that they care deeply about transparency and credibility when it comes to brands. This is important to note if you want to build long term mutually beneficial relationships with this generation of consumers.
This strategy is used heavily on TikTok where we can see that content that typically does well is filmed on personal devices instead of high-tech filming equipment. This unedited, raw content gives a very personal and connected feel, which Gen-Z tends to love.
Ensuring the voice and tone of the brand accurately and strongly shines through in all content is a way to help consumers understand what your brand stands for. It also allows them to form a more genuine feeling connection to your product or service.
3. Speak their language
Things like learning the slang and vocabulary Gen-Z uses and staying up to date on the things they find entertaining can go a long way in staying connected to these consumers.
Some brands, such as Ryanair and Duolingo, have seemingly mastered this technique and have curated a large and engaged audience who follow them for their humorous, light-hearted and somewhat out-of-the-ordinary approach to social media.
They managed this by using trending audio, memes, popular catchphrases and by being very direct with their customers which has helped their posts go viral, since often their responses to customer inquiries are quite funny.
However, make sure you’re not forcing this, as Gen-Z would confirm that there’s nothing less cool than TRYING to be cool. The best way to strike a balance on this is to hire someone from Gen-Z onto your marketing team to provide first-hand insight on appealing to this particular consumer group.
Alternatively, you could hand the challenge over to an agency like Bloom, where our social media experts do all the work for you to turn an ordinary campaign into something Gen-Z can’t stop talking about.
4. Understand their values
Gen-Z is a value driven, socially conscious generation. It is not surprising that values such as inclusivity, justice, sustainability, and transparency are important to them. Before buying, they actively research and compare brands to find the one that better represents what they stand for.If you want to make an impression on this group of consumers, ensure your brand is keeping up with the latest trends in your industry and is prepared to answer any questions or concerns they may (and probably will) confront you with if something doesn’t sit right with them.
5. Leverage Partnerships and Affiliations
Either through influencers or user generated content (UGC), Gen Z is heavily influenced by others. In a recent study, influencer marketing influenced the purchase decisions of 24% of Gen-Z women and 16% of Gen-Z men.
Creating content users can interact with such as campaign hashtags, competitions or starting engaging online conversations is a great way to get them involved.
Affiliation marketing can also be partnered with influencer marketing to create an even bigger impact and convert brand awareness to sales revenue through an increase in collected data. We dive deeper into this useful tactic here.
In summary, Gen-Z is all about direct, transparent and visually-appealing communications that speak to them on a personal level.
Mastering this approach to marketing may take some time, but we think it’s well worth the effort if it means getting Gen-Z consumers on board with your product or service!
Contact us if you need help crafting a Gen Z-friendly digital marketing strategy.
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