The Ultimate Marketing to Gen Z Infographic

Generation Z marketing simply calls for a change in your approach and strategy. The savvy marketer will do well to study their habits and the places they hang out. The key to nailing Generation Z marketing is to know as much as possible about them.

The challenges of Generation Z marketing

Generation Z marketing has proven to be quite a bear for many marketers. Here are a few reasons why:

1. They have more control over the media they consume.

No generation has been as empowered as Gen Z is. Technology has given the freedom to break free from traditional media channels. In turn, this freedom has given them a choice of what they consume, when they consume it, on their preferred platform.

For marketers, this leaves them in limbo when it comes to tailoring messages that are effective as each platform has its own set of rules for content type and format.

2. They’re born with sophisticated filters.

Their ability to quickly filter information seems to be a 6th sense. It is this filtering superpower that has caused them to be labeled as having a short attention span.

In order to grab Gen Z’s attention, you need to offer them something attention-grabbing and hyper-relevant. Living in a fast-paced world has conditioned the Gen Z generation to be able to pass on anything remotely irrelevant to them.

3. They’re always looking for a new experience.

Traditional marketing thrived on gathering data from current trends and using it to create the next successful campaign. That approach is fast losing its potency as Gen Z is not into current trends—they are looking for the next trend to follow.

Brands that anticipate the “next wave” are the ones that have success with their Generation Z marketing. With Gen Z, it’s all about providing an experience that they enjoy. That’s why most of the successful marketing campaigns of our time (and going into the future) are more about experiencing the product. This approach is contrary to traditional marketing methods that relied more on informational campaigns.

Ultimate guide to marketing to Gen Z

We surveyed over 300 Gen Z respondents to learn exactly how they engage with their favorite brands, from email to social media.

Our respondents ranged from 14 to 26 years of age, with 96.39% of them between the ages of 18 and 24.

Here’s everything you need to know about Gen Z to better connect with these consumers:

Fun facts

Gen Z allegedly has the attention span of about 8 seconds, compared to the millennial’s 12. (Source: Forbes)

Actually, Gen Z possesses a sophisticated 8-second filter derived from growing up with massive amounts of information. (Source: Fast Company)

By 2020, Gen Z is expected to account for 40% of all consumers, with $44 billion in buying power. (Sources: Fast Company and Inc.com)

That number expands to $600 billion when you include their parent’s spending. (Source: Inc.com)

65% of marketers planned to increase their spending on marketing to Gen Z in 2018. (Source: Statista)

Online habits

How often are they online?

45% of teens say they are online almost constantly and 44% say they’re online multiple times a day. (Source: Criteo)

Social media use

Gen Z uses each social media channel differently:

• They use Instagram to exhibit their aspirational lives.
• They use Snapchat to share their daily lives.
• They use Twitter to get the news.
• They use Facebook for information. (Source: Response Media)

Gen Z’s favorite platforms:

• YouTube: 85% use the platform, 32% use it most.
• Instagram: 72% use the platform, 15% use it most.
• Snapchat: 69% use the platform, 35% use it most. (Source: Pew Research Institute)

Email use

How often do they check their email?

• 58% check their email multiple times a day.
• 23% check their email at least once a day.
• 12.1% check their email a couple times a week.
• 5.2% check their email only once a week.
• 0.98% never check their email.

How many emails are they receiving?

• 29.5% receive 1-5 emails a day.
• 37.4% receive 6-20 emails a day.
• 18% receive 21-50 emails a day.
• 9.1% receive 51-100 emails a day.
• 5% receive 100+ emails a day.

How frequently should you email them?

• 31.8% like to hear from brands a couple times a week.
• 27.5% like to hear from brands once a day.
• 19% like to hear from brands once a week.
• 18.4% like to hear from brands once a month.

Why do they use email?

• 64.9% use email for personal communication.
• 14.4% use email for work.
• 19.3% use email for school.

What factors influence whether or not they open their emails?

• 68% open emails for sales or offers.
• 60% open emails for relevant content.
• 36.1% open emails because of the personalized subject line.
• 35.1% open emails because of the graphics, images, or branding.

Buying habits

How many times in the past month have they purchased something as a direct result of an email?

• 36.4% did not make a purchase last month.
• 28.5% made 2-5 purchases last month.
• 27.9% made 1 purchase last month.
• 5.9% made 6-10 purchases last month.
• 1% made 11+ purchases last month.

How many times in the past month have they purchased something as a direct result of seeing it on social media?

• 33% made 1 purchase last month.
• 29.8% did not make a purchase.
• 29.5% made 2-5 purchases.
• 5.2% made 6-10 purchases.
• 1.6% made 11+ purchases.

Engagement

Which method do they prefer to engage with a brand?

• 1st: social media (1,591 votes)
• 2nd: (1,515 votes)
• 3rd: in-person (1,453 votes)
• 4th: ads (1,268 votes)
• 5th: chat (1,159 votes)
• 6th: blog (970 votes)

Are they loyal to brands?

• 42% claim to be brand conscious.
• 55% claim they’ll stick to a brand they like. (Source: Statista)

What kind of content does Gen Z like to receive?

• 82.3% want promos and special discounts.
• 44.3% want product recommendations.
• 26.6% want company updates.
• 20.3% want links to blogs or resources.

How many newsletters are you subscribed to?

• 39% subscribe to 1-5 email newsletters.
• 37.5%, subscribe to 0 newsletters.
• 17.4% subscribe to 6-20 newsletters.
• 3.9% subscribe to 21-50 newsletters.
• 1.6% subscribe to 51-100 newsletters.
• <1% subscribe to 100+ newsletters.

Wrap up

Overall, Gen Z wants to connect with your company and your products. To engage this audience, be sure you:

• Include video and stimulating images where you can
• Foster a cult following by connecting with your Gen Z customers on a human level
• Use next-level data tracking to deliver personalized experiences

Tap into this audience and you’ll cultivate a following of brand ambassadors who will be loyal to your brand for life. To win them over you have to play the game by their rules. If you want to equip yourself with enough knowledge to win at Generation Z marketing, make sure to check out our ultimate guide to marketing to Gen Z.