Marketing to Generation Z

Marketing is, and always will be, an ever-changing landscape. It aims to both meet the needs of the current generations, and anticipate the needs of future ones. However, without the right information on those up-and-coming buyers, it can be difficult to pinpoint the exact strategies you should be using in your marketing campaigns.

Generation Z encompasses anyone born between the mid-1990s and the mid- to late-2000s (roughly speaking). This is the latest generation to experience its coming-of-age, and as such is the one marketers must look to when making key strategy decisions for the future.

In this post, we’ll introduce the buying habits of Generation Z. We’ll then outline a few techniques you can use in your marketing efforts to connect with Generation Z-ers, both on your website and via social media channels. Let’s get started!

Generation Z Buying Habits & Purchasing Power

As is usually the case, Generation Z’s buying habits and purchasing power differ significantly from the generations before it. Perhaps the greatest distinction is how many in Generation Z rely on their mobile devices when making purchasing decisions.

In fact, up to 46% of Generation Z-ers research a product on their mobile devices before making an in-store purchase. That’s not where the mobile influence ends, however. 73 percent of Generation Z-ers also say they would make a purchase based on a social media recommendation.

Of course, purchasing power is equally as important to marketers as buying habits are. Purchasing power is the amount of money that a generation has at its disposal to spend on goods and services.

According to Uniquely Generation Z, the purchasing power of this group is $44 billion per year. However, other reports claim that Generation Z-ers have spent more than $143 billion, which is significantly higher than Millennials and other generations spent at the same stage of life.

How to Reach Generation Z

In order to get Generation Z-ers to convert, marketers needs to understand how this demographic operates. Let’s look at a few of the strategies that are most likely to be effective.

Tactic 1: Focus on Mobile-Friendliness

On the whole, Generation Z-ers are more technologically inclined than previous generations. They’ve grown up with smartphones, tablets, and laptops, and they’re much more adept at using them at a younger age than their predecessors were.

This translates to a more mobile-friendly generation, as we’ve discussed. What’s more, this is a generation that relies heavily on their devices to deliver the information they need.

If you run a website aimed at attracting Generation Z-ers, it’s important to focus on responsiveness and mobile-friendly design. You’ll want to create websites that can adapt to any screen size, for example, and add features to your site that can be easily used on any device.

Tactic 2: Serve Bite-Sized Chunks of Content

Due to their tech-savvy nature, those in Generation Z also tend to have a shorter attention span. They expect quick, bite-sized content that catches their eye and gets to the point quickly.

Therefore, you’ll want to focus on delivering easy-to-digest text content that is interspersed with images, videos, and other media. This is especially important to keep in mind when developing your sales funnels, if you want to convince Generation Z-ers to buy.

Tactic 3: Educate & Entertain Simultaneously

Also because of that shorter attention span, as a marketer you have less time to make an impact on your Generation Z audience members. To increase the time they spend on your website, and to improve their odds of converting, you’ll need to focus on educating and entertaining simultaneously.

‘Edutainment’ isn’t a new concept, but it’s one that marketers must begin to leverage if they hope to make an impact on the younger generations. One of the easiest ways to combine education and entertainment is through short video clips. These can be used to provide information in the background, while viewers focus on the entertaining aspects (such as visual elements) in the foreground.

Generation Z’s Social Media Trends

Social media has already become hugely significant to marketers, as this is where most Generation Z-ers spend a significant portion of their time. In fact, over half of Generation Z-ers spend more than six hours on their mobile devices every day.

To better understand this trend, let’s take a closer look at some of the more specific data that’s available about Generation Z and social media.

How Much Time Does Generation Z Spend on Social Media?

It may not surprise you to learn that Generation Z spends a significant amount of time on social media every day. According to the Global Web Index, in fact, Generation Z-ers spend an average of three hours per day on social media. This is increased from the amount of time Millennials spend on social media daily, which comes in at two hours and 39 minutes.

More important than how much time they spend, however, is where they spend it. Unlike Millennials, who tend to frequent a large array of social platforms, Generation Z-ers prefer to use fewer platforms on a more regular basis. This fact sheds some light on their habits and preferences.

How Does Gen Z Interact with Brands on Social Media?

Another interesting thing about Generation Z is how they interact with brands. Instead of communicating directly – by posting on a company’s social media pages and commenting on its posts – they prefer to interact with a brand’s influencers.

These are individuals who have built a strong following on social media, and who endorse an array of brands through their profiles. In this way, influencers act as the middlemen between brands and Generation Z-ers. This is an important distinction when you consider the more direct interactions between brands and previous generations.

What Content Does Gen Z Interact with on Social Media?

By now it should be clear that, when compared to the previous generations, Generation Z-ers use social media quite differently. For example, one of the primary motivations for their extensive use of social media is the desire to be entertained.

This means that Generation Z-ers tend to interact more extensively with video content, and 81 percent of the generation has said they watch at least one hour of online video per day. This predilection towards video content is further supported by the high percentage of teenagers and young adults on Instagram and Snapchat.

Generation Z Living Through Digital Experiences

Here at WP Engine, we’re always interested in collecting the latest data on digital marketing trends. For instance, we’ve done extensive research regarding Generation Z. To learn more, you can check out our latest study!

Create the Optimal Generation Z Digital Experience

If you thought the digital experience was important to Millennials, you’ll be blown away by how much more vital it is to Generation Z-ers. This is why it’s smart to focus on providing a more complete digital experience, if you want to meet the needs of this latest generation.

While you focus on creating educational and entertaining content that grabs the younger generation’s attention, you’ll want to have the right team behind you helping to guide your website visitors’ digital experience. This is where WP Engine comes in.

At WP Engine, we understand the importance of reliability and expertise, as well as the need to constantly adapt in order to keep up. Our team of knowledgeable support staff will always have the latest information to share with you as you shape new marketing campaigns.

To learn more about WP Engine and the difference it can make for your website, check out our plans page today!