Gen Z and Content Marketing: Connecting to the Always Connected

Once upon a time you couldn’t go a day without reading about millennials and how to reach them. But look out millennials, marketing focus is now shifting to Gen Z — those born from the mid-1990s to early 2000s.

Who Are Gen Zers?

Gen Zers are fully digital teens numbering 2 to 2.5 billion and controlling almost $44 billion in buying power. These self-aware teens impact household purchases with their opinions and have more influence than you might think. Gen Z tends to be focused on social issues, inclusive and concerned with human rights.

Being more private than their millennial counterparts, they are entrepreneurial, and most likely to begin working in their early teens. As the first generation to grow up fully digital, they have had devices in their hands before even learning to read and have never known a world without them. With even shorter attention spans than the millennials you’ve been marketing to, Wi-Fi connections rank higher in importance to 40 percent than bathrooms. We aren’t kidding.

Where Will You Find Gen Zers?

This well connected generation can be found watching videos on YouTube, their number one source for information. In fact, 95 percent of Gen Z states that is where they spend most of their time, as they tend to value video more than other forms of content.

Drop in Snapchat to find the most of this group. A recent study shows that more than half of Gen Zers use this platform at least 11 times a day, and one in five say Snapchat influences their purchasing decisions.

How Do You Use Content Marketing Effectively for Gen Z?

So, if they won’t sit still and have seriously short attention spans, exactly how do you use content marketing to reach this generation? First create short-form videos that are not promotional. Be authentic and use storytelling with your brand’s identity. Keep words short. (Think tweets, not long Facebook posts.) And add in plenty of GIFs, and memes, one of Gen Zers’ favorite ways of expressing themselves.

Post on YouTube and other social media platforms about issues you stand behind and how your company is supporting change both locally and globally. Gen Z wants to not just buy a product; they want to know they’re standing with a company that shares their values. Think about creating a Snapchat campaign complete with a filter to share with friends. This generation wants interactive content — allowing them to be less passive and more making them a part of the experience.

And most of all, be authentic, genuine and treat them as the unique generation that they are. Move over, millennials. There’s a new crew in town.