How to reach a Gen Z audience in the UK.

Summary/Overview

Trying to target a Gen Z audience? Or maybe you’ve noticed your brand is starting to get picked up by a younger age bracket and you’re not sure how to adapt? Either way, it’s time to reevaluate your marketing strategy and get some insights on Gen Z in the UK.

Age can have a huge impact on how you reach your audience. Different generations have different characteristics, interests and habits – most notably how they consumer media. So, how can you reach a Gen Z audience?

As with any target demographic, there are several different factors to consider when marketing your brand to Gen Z customers. Read on to learn how you can attract and market to Gen Z, and how this approach differs from other generations.

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What do we mean by Gen Z?

Generation Z, or Gen Z, includes people who were born between 1996 and 2010. Like any generation, their ‘identity’ is moulded by the different social events and digital innovations throughout their lifetimes. For example, they are the first generation to grow up with smartphones as commonly available technology.

Having never grown up without access to mobile phones, Gen Z marketing tends to naturally be device and social media-driven. They’re used to being over-saturated with endless choices, so they love to shop around – especially in digital stores.

The BBC describes Gen Z shoppers as ‘picky [but] practical’ – which quite accurately describes their consumer personality. They’re skilled at finding what they need, after having no choice but to be highly digitally literate. However, they are also aware of the financial challenges their generation faces.

What makes Gen Z a key segment for your marketing strategy?

According to social media giant Snapchat, Gen Z has an estimated £353 billion in spending power. They also account for around 40% of global consumers, meaning they have the power to shape digital marketing tactics across all industries. But if those numbers aren’t enough to convince you, let’s explore some further benefits.

Innovativeness.

Generation Z are often looking for something new, which gives you room to get creative with your marketing campaigns. There’s no need to stick to the traditional with Gen Z, meaning both you and your customers can have much more fun testing out new products, campaigns and channels.

Fast-paced.

It could be argued that Gen Z’s shorter attention span is a result of them being a bit pickier when choosing where to spend their time. While some could see this as a disadvantage, it allows businesses the opportunity to create snappy, effective content that focuses on getting quick results.

Transparency.

As the first generation fully immersed in the online world, Gen Z’s digital literacy is high. This means they don’t look towards ‘traditional’ marketing methods, and instead expect brands to prove themselves through transparency and ‘worthwhile’ content.

While this could present as a challenge, you can benefit by focusing on creating strong customer relationships through authentic brand content.

Explore free marketing materials for a Gen Z audience.

Gen Z vs Millennials: the importance of knowing your audience.

Every generation’s habits and behaviours differ – however, it can often be tricky to define these. Depending on your business, it can help to know how to determine your target audience and their nuances.

Millennials are the generation before Gen Z, which means, while brands do need to understand their differences, they can sometimes overlap. Let’s explore the differences to consider when marketing to Millennials vs. Gen Z.

Gen Z

• Spending. 41% of Gen Zers are mindful about what they spend. This could be because they were born in the midst of an economic downturn.
• Experience. Gen Z tends to be more persuaded by campaigns that prove the value of a product or service. Perhaps because of the above attitudes to money.
• Online presence. On average, Gen Z spend much more time online than Millennials – around 10 hours a day – meaning they’re more likely to spend online too. In fact, 28% of Gen Zers say they prefer to make mobile purchases.
• Platforms. Gen Z mostly spends their time on platforms like TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube.

Millennials

• Spending. 37% of Millennials are careful about what and how they spend. This could be the result of them beginning to manage their finances after the ‘hopeful’ resolution of the Recession.
• Experience. Millennials look for entertaining and gratifying campaigns that focus on creating a pleasant experience.
• Online presence. Millennials often spend less time online than Gen Z – around 6 hours per day. However, this doesn’t mean they don’t make online purchases, as both generations shop mostly online. In fact, 22% of millennials prefer to make purchases on their phones.
• Platforms. Millennials mostly spend their time on platforms like Instagram, Facebook and X (Twitter).

How to appeal to a Gen Z audience in the UK: 5 quick tips and strategies.

While it’s useful to market to Gen Z as a demographic, it’s important to realise that not everyone is the same. Everyone has different social, cultural and financial experiences, which is why it’s important to understand your Gen Z target audience specifically.

Read on to explore some tips for marketing to Gen Z, and how you could use these in your own campaigns.

Keep your content short and sweet.

Gen Z often prefer shorter content that is succinct in proving a product’s worth. Think TikToks, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. It can be a challenge to fit everything in, but creating effective, concise content is key to tapping into this demographic.

Tap into those comment sections.

People appreciate effective two-way communication. Utilise comment sections on YouTube and TikTok to give your brand a voice outside of your regular campaigns. This can also reassure people that you genuinely care about audience discourse.

Make the most of user-generated content (UGC).

Reviews and testimonials are incredibly powerful in this age of influencer marketing. They act as real-time proof of the quality of a product, and are popular video types on platforms like TikTok. Don’t be afraid to reach out to online influencers you think would work well with your products or services.

Research trends and language.

Like every generation, Gen Z has its particulars when it comes to the content they consume and create. These digital trends are often fast-moving, so it’s a good idea to carry out consistent market research to understand exactly what they want. Even things like language changes per generation – with social media often shaping slang and syntax.

Be genuine.

Gen Z are quick to sniff out performative tactics, especially when it comes to brand morals, social stances and activism. Much like with their attitudes to the quality of your products, they want proof. In fact, Forbes states that Gen Z are more likely to ‘tie a brand or company’s real-world impact on society to their shopping decisions’.

Free social media marketing examples tailored to Gen Z.

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Useful things to know.

What is the best way to reach a Gen Z audience?

Generation Z is more likely to use video-based platforms like TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube Shorts. With this in mind, when marketing to Gen Z, keep content short and concise. Generation Z is incredibly digitally literate, meaning they often look to brands who effectively prove their relevance to them as they sift through mountains of content.

How can I market an event to Gen Z?

Using influencer marketing can be an incredibly powerful tool when marketing an event to Gen Z. On sites like TikTok, many users look towards the accounts they follow to show them products, services and events they personally prefer. These two-way parasocial relationships build trust, which your brand can tap into when marketing an event.

Is Gen Z hard to advertise to?

Like any other generation, Gen Z’s marketing attitudes and expectations differ. This doesn’t necessarily make them ‘harder’ to target, it just means brands have to adapt to these attitudes when creating advertisements. For example, more than any other demographic, Gen Z prefer short, precise content that gets to the point with an engaging hook.

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