Gen Z Requires Tailored Creative and Messaging to Maximize Marketing Effectiveness
At a high level, the most important characteristics of brands to Gen Z’s purchase consideration can vary meaningfully from older generations. For example, when it comes to home services companies, Gen Z are more likely to say that having the best price is one of the three most important qualities of providers. By comparison, older generations are most likely to say that providers being licensed and insured is one of the three most important qualities.
Of the following, select the three most important qualities of a home services company to your decision to hire them. (Top three overall responses)
As such, marketers have to put the right messaging in front of younger consumers to ensure that their best selling points are evident.
How important is it to your decision to purchase a beauty brand's products that the brand features models who look like you in its marketing?
Gen Z also has distinct opinions on what kinds of ads are most appealing to them. For example, only 19% of Gen Zers said that it was not at all important to feature models who look like them in beauty advertisements, compared to 37% of baby boomers. Beauty advertisers should therefore look to adequately represent the demographics of the Gen Z shoppers they’re looking to reach.
How important are the beliefs or values of an apparel product brand (such as being sustainable, having good worker conditions, or the social causes it supports) to your decision to purchase its products?
When it comes to apparel companies, 75% of Gen Z respondents say that the beliefs or values of a brand are at least moderately important to their decision to purchase that brand’s products, compared to just 53% of boomers. This makes it more crucial to communicate brand beliefs and values, such as efforts to improve sustainability and worker conditions, when targeting Gen Z cohorts.
How likely are you to be able to tell an AI-generated image from a real photograph? (Share who said very likely or almost certain)
As advertisers look to incorporate AI-generated copy and creative into their campaigns, it’s important to note that Gen Z cohorts are much more confident than their elders in their ability to detect AI with 41% saying they are very likely to be able to identify whether an image is AI-generated. That rate drops to just 8% for baby boomers.
Which of the following describes how you feel about brands that use AI-generated images, videos, or text in their marketing? Select all that apply.
Although Gen Z was a bit more likely than older generations to think a brand using AI for marketing assets might be a scam, they were also much more likely to feel that the brand was cool for doing so.