Who is Gen Z?
It all comes down to digital experiences.
Gen Z represents up to $150 billion in buying power globally.
Gen Z influences $600 billion in spending globally.
Worldwide there are an estimated 2 billion Gen Zers, about 25% of the global population.
Gen Z will account for 40 percent of global consumers by 2020.
Gen Z and how you can reach them.
For Gen Z, the most Internet-dependent generation in history, the physical and digital worlds have begun to blend with one another in a way no generation before them has ever envisioned. This presents opportunities and challenges for today’s brands—but to reach Gen Z, you must first understand not only how they view the digital world, but the world in general.
Identity.
Gen Z’s identity and digital are inextricably linked. Across nearly every category measured, Gen Z’s behaviour shows more expansive online involvement with higher expectations around digital experiences. This generation spends more time connected to the web than any other generation and by their own admission, they are the most dependent on it. The attributes of trust, sharing, and authenticity in the digital world are all key components of Gen Z’s overall identity. To reach these digital pioneers, you must create digital experiences that allow Gen Z to be creative, engage on a personal level, and most importantly, be themselves.
Influence.
Exploring the way Gen Z is influenced by the digital world, as well as how they influence the rest of us, is a study of their digital identity in action. Looking at Gen Z from an economic perspective, this massive segment of consumers already represents an estimated global buying power of $150 billion. However, this generation is not only highly attuned to how they spend money but also how they make it, and they have a shrewd sense of the business world as a digital-first generation. They are the most likely generation to start a business and the only generation whose first business would be in technology. They expect personalisation in the products they buy and they have high standards for the brands they support. Gen Z understands the number of choices they have at their fingertips, and they will choose products and brands that fit their needs and meet them on their terms, not the other way around. Brand loyalty won’t sustain itself for Gen Z, you must continually earn their business.
Living online.
Gen Z is inextricably tied to digital, blending the physical and digital worlds as never before.
Daily life is inherently connected to the Internet for Gen Z.
CAN'T GO WITHOUT INTERNET ACCESS
for more than 4 hours without becoming uncomfortable.
EXPECT THE INTERNET TO DRIVE DAILY DECISIONS
and foresee this being the norm in 5 years or less.
VALUE DIGITAL RELATIONSHIPS
and are friends with someone they ONLY know online.
BELIEVE YOU CAN BE PART OF A SOCIAL MOVEMENT
even if only participating through social media.
Marketing to Gen Z.
Be entertaining, be authentic, be good.
Build trust through authenticity for Gen Z.
TRUST A COMPANY MORE
if the images they use in their ads are of actual customers.
TRUST A COMPANY MORE
if the images they use in their ads are not photoshopped.
Entertainment and societal impact are high priorities for Gen Z.
OF GEN Z GOES TO THE INTERNET FOR ACCESS TO ENTERTAINMENT
OF GEN Z IS MORE LIKELY TO BUY FROM A COMPANY THAT CONTRIBUTES TO SOCIAL ISSUES
Top 5 elements of trust in a brand for Gen Z.
Products
Reviews/Ratings
Customer Service
Recommendations
Website
Gen Z & the digital experience.
Gen Z online.
Personalisation and empowerment are essential online for Gen Z.
BELIEVE IN PERSONALISATION
They want websites to know what they want intuitively.
EXPECT
PERSONALISATION
They will leave a site if it doesn’t predict what they like, want or need.
HAVE PERSONALLY USED WORDPRESS
They’ve either worked with or hired someone to use WordPress for a website.
BELIEVE IN ONLINE SHOPPING DOMINANCE
They expect all shopping to take place online in the next 10 years.
This data is based on research results from a groundbreaking annual study by WP Engine (wpestaging.qa) and The Center for Generational Kinetics (GenHQ.com). The custom 30-question survey was designed collaboratively by WP Engine and The Center for Generational Kinetics. The study was administered to 1,528 respondents in Western Europe (UK, Ireland, France, Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland), including a 500-person oversample in the UK, ages 14-59, who currently use a smartphone on a regular basis, and it was weighted to each country’s current census data for age, gender, ethnicity and region. The survey was conducted online from September 19, 2019 to October 1, 2019. The study’s margin of error is +/-3.1%.
Influence and identity.
How Gen Z relates to a digital world.
How does Gen Z use the web compared to previous generations? What can your brand do to meet them where they are going? Read below to find out!
Ebook
Get a closer look at how Gen Z is shaping digital and the ways we interact with the web.
Download eBook
Webinar
Learn more about Gen Z and the different types of digital experiences that resonate with them.
Register for Webinar
Infographic
See how Gen Z’s new digital expectations are different from those of previous generations.
View Infographic
Update
What’s changed since we started studying Gen Z’s new digital expectations? Read our previous studies to find out.
Get 2018 Study