The winning formula for brands to capture the minds of Generation Z!

China’s current consumption structure and consumer market are undergoing changes, mainly due to changes in consumer groups. A group of energetic young people began to take the lead, injecting fresh blood into the market consumption environment.

According to statistics, China currently has the largest Generation Z population in the world, with a population of 260 million. Faced with such a large consumer group, how to impress them becomes the primary issue that brands have to face.

1. Group Characteristics of Generation Z

Generation Z is a popular term in the United States and Europe, mainly referring to people born between 1995 and 2009. If brands want to capture their minds, they first need to understand and gain insight into the habits and preferences of this generation.

First of all, Generation Z is a generation that is deeply influenced by technological products. They are also the "natives" of the mobile Internet world. They grew up in a convenient digital environment and are particularly outstanding in resource acquisition and utilization, learning and thinking, diversified absorption and tolerance, and innovation.

Secondly, unlike their parents’ difficult environment, Generation Z grew up in a relatively affluent environment. They have a broader vision and a more open mind, and have high self-confidence in the future, so their willingness to consume is stronger. China's consumer market has reached a scale of 6.5 trillion US dollars, and more than half of the consumption is generated by those born after 1995.

The personality traits of Generation Z also have their own unique side. They are willing to try and dare to fight for the things they like. At work, they have the courage to bear heavy pressure and the attitude to speak out against unfair events. They have a strong sense of self-awareness and do not follow the crowd.

Such growth environment and personality traits determine the diverse preferences of Generation Z. They can be seen everywhere in socializing, entertainment, shopping, etc. The two-dimensional world, celebrities, games, music, videos, etc. have become their circles.

2. Marketing methods favored by Generation Z

In order to win the hearts of young people, brands have developed corresponding marketing strategies based on the interests and hobbies of Generation Z.

1. Curiosity Marketing

Generation Z is willing to accept new things, and the most obvious is their enthusiasm for blind box marketing . As it was said in "Forrest Gump": "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what the next one will taste like." The same is true for opening blind boxes. The unknown and mystery attract young people to try.

Want Want combines 56 ethnic costumes with Want Want classic elements to produce 56 blind boxes. The appearance that incorporates ethnic elements and the experience of blind boxes have aroused the collecting and consumption desires of many consumers.

2. Cute and fun marketing

Although Generation Z enjoys the convenience of technological life, they are also under pressure from fast-paced study and work. At the same time, brands need to find an outlet for them to release their emotions. This is why the cute economy is so popular. It can make brands more "human" in terms of emotional warmth.

The inherent affinity and healing power of fun and cute elements can meet the diverse emotional needs of the audience. The cute doll IP image is also loved by more Generation Z users. Starbucks' cat claw cup was sold out as soon as it went online; the perfect combination of White Rabbit milk tea not only satisfies girls' love for cute things, but also guesses the thoughts of today's "milk tea girls"; and Heytea opened a cute pet theme store, which brought it a considerable wave of traffic.

3. Entertainment Marketing

In this age where entertainment is paramount, entertainment marketing has become one of the marketing methods that brands cannot ignore. It precisely fits the aesthetic preferences of the younger generation: idol fever.

"Sisters Who Make Waves" has been searched over 100 times, triggering a "phenomenal" national topic, and studying "Sister Studies" has become a popular social culture among young people nowadays; "Talk Show Conference" has made Li Xueqin and others a group of "dark horses" in talk shows; "Summer of the Band 2" has made Wu Tiaoren a "darling" that brands are vying for. Being able to win such a huge response is inseparable from the brand’s precise targeting. Fans are an important part of all entertainment marketing.

4. Appearance Marketing

Everyone loves beauty, especially young people who closely follow trends. They not only pay attention to shaping their own image, but also are extremely fond of things with extremely high appearance values. "Appearance is king" is a common feature of their consumption .

Many Internet celebrity brands have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain: Yuanqi Forest in the soft drink industry, Santonban in the coffee industry, and Zhong Xuegao in the ice cream industry. Their common feature is that they focus on creating the appearance of their products , and their good-looking appearance has won the hearts of contemporary young people. In addition, beauty products have the highest penetration rate among Generation Z. Makeup has not only become a must-have for girls, but boys have also started to get involved.

In the battle for Generation Z, brand marketing is flourishing, but success is not inevitable. Young people’s minds are ever-changing, and if you are not careful, a brand will be eliminated.

3. How can brands better “attract” Generation Z?

If a brand wants to develop over the long term, it must know how to "attract" this generation of young people, so that it will have absolute voice and choice in this group in the future.

1. Targeting circles and diversifying innovation

The biggest characteristic of Generation Z is that they don’t like to follow the crowd and have their own independent personality and preferences. Brands need to create more segmented areas based on the target users' hobbies and interests , and implement strategies based on the brand's own characteristics, which will help maximize brand marketing benefits.

In their own circles, Generation Z can continue to develop the careers they love, and can also find "like-minded people" with the same hobbies in their circles. These people with the same hobbies gather together to form a stable small community, which doubles the user's "sense of belonging" and can accumulate a powerful traffic pool for the brand.

2. Focus on both quality and cost performance

Generation Z has many choices, which leads to their lack of brand loyalty. When choosing products, they will consider multiple angles, which makes brands more strict in building themselves.

The younger generation's consumption habits have returned to rationality, and they will pay attention to the quality of products. For example, when buying things, they are not limited to paying attention to the product's positive reviews, but are more concerned about whether there are negative reviews and what the negative reviews are about. After being satisfied with the product quality, people will continue to identify products with high cost performance and unique highlights. Therefore , brands must also take price into consideration when developing quality in order to cultivate lasting user loyalty.

3. Lower your profile and respect young people’s values

No matter how strong a company is, it must have an enterprising mentality of being prepared for danger in times of peace. Today's achievements cannot always guarantee future changes. If it is always complacent, it will be detrimental to its future development, because the brand is facing the Generation Z group, and their unified inner monologue is: "If you hold me up, I will not feel anything. If I don't feel anything, I won't buy it." Only when old brands lower their posture, study the mentality of young people, and grow together with young people, will they not be out of date no matter what era.

Generation Z advocates new consumerism, which is centered on a sense of existence, ritual, participation and happiness. If brands want to win them, they must stand from their perspective to integrate into the circle culture and aesthetic preferences, love what they love, and respect their values ​​and culture.

Brands can also showcase their charm in a diversified way, so as to truly impress the hearts of the younger generation and win the initiative in the future market.

IV. Conclusion

Whoever can truly win over Generation Z will be the first to reap long-term benefits. After all, the "next wave" in the eyes of the "old wave" has already grown into economic builders, fashion leaders and consumer decision makers, and they will constitute the future of this world.

Today, Generation Z has a strong voice in the consumer market, and many brands are trying their best to win the hearts of Generation Z. However, it is not easy to penetrate into the young group, truly carry out Generation Z marketing, and make them voluntarily pay for the brand. In the future, we also look forward to more brands contributing more excellent cases to us.

Author: Internet Marketing Officer

Source: Internet Marketing Officer (ID: HLWCMO)