Welcome to Marketing to Gen Z, a regular column from Quad Insights. In this installment, we take a quick look at the demographic cohort’s reported interest in sustainability — and what it means for marketers.
(For a primer on this generation, see “Why marketers continue to be fixated on Gen Z.”)
For Gen Z, concerns about the environment loom large. A 2024 Deloitte survey, for instance, reported that 62% of Gen Zers said they felt worried or anxious about climate change in the past month.
What’s less clear is how much Gen Z’s environmental consciousness impacts their spending and consumption behaviors. Consider some recent research/findings:
That Rival/Reach3 study offers a glimmer of a reality check: that attitudes surrounding sustainability don’t exist in a vacuum.
The complex relationship between Gen Z spending and sustainability
“What a lot of research surrounding Gen Z behavior misses is that consumer preferences are part of a complex matrix,” says Lily Wen, Director of Product Marketing – Data & Media at Quad. “Macroeconomic factors such as inflation, as well as individual consumers’ household budgetary challenges, can override the best intentions.”
And the data backs this up, suggesting that Gen Z’s spending habits are not always in alignment with their attitudes about the environment. For instance, according to a YouGov survey released last November, Gen Z’s top purchase factors when it comes to clothing include price (52.1%) and value (43.8%), while sustainability ranks much lower (14.7%).
It’s worth noting here that, according to an August 2024 Bankrate survey, 28% of Gen Z workers are living paycheck to paycheck. Additionally, the same survey also notes that 32% of Gen Zers have more credit card debt than emergency savings.
“The challenge for brands is to find the right balance between affordability and rising consumer interest in sustainable products and packaging,” says Shannon Anderson, Director of Client Research, Package Insight Analytics at Quad, “and then messaging smartly around their offerings so that consumers truly understand their choices. Transparency around sustainability is where a lot of marketers can get tripped up and accused of ‘greenwashing,’ particularly by younger consumers who may be more skeptical of brand claims — and who will do the research to verify.”
The important thing is to meet individual consumers where they are, Wen adds. “A brand’s focus on sustainability will matter a lot for some Gen Z consumers, but not so much — or not at all — for others. That’s why brands need to activate omnichannel campaigns that are built around data-driven, personalized messaging. Marketing effectively to Gen Zers is about connecting with individuals rather than making broad generalizations about an entire demographic cohort.”
For more from Quad on personalized marketing, download our 2025 audience strategy guide.
Illustration by Fernando Cobelo.
