Welcome to Marketing to Gen Z, a regular column from Quad Insights. In this installment, which kicks off the series, we examine why brands are increasingly focused on reaching the demographic.
Gen Z comprises individuals across a range of ages (which we’re defining as those born between 1997 and 2012) and milestones — from preteens through early adulthood — with priorities ranging from fitting in (or standing out) to finishing school to navigating the job market to starting families of their own.
But the one thing that connects all members of Gen Z is their history of, well, connectedness.
As the first “digital natives,” Gen Zers were born into an era in which information, entertainment and products were but a keystroke or tap away. This constant and immediate access to the digital world has also contributed to hyperawareness of today’s challenges. As a recent McKinsey & Company article points out, “Young people today have come of age in the shadow of climate doom, pandemic lockdowns and fears of economic collapse.” (Incidentally, McKinsey goes with 1996-2010 as its birth-year range for Gen Z.)
That subtext aside, the cohort has growing economic power and evolving financial behaviors, making marketing to Gen Z both crucial and complicated.
As of 2023, these digital natives made up roughly 20% of the U.S. population, per eMarketer, and spent more per capita than any other generation at the same age, according to NielsenIQ’s (NIQ) “Spend Z” report. Combined, these factors are expected to contribute to the global Z population reaching $12 trillion in spending power by 2030, per the NIQ report.
Meanwhile, an analysis by buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Afterpay shows that Gen Z spending — specifically their share of U.S. retail spend — is expected to jump to 17% by 2030 (up from 13% in 2020).
That growing spending power is a big part of why marketing to Gen Z has become such a priority for brands — and why we’ve launched this new content series. In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll be looking at Gen Zers through a range of cultural and marketing lenses to help marketers make sense of the demographic cohort.
Next in the series: “Marketing to Gen Z: How effective are influencer campaigns for younger consumers, really?”
