Relevant Gen Z stats marketers should understand

Gen Z is changing the rules and creating new trends online. This is something to adapt to, otherwise consumer trends will surprise you at every corner. The first thing needed to understand Gen Z’ers is a general understanding of what age they are and what kind of behaviors they have. Here’s a guide to the most important Gen Z stats.

Some basic Gen Z stats

Gen Z (Generation Z) is the generation that follows Millennials. The ages that qualify for Gen Z are typically people born somewhere in the late 1990s through the early 2000s, though it’s not an exact science. There are currently more Gen Z’ers than Millennials on the Earth, making them a massive part of the current consumer makeup.

Gen Z has never existed without cell phones and the internet being available. A lot of them grew up with smartphones and their own computer. They take digital spaces very seriously and use them as if they were a real life social structure or hierarchy. We can begin to get a good sense for what this generation enjoys and how they behave just by looking at a few basic statistics. However, in order to truly understand them, it’s vital to learn some specifics.

Gen Z’ers spend their time…

As you now know, Gen Z’ers have spent most of their lives connected digitally. They also behave differently online than previous generations. In terms of social media platforms, Gen Z’ers steer clear of sites previous generations are on, such as Facebook or YouTube. Instead, they’re connecting with peers on Snapchat or Instagram. In fact, they place a high importance on their digital appearance and presence, similar to previous generations’ real-life peer values.

One important thing to consider is Gen Z is more likely to install and use an ad-blocker on their web browser than previous generations. This means they are experiencing nearly every page they visit differently. It also means they see less advertisements each time they use the computer. Despite this, Gen Z’ers are increasingly finding out about new products and services using the internet.

Potential future developments

One thing we can learn from the emergence of Gen Z is how things change drastically from one generation to the next, but not enough to discount all previous understandings of demographic behavior. We see this with digital use, as Gen Z’ers distanced themselves from previously popular social media sites but didn’t disregard them altogether.

Another important thing to note about the future is that regardless of what trends currently point to concerning Gen Z, these will change as technology evolves. A good example of this is the website Myspace, which used to have a lot more users than Facebook. This of course changed dramatically, not because of a transition from Millennial branding or habits to Gen Z marketing, but because of the digital competition that emerged, which Facebook won. Consider these types of historical patterns when evaluating sites and apps like Snapchat or Instagram and their current Gen Z popularity.

How to use this information to better serve Gen Z

These statistics are a potential goldmine when used correctly. Take for example the fact Gen Z uses their mobile devices more than previous generations. Certainly this will have a huge impact on how websites are constructed – optimized for smartphone usage. Taking it one step further, it will also impact what types of sites win the SEO wars. Rankings will start to trend in favor of companies who create pages that suit mobile devices.

Another way to serve Gen Z better is to adjust to their habits in order to optimize your chances of connecting with them. Clearly, campaigns that worked in the past won’t work as well anymore. Furthermore, the type of advertisements won’t be as effective (or possibly, even seen at all). Keep this in mind when structuring and planning your next campaign.

Learning about Gen Z and their important stats and behaviors is only the first step in the process. Now that you have a base understanding, get creative in developing ways to connect with them.