When one thinks of Gen Z, or in the South African context ‘ama2000’, many things come to mind. Partying. Memes. Bravery.
Indeed, this is a vocal and knowledgeable generation who champion social causes and challenge the status quo. At the same time, it’s a generation consistently glued to electronic devices.
Gen Z does physically interact socially but those social moments must to be shared online for consumption by their ‘digital squad’. The need for a digital and physical squad is heightened by this group’s interconnected life.
Contrary to popular belief, this the most connected generation. Although many may see them as asocial, their high-tech interaction does not trump the need for authentic physical human connections.
Moments are not real until they are shared, which is why this generation is the pioneer of online content creation. From dusk to dawn, they are constantly connected to and with their friends. It is not an unusual to see a group of friends, each one on their phones taking pictures and posting, and managing the online reaction that emanates from that post (likes, retweets, shares, comments).
There is a constant need to secure social feedback instantly. This is not to imply that they are disconnected from the group they are with physically. Quite the contrary, they are all engaged with each other and with the activity at hand. There is just a need to bring the rest of their circle into the moment.
Millennials and previous generations socialised physically but this was with its limitations. There is a finite number of people with whom one can interact with physically in a day … the number of conversations that can occur is finite. The good news for brands with this generation is that they can leverage ‘group thinking’ to effectively push their messaging and drive brand awareness.
By contrast, Gen Z has an infinite social network that fulfils different needs. Physically, they could be holding a conversation about topic A and simultaneously talking about topic B online. They can game with people in other parts of the world, and join groups of people who they share the same ideals with regardless of where they are. They share their lives with people they’ll probably never meet in person, and for them this is their normal. But they also use digital platforms to facilitate the process of actually physically meeting up.
Unlike Millennials who grew up with technology, this generation was born into technology. They are true digital natives for whom technology is interwoven with their lives. For brands to resonate with this audience, they need to also show up ‘seamlessly’ digitally and physically.
The experience of the brand needs to be ‘always on’ as this is an ‘always on’ audience.
Studies show that, in South Africa, Gen Zs are the most digitally and physically connected generation of all generations (Euromonitor South Africa Consumer Study 2022).
This indicates a seamless integration and balance of both their physical and digital lives. Technology is seen as a facilitator of social needs and interactions, with time spent with friends online being as important as face-to-face interaction.
This poses a number of questions for brands wanting to speak to this consumer segment.
How do they connect with a generation driven by social currency?
How do you speak to an audience that has access to so many thoughts and opinions.
While millennials prefer e-commerce, studies show Gen Z consumers prefer social commerce where the entire consumer journey is started and completed via social media.
How then do brands create strong social equity to resonate with this audience?
How do brands tap into this audience that is constantly connected to one another?
This is a generation that listens to its own voice and inspires everyone else to have the freedom to be brave. Perhaps the time is right to up the bravado.
Phumelela Mtshali is a brand strategist at RAPT Creative Agency. She holds a BBA Brand Building and Management and a NDip Public Relations Management and has worked on brand strategy on a number of brands for FMCG houses such as Unilever, Beiersdorf, RCL Foods and Danone among others. She is passionate about creating strategies that break category codes and makes brands relevant to their consumers.
