12 tips from brands that really get what Gen Z want

By Hannah Bowler, Senior Reporter

July 4, 2023 | 8 min read

The Gen Z cohort is on track to become the largest customer base by 2026, so it’s worth getting to grips with what they want and how to give it to them. We dive into their likes and dislikes, the brands best catering to them, and provide 12 tips to better reach them.

How to reach those hard-to-reach Gen Z consumers

Unlike Millennials who grew up during the dawn of the digital age, Gen Z – those born between the late 1990s and early 2000s – grew up in the digital world.

The name ’Zoomers’ has recently been attached to the demographic to help explain behaviors that might have resulted from entering the workforce mid or post-pandemic.

As the youngest buying power demographic, it’s the one every brand is trying to capture – to varying degrees of success. Market researchers, brands and agencies are all desperate to get under the skin of Gen Z trends and behaviors in order to be able to market them effectively.

After wading through mountains of that research, here’s what we’ve found to be the key trends driving Gen Z purchase decisions, as well as the brands that are coming out on top with this often hard-to-understand demographic.

Pre-loved fashion

The cost of living crisis and Gen Z demands for sustainable shopping have created the conditions for secondhand to grow. This, coupled with the rebranding of secondhand to ‘pre-loved’, has normalized the behavior and allowed it to thrive. A survey by Unidays of 27 million student members revealed 75% of Gen Zs are shopping secondhand and 37% are reselling their clothes. Their favorite brands?

Vinted: M&C Saatchi London’s real-time cost of living survey On the Money found Vinted was the most prevalent platform. The site has grown exponentially in the past two years, from 1.2 million members in 2021 to over 8 million in 2023.
Depop: The influencer-led app has a much smaller penetration and market presence compared with Vinted and eBay, but positions itself differently among its competitors.
eBay: The original marketplace site won Gen Zs over with its game-changing sponsorship of Love Island.

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Mental health & wellness

According to a 2022 Ogilvy study, 70% of US Gen-Zs say their mental health needs the most attention or improvement. The same study revealed 80% currently use “self-care” as a form of mental health care. Brands to look at include:

Woo: Backed by ITV, Woo is a publisher-cum-retail-platform-cum-content-producer. Led by ex-Vice marketer Stephen Mai, Woo covers anything from sex to travel to astrology and sells over 4,300 products from 170 brands.
Headspace: The mindfulness app offers hundreds of different videos that range from guided meditations to breathing exercises to podcasts.

Sustainability

A 2021 Barclaycard survey revealed 73% of Gen Zs are willing to pay more for sustainable products and 40% are more likely to buy from brands with strong environmental credentials. The brands best catering to them?

Chilly’s: Gen Z is big into water bottles and Chilly’s is one of the leading brands in the space.
Puma: The sneaker and fashion brand has been targeting younger demographics with its green credentials and recently got influencers/activists to sit on its board.
Pangia: A material science company that sells bioengineered material loungewear and launched in 2019, just before the pandemic made half the population loungewear owners.

Less booze

According to the market research group Numerator, legal Gen Z drinkers spend 40% less on store-bought alcohol a year compared with Millennials. Snap and market research firm GlobalWebIndex found just 15% of Gen Zs say they drink alcohol at least once a week, compared with 28% of Millennials and 36% of Baby Boomers. Brands to check out include:

Athletic Brewing Company: Has perfectly aimed itself at Gen Z consumers who don’t want to sacrifice the taste of beer.
Big Drop: Claims to be the world’s first brewer dedicated to alcohol-free beer.

Social media

Gen Zs are addicts when it comes to social media and live much of their lives through their digital devices, spending around 10.6 hours engaging with online content every day. Social media is one of the biggest influences on their lives.

TikTok: The video-sharing platform is a means of entertainment. Users are looking for things to relate to, laugh at and learn from to escape from reality.
BeReal: The breakout app of 2022, it has had over 28m downloads since its launch in 2020 and now pulls in over 21 million active users. The app has been hailed for its more authentic take on social media.

Top tips for reaching Gen Z

Leverage UGC content.
Make platform-specific content and marketing.
Hand over creative control to influencers and content creators.
Keep it short.
Use video.
Stand for social issues and do brand purpose.
Be authentic. Gen Z can sniff a faker.
Do brand partnerships with popular Gen Z brands.
Get consumers involved, eg through TikTok challenges and competitions.
Explore the world of gaming but make sure you consult the audience.
Do in-person experiences and experiential marketing.
Seems obvious, but don’t greenwash.

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