1. Who are Generation Z consumers?
All consumers are relevant and evolve according to the needs of the moment (e.g. the Covid-19 pandemic we have suffered and are still overcoming) setting consumer trends.
However, some socio-demographic groups affect more than others the changes that we must think about implementing in those strategies that will allow us to make our business and brand better known, and to sell our products and/or services in the medium and long term. One of these groups is Generation Z.
Generation Z, also known as Gen Z, centennials or postmillennials is a sociodemographic group born in the late 90s and early 2000s. Their age is around 20 and, therefore, we can consider them part of the most important consumers in the coming years. And if in recent years knowing these consumers had already begun to be important, now it is starting to be key.
2. Why is it relevant to know how they consume?
When we talked about the importance of developing buyer profiles or buyer persona we did it because we knew that there would be a time when digital strategies would be key to the future of business. Now this is clearer than ever. Many businesses and brands are exclusively digital, but their sustainability over time will depend on how hard they work to know their consumers.
And Generation Z is the socio-democratic group that will define the foundations and trends of e-commerce and advertising models for the next decade. Moreover, they are the ones who will influence the new generations in the use of different technologies and digital platforms.
For this reason, it is not only essential to learn from them, to know what their preferences and possible current needs are, but also to be aware of their changes in terms of consumption that can influence the marketing and sales strategies implemented.
Because if there is one thing we know well, it is that with the continuous social changes we are experiencing, consumer habits and trends may change. Knowing our consumers well is fundamental and, if our business is going to be increasingly affected by these buyers, it is necessary to know exactly who they are.
Although only a little more than a decade separates the centennials from the millennials, these years have been enough to add some interesting traits to take into account. But are they so different from the millennials? What relevant facts have influenced them that we should take into account to assess their consumption behavior?
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What characterizes generation z or centennials?
3.1. They are digital natives, they do not understand the world without the Internet.
The centennials are the consumers born in the digital era. In fact, they are the first socio-demographic group that has not known a world in which the Internet did not exist. Therefore, it is not surprising that they do not conceive of the world without privileges such as mobile devices and digital platforms.
Unlike the millenials, many of whom did not have a cell phone until the late 1990s, when its use began to spread considerably, Generation Z has had a superior command of technological devices almost from birth.
In fact, in the educational field, this technology has been incorporated to meet a necessary requirement, as many of these digital natives are more curious or predisposed to study using certain devices and content. For this reason, their learning capacity is, if possible, more visual.
3.2. They feel more comfortable with public exposure.
Due to the previous fact, Gen Z consumers feel more comfortable exposing their lives publicly. For these young people the Internet and platforms such as social media are not just for communication, but there is an implicit need to interact and exchange experiences with other people of their generation.
And since these experiences are paramount to them, there is a great need to show and share them publicly. This is because they are linked to the boom in virtual social relationships and, for this reason, it is also important for them to project an active digital image although, surprisingly, much more realistic and without artifice or postureo, which is the term used by many in these cases.
3.3. They are more independent, self-taught and creative.
In addition, centennials are characterized by greater self-taught learning. Communication technologies and access to a wide variety of information have helped them to
