The Challenge Of Creating Brand Loyalty Amongst Generation Z

We are living through the biggest shift of attention in human history. When it comes to marketing, companies have had to rethink their strategies over the last few years - and rethink them fast.

Over the past decade, most brands have focused on the baby boomer generation and thereby more traditional forms of advertising.

Marketing was more linear and a campaign printed in magazines or aired on television bi-annually would suffice.

Millennials And Generation Z Pose A Loyalty Challenge

But this time is behind us now, and we don’t see it returning.

Millennials and Generation Z, loosely defined as people born between 1980 to early 2000s, have grown immune to traditional forms of advertisement - and they are now the biggest global population.

Today, content is consumed and created on the go, and it’s the millennials and post-millennials that are in control of engagement.

Marketing Towards Millennials Done Right

We at VideoSmart are part of this demographic.

We opt in for content that entertains us, sparks an emotion, or gives us something to learn from. But most of all, we love content that adds value.

These prerequisites for engagement make creating brand loyalty a difficult task for any business, especially when the digital savvy generation have so much to choose from and are not afraid to jump from brand to brand without a second thought.

So, how do we create value and stay relevant in this post-millennial world?

1. Tap Into Emotions

By focusing on emotions, we can create marketing that means something and stimulates a reaction from the customer, thus creating a deeper brand relationship which could last for years.

Take Nike for example, whose sales surged 31% following the new Colin Kaepernick campaign (Google it if you haven’t seen it). The emotive nature of the content stirred up reactions enough to boost spend.

2. Create Personalised Communications

In a recent survey by Selligent Marketing Cloud, it was found that 74% of consumers wanted to be treated as an individual instead of a demographic, so it’s important to ensure that every part of your communications strategy has personalisation weaved throughout.

3. Serve ‘Snackable’ Videos

Combining powerful, bitesize video content with personalisation gives you a one-to-one strategy that works.

Personalised video is a digital solution that can be consumed on the go and is channel agnostic. It puts an emphasis on customer experience, engagement and convenience.

But most of all, by communicating on an individual level, you make sure not to merely speak to a segment of people, but to create a genuine connection with your customer.

4. Prioritise User-Experience

As Generation Z continues to grow and engage with the world, their go-to channels and platforms will likely evolve as well.

Marketers will have the most long-term impact if they remain savvy to such change and reconnect at every opportunity.

By always understanding where “home” is, the conversation with Gen Z will naturally grow in a positive direction.

A Changing Marketing Audience

According to PwC, members of the post-millennial generation are anticipated to make up at least 40 percent of the customer market by 2020.

Before we know it, Generation Z has already transformed itself as the largest untapped market today - with a potential that could exceed anything we have ever seen from the Millennials and Baby Boomers. Scary, but true.

Now, for our parting words. If there is a marketing motto to live by this year, it’s this: be reactive, be current and most of all, give young people a reason to listen.