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Since mid-November, a guide by Facebook has been available online with the aim of helping brands connect with younger users. We’re talking about the cohorts known as Millennials and Generation Z, born between the 1980s and the late ’90s, and those born after.
These individuals exhibit distinct habits and preferences in their use of social media and the internet in general. From device choices to desired content types, and even the ways they interact with companies.
What Facebook doesn’t explicitly mention is that the average age of users on its primary platform increases every year. Those who are entering the online world today prefer to do so through alternative channels, in part to avoid parents and teachers. Facebook’s “cousin,” Instagram, manages to capture only a portion of this exodus, which flows toward platforms like Snapchat and other relatively unknown platforms to Millennials, such as TikTok.
This trend is something that the Menlo Park company is trying to manage by diversifying its offerings – it’s reasonable to expect Instagram to gain even more focus. Additionally, Facebook is monitoring social conversations to provide advertisers with updated best practices in the ever-changing social landscape.
Hence, the guide identifies three distinct areas brands need to focus on in order to effectively engage young people online. Let’s explore them together.
Mobile Advertising
It’s well-known that digital consumption is increasingly shifting towards mobile devices. However, Facebook’s data allows us to appreciate the magnitude of this trend, particularly its generational nature before its technological aspect. For example, it’s revealed that if those under 35 use their smartphones on average 20% longer than they watch television, for those under 25, this figure jumps to an impressive +160%.
The report mentions new advertising services that integrate Facebook with TV and signage, ensuring that anyone who sees an advertising message on these platforms will later see it on their smartphone. This approach has shown to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of campaigns on multiple occasions.
Brand Values
Young people appreciate brands that communicate their values clearly and unequivocally. Taking a stance on social issues, initiatives promoting a positive agenda, and consistent policies in public relations management are highly valued by Millennials and Gen Z.
Gen Z, in particular, is more likely than the average user to share brands that share their values on social media. The analyzed sample in the report shows an increase in the likelihood of positively reviewing (+30%), recommending to others (+50%), and choosing for purchases (+20%) brands that already reflect their stance. However, it’s important to note that this is a double-edged sword: presenting your brand as representative of a certain way of thinking requires attention, consistency, and constancy, or else the same audience you’ve chosen as your reference may lose trust.
Personalized Interactions
Even when interacting with brands online, young people have specific preferences – and unfortunately, they are not the same. Millennials (25-38 years old) like to communicate directly with the brand, while members of Generation Z (under 24) place more importance on entertaining content and related engagement. One point on which everyone seems to agree is the preference for public exchanges on the brand’s page rather than those managed via private messaging.
The two groups also differ in their willingness to provide their personal data for the purpose of better interaction. Gen Z considers their social and browsing activity as expendable, while they are more reserved about financial and, above all, personal information. This approach is perhaps more reasonable than that of Millennials, who are more inclined to provide financial information (read: save their credit card number on a site) and personal information but relatively guarded about their public social activity.
Conclusion
Reading the document provides a revealing and somewhat unexpected picture. While caution might suggest maintaining a neutral profile so as not to alienate potential customers, data pushes toward exposure; while technology might seem to offer brands infinite tools, the audience requires them to differentiate their communication in order to cater to individual preferences.
Advertisers looking to target this demographic must project themselves onto mobile devices with a well-defined and coherent identity, in forms that their audience prefers, and without invading their privacy. This is a demanding recipe that requires not only a deep understanding of the industry in which you operate but also of the people seeking it. A mix of skills that goes beyond mere mastery of online platforms and once again reminds us that what we do, before being “web,” is primarily “marketing.”
Link to the Facebook guide: https://www.facebook.com/business/news/insights/build-better-brand-connections-with-gen-zers-and-millennials
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