Every generation brings new expectations to the market. Generation Z, commonly defined as people born from the late 1990s to the early 2010s, has grown up with smartphones, social media, streaming and on-demand services. They are now entering the workforce, starting careers and businesses, and becoming significant buyers in both consumer and business markets. Younger engineers, procurement officers, designers and managers increasingly influence business-to-business purchases too.
Marketing approaches that worked for older generations, such as long television commercials, hard-sell messages and one-way communication, often fail with younger customers. Understanding how they discover, evaluate and talk about brands helps businesses of all kinds communicate more effectively.
Generalisations about any generation should be treated with care. Individuals differ widely, and many traits described here are increasingly common across all age groups. With that caution, this article sets out eight characteristics commonly observed among younger customers, with practical implications for marketing.
1. Digital-first, mobile-first
Younger customers live much of their lives online, mostly on smartphones. Surveys consistently show many spend several hours a day online. Social media, video platforms, messaging apps and search engines are where they discover brands, research products and share opinions.
Implications:
- Be present where your audience spends time, and make sure everything works well on mobile.
- Prioritise video and visual content. Long, dense articles are less likely to be read on a phone, although in-depth content still matters for serious research.
- Make buying and contacting easy on mobile, including messaging, online booking and digital payments.
Different platforms serve different purposes: some for entertainment, some for curated self-presentation, some for real-time conversation, some for news and opinion, and some for learning and product research. Choose platforms that match both your audience and your message, and adapt content to each.
2. Allergic to hard selling
Younger customers are sophisticated about marketing. They quickly recognise when a brand is pushing too hard or saying what it thinks they want to hear. Heavy-handed, generic messages are ignored or mocked. Even well-intentioned campaigns can fall flat if they feel contrived or disconnected from what young people care about.
Implications:
- Focus on helping, informing and entertaining rather than pushing.
- Show the product in real use, by real people.
- Let customers draw their own conclusions from evidence and peers’ experiences.
3. Short attention windows, deep attention for what matters
Feeds are crowded, and people decide within seconds whether to keep watching. Advertising formats have shortened accordingly. Some online video platforms offer six-second ad formats, and short-form video platforms have grown rapidly because their content is quick, entertaining and easy to share.
A popular claim that human attention spans are now shorter than a goldfish’s is not supported by good evidence. The more accurate observation is that people filter content ruthlessly and quickly, but will give deep attention to things they find valuable, such as long videos, games, series or courses on topics they care about.
Implications:
- Hook attention in the first seconds.
- Package key messages in short formats, then offer depth for those who want it.
- Make every piece of content earn its place.
4. Value and values
Younger customers often care about what a brand stands for, not only what it sells. Brands that focus only on sales and discounts struggle to build lasting relationships. Brands that create genuine value through useful content, meaningful causes and responsible practices earn attention and loyalty.
Examples include campaigns that tell real stories with emotional resonance and link purchases to social good, such as a skincare brand that shared stories of mothers’ sacrifices and donated food with each share, or a footwear brand that donated a pair of shoes for each pair sold.
Implications:
- Be clear about your values and act on them consistently.
- Support causes that genuinely connect with your business and customers.
- Avoid “purpose-washing”. Younger customers quickly spot causes adopted only for marketing, and backlash can be severe.
5. Contextual relevance
Generic messages sent to everyone are increasingly ignored. Content tailored to specific interests performs far better. One discount-coupon company created short videos targeted at different interest groups, such as travel, cooking and beauty, and showed each group only the relevant video. The campaign attracted large numbers of new, mostly younger customers.
Implications:
- Segment your audience by interest and need.
- Create content relevant to each segment.
- Use targeting tools responsibly and within privacy rules.
6. Conversation, not instruction
Younger customers respond to brands that talk with them rather than at them. A food delivery company built a strong following on social media through witty, conversational posts and questions, sometimes even joking that customers should eat home-cooked food instead of ordering. The tone invited replies and engagement, and kept the brand top of mind.
Implications:
- Use a human, conversational tone appropriate to your brand.
- Ask questions, respond to comments and join conversations.
- Use humour carefully, because it must suit your brand and never offend.
- Treat social media as a two-way channel, not a billboard.
7. Flexibility and choice
Younger customers expect to engage on their own terms: on any device, at any time, through their preferred channel. Streaming services became popular partly because people can watch what they want when they want. Many young people expect to research online, buy in store or online, return easily and get support through chat or messaging.
Implications:
- Offer seamless options across physical and digital channels.
- Make processes simple, with minimal forms, quick payment and clear delivery information.
- Provide support through the channels customers prefer.
8. Honesty and transparency
Trust is essential. Younger customers expect brands to be honest about products, prices, sourcing and mistakes. Attempts to hide problems are often exposed and widely shared. When brands make mistakes, a prompt, sincere apology and visible fix often restores trust, and can even strengthen it.
Implications:
- Be truthful in every claim.
- Admit mistakes quickly and explain what you are doing to fix them.
- Respond openly to criticism.
- Satisfied younger customers become vocal advocates, posting reviews and recommendations that reach their networks.
Younger people as business buyers and employees
The same characteristics affect business-to-business marketing and recruitment:
- Younger professional buyers research online before contacting suppliers, expect clear information on websites, value video demonstrations and case studies, and prefer quick digital communication.
- Younger employees and job seekers look for employers whose values, flexibility, development opportunities and culture match their expectations, and research employers on social media and review sites.
Businesses that communicate authentically, digitally and transparently are better placed both to sell to younger buyers and to attract younger talent.
Influencers and creators
Many younger customers discover products through creators and influencers they follow, whose recommendations can feel more trustworthy than advertising. For small businesses, partnering with micro-influencers, creators with smaller but highly engaged audiences in a specific niche or location, is often more effective and affordable than chasing large celebrities.
Good practice:
- Choose creators whose audiences match your customers and whose values align with yours.
- Give creators freedom to present the product in their own voice, because scripted content loses authenticity.
- Make sure sponsored content is clearly disclosed. Australian advertising codes require that advertising be clearly distinguishable, and audiences trust creators who are transparent.
- Measure results: reach, engagement, traffic and sales, not just follower counts.
User-generated content and reviews
Younger customers often trust content created by other customers, such as reviews, unboxing videos, photos and testimonials, more than brand content. Encourage it:
- Invite customers to share photos and experiences, perhaps with a branded hashtag.
- Feature customer content, with permission, on your website and social channels.
- Respond to reviews, positive and negative, promptly and genuinely.
- Make leaving a review easy after purchase.
Never fake reviews or incentivise only positive ones. Fake reviews breach consumer law and destroy trust when discovered.
Mistakes to avoid
- Trying too hard to sound young, using slang awkwardly or copying trends without understanding them.
- Inconsistency between message and behaviour, such as promoting values the business does not practise.
- Ignoring comments and messages, which signals that the brand is not really listening.
- Overselling, with constant promotions and pressure.
- Neglecting mobile experience, with slow pages, complex forms and missing payment options.
- Treating the audience as a single group, when younger customers are as diverse as any other generation.
Measuring what works
Marketing to younger audiences can feel like guesswork, but it can be measured like any other marketing:
- Engagement: views, watch time, shares, saves and comments, which matter more than follower counts.
- Traffic and enquiries from each platform, tracked with links and simple “how did you hear about us?” questions.
- Conversion and repeat purchase among younger customer segments.
- Sentiment: what people say about the brand in comments and reviews.
- Cost per result for paid campaigns.
Test different formats, topics and tones, keep what works and drop what does not. Because platforms and habits change quickly, review results at least monthly.
Attracting younger employees
The same principles help businesses recruit and retain younger staff, an increasingly important challenge in trades, engineering and manufacturing:
- Show the real workplace through short videos and posts featuring current staff, projects and apprentices.
- Be transparent about pay ranges, training, career paths and flexibility in job advertisements.
- Highlight purpose and impact: how the work matters to customers and the community.
- Respond quickly to applications and keep candidates informed.
- Offer development: structured training, mentoring and visible progression.
- Ask for and act on feedback from younger staff about what would make the workplace better.
Employers who communicate authentically and treat younger workers with respect gain a reputation that spreads through peer networks, which is often the most effective recruitment channel of all. Conversely, a poor experience, such as an ignored application, a disrespectful interview or broken promises about training, can spread just as quickly and make future recruitment harder.
A practical checklist
- Audit your digital presence on mobile: website, social profiles, booking and payment.
- Create a series of short videos showing your product or service in real use.
- Review your messages for hard-sell language, and replace it with helpful, honest content.
- Clarify your values and one or two causes that genuinely connect with your business.
- Segment your audience and tailor content to each segment.
- Set aside time each week to respond to comments and messages conversationally.
- Make it easy to buy and get support through multiple channels.
- Prepare a simple process for acknowledging and fixing mistakes publicly.
A worked example
A family-owned bicycle shop notices that younger customers browse in store but buy online. The owners decide to adapt. They start posting short videos showing repairs, tips and local riding routes, presented by a young mechanic in a relaxed, conversational style. They respond to every comment and message. They introduce online booking for servicing, digital payments and a simple website showing stock. They partner with a local cycling group on monthly community rides and a bike recycling program that donates refurbished bikes to people in need.
Within a year, younger customers make up a much larger share of sales, the shop’s social following has grown substantially, and several customers say they chose the shop because of its videos and community involvement.
Frequently asked questions
Should we create a separate brand for younger customers? Usually not. Most businesses do better by modernising communication across the brand, making it more authentic, visual and conversational, than by creating separate identities.
Do we need to be on every new platform? No. Choose platforms where your audience actually spends time and where you can contribute consistently. Doing one or two platforms well beats doing many poorly.
Will these approaches alienate older customers? Rarely. Honesty, convenience, useful content and respectful conversation appeal to customers of all ages, and many older customers now use the same platforms and expect the same convenience.
Summary
Younger customers are digital-first and mobile-first, resistant to hard selling, quick to filter content, attentive to values, responsive to relevant content and conversation, and they expect flexibility, honesty and transparency. Market to them with short, authentic, visual content on the right platforms, genuine values, tailored messages, two-way conversation, seamless channels and candour about mistakes. These principles increasingly apply to all customers, and to younger business buyers and employees too.
Sources: small-business training notes on marketing products to Generation Z, including Indian and international campaign examples, together with general marketing practice. Generational descriptions are generalisations and do not apply to every individual.
