16/10/2018 Brands through the eyes of Generation Z - Views - Interbrand

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Brands through the

eyes of Generation
Z
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Global Chief Growth Officer, Gonzalo Brujó

interviews intern, Jorge Ohlsson about
what Generation Z values in brands and
how brands can reach the next consumer
powerhouse.

Young professionals form an integral part of Interbrand,

as their enthusiasm and fresh perspective is an
insightful addition to the team. For me personally, they
enable me to get my fingers on the pulse of their

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16/10/2018 Brands through the eyes of Generation Z - Views - Interbrand

generation and garner first-hand insights to

complement all the secondary
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we’ve read about their consumption habits.
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This summer, I had the privilege of working alongside

Jorge Ohlsson in the Madrid office. Jorge is entering his
second year at the University of Exeter where he is
studying Management and Marketing.

On his first day at Interbrand, we met to assign his first

project: to examine and outline how Generation Z
(people born between 1994 and 2010) perceive brands
today.

Jorge shared some of his critical insights with me in the

following interview:

Gonzalo: Tell us a bit more about your assignment.

What did you learn?

Jorge: At first, I thought I needed to do some research

in order to create a comprehensive outline, as I thought
I had no idea about how my generation perceives
brands. The funny thing was that, at the end of the
project, I realized I innately knew most of the insights
already, but just had never stopped to contemplate
them. After all, each and every one of us are surrounded
by brands and we subconsciously think about them and

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form our own ideas about them. To kick off the project, I
initially talked to a few close
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members who were approximately my age or younger,
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and then I decided to create and distribute a survey to
30 people born after 1995.

The questions were the following:

Which brands represent you and why?
Which brands do you think will prosper in the future?
What are three brands that you use regularly or on a
daily basis?

After collecting these results, along with my own

primary research, I learned a lot about my generation’s
opinions towards brands.

On that note, what would you say are the defining

characteristics of your generation?

The oldest individuals in our generation are now in their

early 20s, which means that most of us have not yet
begun our professional careers. However, the definition
of a ‘professional career’ is rapidly evolving, as many
Generation Zs are starting to adopt a more
entrepreneurial mindset and are looking to turn their
hobbies into careers or start their own businesses. As
opposed to working regular jobs, where one is simply
an employee, having an entrepreneurial mindset means
thinking about more than just income. It generally
encompasses having the desire to create something
that will help us to create a better, cleaner and healthier
world. It means starting a company with social,
economic, and environmental responsibilities.
Obviously, this hugely depends on the moral values of
each individual, but it is also an underlying value that
define our generation. Most of us are aware of the
problems the world is facing due to unethical business
practices and are willing to make more sacrifices than

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any other generation to change them. This also has a

drastic impact on whichWork
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we favor Best
over others.
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From your perspective, please describe the
relationship between companies, brands and
Generation Z.

My peers and I stand out from the generations before us

because we were born into the technological age. Rapid
innovation is the only world we know. We are the first
generation of digital natives. For this reason, many of
the brands regarded as ‘cool’ by our generation are
technological in nature. For example, some are famous
for their software like Spotify, Netflix and Google and
others for manufacturing hardware like Apple. It’s no
longer news that many companies and brands are
struggling to keep up with new expectations from
younger generations, especially ours. Many of us have
probably seen five-year olds mastering smartphones or
tablets as if they were born with intrinsic IT skills. This
trend will only increase amongst people born after the
invention of the iPhone.

What stood out to you from your survey? Any key

insights worth sharing?

As I surveyed many Generation Zs, I realized that when

asked about brands, many of them limited their
responses to brands in the fashion sector (men 50%,
women 83%). They also expressed that the brands that
represent them are a combination between those they
use regularly (with the exception of social networks),
and those that align with their values.

What was interesting to me was that these two can

sometimes be contradictory. For example, nearly all of
us like fair-trade brands of coffee and are willing to pay
extra for them. At the same time, though, many
respondents said they are frequent customers of and

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feel represented by fashion brands that haven’t always

towed the line when it comes
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responsibility. ,This divide supports the economic theory
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that our purchasing behaviors are often irrational.
Despite our strong desire for companies to do good for
the world, we often consume and feel represented by
brands that don’t represent this. Another key example of
this is how regardless of the fact that people want to be
healthier nowadays, tobacco brands such as Marlboro
or Camel are still regarded as identifiable for many
Generation Z’s and even as ‘cool’ (in Europe, at least).

What about the role of social media brands?

Even though my generation may not feel represented by

social media brands, they still play an integral role in our
lives as digital natives. In my case, I’ve had social
network profiles since I was about 13-years-old, and
children are now starting to use social networks from a
much younger age. We live in constant tension between
the protection of our privacy and the need to share our
point of view with the world. Consequently, it is this
empowerment from the information that social networks
have that makes us not identify with these brands.

The most widely-used social networks used among my

generation are the newer ones: Instagram and
Snapchat. Facebook is also a key player, but we use
Instagram and Snapchat to actually interact with our
friends. While we may still have a Facebook account,
many of us don’t actively post on it, as it’s typically the
social network where our parents are active.

You mention value systems when you speak about

your generation. How do your values affect your
perception of brands?

The brands my generation admire are those that do

more than just sell a product or provide a service for
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profit. Tesla, Ecoalf and Deliveroo are all companies

that are working towardsWorka betterViews
future for ourBrands Services
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generation and the generations to come. Tesla’s focus
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on the development and production of electric vehicles
is really important to Generation Zs, as we are very
conscious of the fact that pollution levels are increasing
at a rapid rate. Most of all, I believe that Tesla has
garnered such success among younger generations
because it is a company that focuses on innovation as
well as maintaining social and environmental
responsibilities. Obviously, most of us can’t afford a
Tesla, but we still admire it from a branding standpoint.
Other brands we actually use and consume that are
starting to flourish are vehicle-sharing companies such
as Car2go or E-mov. These two brands are the most
popular in Europe and are easy-to-use and run on
100% electricity.

Ecoalf is a fashion brand that is thriving among Spanish

Generation Zs as all of its products are produced from
recycled plastics and materials such as fishing nets. In
the world of apparel accessories, the power of
marketing is crucial. In the case of Ecoalf, many people
identify with the brand not only because it is cool, but
because it aligns with their moral values. For the most
part, though, fashion companies that want to be
successful among my generation need to excel at both.

So what exactly does branding mean for your

generation?

Brands are more than just brands; they represent

lifestyles. Each brand image represents a certain
societal demographic. For example, some people in my
survey mentioned the brands Patagonia and The North
Face as representative for them due to their association
with the outdoors and mountain sports. People who
prefer summer, surf, and the beach mentioned feeling
represented by brands such as Quicksilver or
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Billabong.
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Some brands, like Monster or Redbull, have managed
to create an image that doesn’t limit itself to certain
environments. These two brands are widely seen as
‘cool’ by Generation Zs due to their correlation with
extreme sports. According to various studies, we are
generally much less risk-averse than previous
generations, both in our business and personal lives,
and these energy drink brands have really tapped into
this when targeting our generation.

Another brand widely chosen as representative within

the survey was Coca-Cola. Aside from the fact that it is
consumed and enjoyed by many, its brand image is
associated with ‘good times’ and ‘positivity’.

Generation Zs also tend to prefer local brands as

oppose to international ones, challenging assumptions
about globalization. This has been clearly reflected
within the survey as most Spanish Generation Zs
mention at least two Spanish brands as representative
for them. Some of these brands were Zara, Mango, or
Kiff-Kiff in the fashion category or Cola-Cao in the food
category.

What about the recent trend towards vintage or on-

demand brands and products?

Many classic brands are popular among Generation Z,

as we tend to value simplicity and comfortability. Two of
the brands mentioned in my survey were Converse and
Vans. They are brands that were fashionable for
previous generations, are fashionable today, and are
predicted to have sustained future success, as they
represent aspects of youth that are timeless. Because
they are heritage brands, they have developed a
reputation of being trustworthy, high-quality and are

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relatively affordable.
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We also look for simplicity as well as practicality, and
that is not limited to vintage brands. Brands that try to
make life easier will almost certainly be successful with
my generation. As we are more prone to risk-taking, we
are also more likely to try new or alternative products
and services. I know previous generations tend to stick
to what worked for them well in the past and not risk
trying something new, but not Generation Z~ This has
been the case with services such as Deliveroo, and
Uber and their competitors in Spain and LatAm, Glovo
and Cabify. These brands are projected to have a
successful future, as our generation is trying their
services, liking them and getting familiar with them. We
are looking for agility and speed when it comes to
responding to consumer needs, which means we are
looking for brands that cater to on-demand. Due to the
fast-changing environment we’ve grown up in, we
expect to have everything available now. ” This is why
these services and others like Amazon are and will be
very significant for us.

How would you summarize your key insights?

To summarize, Generation Z is very different from

previous generations as we have grown up in a very
different environment. From a very young age, we’ve
witnessed the rapid growth and development of
technologies that did not exist 20 years ago but are now
fundamental to how the world runs. Generally speaking,
we are not interested in brands from banking, insurance,
logistics or hygiene industries. As most of us leave our
parents’ homes and become independent later, our
parents still handle all of these things for us. This will
likely change as we get older.

The brands that we are most interested in and that

catch our attention are from the automotive,
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textile/fashion and technological industries. Due to our

greater concern about social
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environmental
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responsibility, we tend to choose brands that are eco-
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friendly or fair-trade. That being said, we can sometimes
be contradictory and hypocritical when it comes to the
brands and products that we find trendy and
fashionable.

Contributors
Gonzalo Brujó
Global Chief Growth
Officer

gonzalo.brujo@interbrand.com
More about Gonzalo Brujó

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