Gen Z, the generation born between the mid-to-late 90’s and the early 2010’s, have become a consumer powerhouse in recent years as reports suggest they have a spending power of over $143 billion. With this in mind, the so-called ‘digital generation’ have lead to global brands and retailers adapting their marketing.

The Rise of Influencer Marketing

A study conducted by Influential – an artificial intelligence and social data company who help connect influencers with brands – found that consumer technology and fashion retail had the highest year-over-year increase in social mentions with an 89% and 128% increase respectively.

It’s been especially clear in the face of a pandemic that it’s the brands who are managing to nail their marketing and eCommerce that consumers are speaking about.

With apps such as TikTok and Instagram making it possible for anyone to pick up a camera and amass a highly engaged audience, brands no longer have to look towards celebrities and athletes for successful product endorsements.

Content creators or ‘vloggers’ who share their day-to-day life on social media can often feel like friends to their viewers who get to see them often and within their home environment.

This explains why TikTok has become the most popular social app amongst the Gen Z generation, who enjoy the familiarity of the new generation of TikTok influencers combined with the easily digestible short-form video. 

Gen Z will be responsible for 40% of global sales this year. Therefore retail stores really need to put the time and effort into researching how the younger population prefer to shop – despite the fact it goes against many traditional retail blueprints. 

The importance of digital media and influencer marketing became particularly obvious when global lockdowns began disrupting the more traditional marketing strategies of many brands. As more social media platforms decided to integrate e-commerce features into their apps, using popular content creators to seamlessly promote brands and create videos to their highly engaged audiences became an obvious marketing tactic for many. 

Changing the Face of Traditional Advertising

As lockdown restrictions start to ease, influencer marketing is likely to stay and become intertwined in our traditional advertising methods. Brands are predicted to spend up to $15 billion on influencer marketing by 2022.

Notably, Levi’s have just released a global TV advertisement for their ‘Buy better, Wear longer’ campaign which features popular Youtuber Emma Chamberlain and footballer Marcus Rashford MBE, showing that social media influencers are now on par with traditional celebrities when it comes to brand endorsements. 

For marketers wanting to stay relevant with the Gen Z population, keeping on top of trends and finding influencers with a relevant audience could soon be key to their success.