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PERSPECTIVE

Viewpoints from the frontline of content.

Brand practice

By Margaret Czeisler 24-05-2016

We’re going through a tectonic change led by Generation Z. They are rewriting the rules of entertainment, marketing, fashion and commerce. Yes, they face the same teen angst of previous generations, and yet they are very different. Which is why it’s imperative we try to figure them out.

So who is Generation Z? At Wildness, a brand solutions business born out of AwesomenessTV to help brands become relevant in youth culture, we conducted ambitious research to find out.

This newest generation hasn’t just grown up alongside developments in technology, as their millennial and Generation X predecessors did. Generation Z was born into and matured in a world in which these technologies were already embedded in day-to-day life. Technology is the modus operandi of their world.

In the past, culture has been handed down from mainstream media. That’s not true anymore. Today’s youth are not just consuming culture, they are active participants, envisioning, creating and distributing it.

We call them culture creators (CCs) and consider them to be the driving force of the unfolding cultural revolution. We discovered that they are defined by the capabilities they’ve developed as a result of their access to information and tech.

Creativity and personal expression is fundamental for CCs. The increased flow of information and unprecedented means of access, discovery and distribution have increased the value placed on the act of creation.

For CCs, creative expression shows who you are as a person. CCs create on the fly, fluidly moving between consuming, creating and distributing culture. While only a quarter of the US adult population has ever created and shared an original video, one out of five CCs are doing so on a weekly basis, and one in 10 people are doing so daily. With powerful platforms, they investigate their passions, discover their voice and expose their ideas, while building large audiences and, for some, even celebrity.

They don’t watch TV, they curate. And it’s almost all online. Some 70% of the people we spoke to told us they preferred streaming over broadcast or cable TV. Even when they watch, they are engaged, on-demand. They watch while they work, multitasking more than any previous generation.

Their phones – their bridge to the world – are a conduit for creative output and entertainment. The same tool used actively and passively is a monumental change in human behaviour. Virtually nobody from our study would keep their television if left with the choice of only having one device.

For CCs, YouTube isn’t just a source of entertainment and a good laugh, it’s a destination that inspires curiosity and catalyses creativity amid powerful communities. YouTubers who have risen to fame, like Tyler Oakley, Jenna Marbles, Zoella, PewDiePie and so many others, serve as genuine friends, forging deep connections with stories of triumph over adversity.

These famous creators aren’t your typical celebrities, they are accessible, funny and smart but willing to look foolish, positive and encouraging. They’re in make-up but don’t airbrush every blemish away. They’ve earned a wealth of respect, admiration and trust among their fans, who support their successes and seek out their advice on products and brands.

The CCs are a generation of culture collaborators, joining forces with their friends and celebrities alike. CCs grew up in a world of tech that had already begun dissolving borders, allowing fandoms to amass enormous numbers, increasing their diversity, power and influence.

As of March 2016 there were more than 58 million fan fiction uploads on Wattpad, creating entirely new artefacts from the originals. What’s more they are powerful enough to draw their own enormous audiences, with more than 8.6 billion reads of fan fiction in February 2016. Their work fans the flames of engagement and passion for the original source, igniting new generations of fans.

Empower the CCs by inviting them to participate. Create an open-source brand, allow them to curate scraps of video, fashion, art and culture and grant them the means to make something uniquely their own. That’s how you engage them, that’s how they engage the world.

The Holy Grail for all brands is delivering cultural content that is highly relatable, often with a dose of humour, a positive and inspirational story and a personalised connection that resonates. Get past the overly polished, packaged and controlled. And make haste.

Move towards the discomfort of loosening the reins on your brand, more than you ever have in the past. If you don’t embrace CCs, they will bypass your business and make their own entertainment, products, experiences and marketing that deliver at the pace and tone they want and expect.

And believe me when I say they are only just getting started.

today's correspondent

Margaret Czeisler Chief strategy officer Wildness

Born out of AwesomenessTV, Wildness is a brand solutions firm that delivers full-service marketing solutions for both brands and agencies to engage meaningfully in youth culture.

Margaret recently completed a landmark study on this generation of ‘culture creators’ that are redefining entertainment, consumption, the workplace and marketing. Prior to AwesomenessTV, Margaret spent over a decade spearheading scalable marketing experiences across creative, media and technology as global VP of xlab at Razorfish.



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