Why Your Brand Isn’t Landing With Gen-Z

Gen-Z is one of the most culturally diverse and tech-savvy generations alive and also one of the most misunderstood, especially by the advertising world. Too often reduced to lazy tropes about being loud, sensitive, or lazy, the real story is much more nuanced. This is a generation of creators, builders, and truth-tellers. They’re not buying into the polished lifestyle fantasy that worked on millennials. They want honesty, personality, and accurate representation, they know when you’re faking it.

What to do:

• Ditch the polish and tell stories. Gen-Z is drawn to content that feels real like there on a FaceTime with their bestie. Show the day-in-the-life moments, behind-the-scenes shots, mess and all.
  
  
• Show the process, not just the product. Transparency wins. They want to see how it’s made, why it matters, and who’s behind it.
  
  
• Tap into their values, not their wallets. If your brand doesn’t stand for something meaningful, they’ll move on without a second thought.
  
  
• Loosen up. A little humor, weirdness, or play goes a long way. Gen-Z is over the heavy-handed “aspirational” energy.
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• Stay authentic. Representation without depth perpetuates stereotypes. They want nuance, not tokenism, and they’ll call it out if it’s off.

Gen-Z isn’t hard to reach they’re just not falling for inauthenticity. If you want their attention, meet them where they are, not what trends have worked for years.