7 Things You Need To Know About Gen Z
We asked. They answered. You’re welcome.
Below is an edited transcript of the convo between UNiDAYS’ Prue Thomas and four student panellists at the Youth Marketing Australia Conference (held in Melbourne on May 23, 2019).
According to our 3,000-student study, 68% of Aussie Gen Zs are stressed. What’s keeping you up at night?
HOLLY: Finding a job. I’m in my last year at the moment. I have friends who have jobs lined up and others who graduated a year ago but still haven’t been able to find relevant, full-time work. The uncertainty of the future can be… terrifying.
CHARLIE: We spend a lot of time at uni, so I think hard about what’s next. Am I going to enjoy my career? Is this all a waste of time?
MILLIE: I’d just like more time in the day. I like to exercise and be outside. Between work, study, and other commitments, I find it a bit of a struggle to find time to get out, be active, de-stress.
What’s the biggest misconception about Gen Z?
KYLE: The biggest misconception is that we love tech and it’s the only thing we’re good at. We’re humans. We like to connect organically — not just message people through screens 24/7.
Short attention span is another one that comes up a lot — my Mum always gets mad at me for it. I think we’re just better at filtering and making quick decisions about what we like and don’t like. We’ve got so much stuff coming at us all the time, we’d overload if we took it all in.
Where does your money go?
CHARLIE: Petrol. Food… free food at Mum and Dad’s is always welcome. And I have a girlfriend, so obviously I need to make sure she’s happy.
MILLIE: Food: coffee, frozen yoghurt, dinners, brunch. And Ubers on nights out.
Our study also indicates Gen Z saves to spend. What are you currently saving for?
CHARLIE: One’s a need and one’s a want: I’m saving to purchase a car and also to travel.
KYLE: Travel as well. Sometimes you hear your parents say you should start saving for a house, but on a casual or part-time wage you don’t really see that $150 per week going towards a deposit — you see it going towards next week’s spending.
MILLIE: Travel is a big one, but in the back of my mind is the house deposit thing. You need to get started early, otherwise it might never happen. My parents are encouraging me to buy and my circle of friends are looking to buy, too.
Something else people ask about is HECS debt. You don’t really save for that; it’s a problem you deal with once you start properly working, like, “Oh, I have thousands of dollars of debt.”
HOLLY: Property isn’t really on my mind. It’s one of those things that might happen, but if i never own a home, that’s not detrimental to me — I don’t see it as a necessary end goal.
How do you shop?
KYLE: I’m very time-poor, so I love online shopping. What draws me to it is I can have as many tabs open as I want, so I can do my research, add to my bag, think it over, then make a decision. All that time, I’m messaging friends, looking at my bank account, doing some sums in my mind, comparing products.
HOLLY: I spend a lot of time online shopping but don’t actually buy online that much. I look at stuff, then once I’ve figured it what I want, I’ll try to find it in-store when it comes to making a purchase.
What’s something a brand has done that you didn’t like?
CHARLIE: There was this Pepsi ad with Kendall Jenner in it that basically painted Pepsi as some kind of heroic social justice movement that broke up argy-bargy between police and protestors… except it didn’t contribute anything to social justice? It was just false. They’re just trying to sell Pepsi.
What can brands do for you?
CHARLIE: Getting experience. It’s important to have that experience, so we can make an informed decision about what we wanna do in the future –it might not be what we’re studying.
MILLIE: Take a social stance. Broadcast your own opinion as a brand. A lot of young people care about the environment and sustainability, so students take notice of your position.
KYLE: There are a lot of uni societies that either require sponsorship or just want to work with and be associated with brands. You can connect and tap into that: at the moment they only get what we can give them, so there’s an opportunity here for brands to get involved.
