Generations are an aid, a tool whose information helps you understand your customers better. In reality, of course, the boundaries are not drawn as strictly as the dividing lines between Generation X, Y and Z would have us believe. Beyond stereotypical thinking, marketers can still learn a great deal from the distinction between generations and get a clearer picture of who actually belongs to their audience, which is exactly why it pays to find the right one.
How do Generations X, Y and Z differ on paper?
First of all, you should know how the different generations are defined, even though several of the cut-off points are disputed. If we sort the three younger generations into categories, the boundaries run as follows:
- Generation X: born between 1966 and 1980
- Generation Y (millennials): born between 1981 and 1995
- Generation Z (currently often called Zoomers): born between 1996 and 2012
All of these groups can belong to your audience, and they do not rule each other out. A larger online shop has to address several audiences with different products, and it does so in different ways. What matters is not to treat the years of birth as an absolute truth, because in practice the boundaries are far more fluid than a set of years suggests. Look at media use, targeting and tone of address, though, and it becomes much clearer why taking the generations as a shortcut for your customers’ habits is such a clever move.
How Generations X, Y and Z move through the media landscape
Every age group can be reached through the same channels, but no two use them to the same extent. That has a great deal to do with our digital socialisation. Anyone who grew up with email as a means of communication has a different relationship with newsletters than younger customers, who mainly listen to what influencers say on social media.
Generation X – the older generation of online users
Generation X is online too, and finds its way around websites without trouble, mobile devices included. Assuming that even older Gen X’ers cannot be reached online is a complete fallacy. The 50-plus generation may often want help from their children, or prefer classic devices such as a laptop, but online advertising works on them as well.
Telephone and email marketing are particularly precise tools for reaching the users of this generation. Bear in mind, too, that Generation X is already firmly established in working life.
“Good service and a package that works matter more here than the lowest price. Loyalty and long-term brand attachment are what to put at the centre.”
Generation Y – millennials as the first true digital natives
For millennials, digital media use looks somewhat different than it does for Gen X. Mobile devices come first by a wide margin; laptops and computers are used for work or for gaming. If you want to reach Gen Y, you have to think mobile first, exactly as Google does. Millennials are strongly represented on social media, and Instagram in particular is the sweet spot for Generation Y.
That shows in communication as well: because their attention sits on social media, millennials are used to a high degree of individualisation. Get the tone of address wrong, or let the marketing become too impersonal, and the effect is off-putting.
For Generation Y the user experience has to be fast and seamless — nothing may stand in the way of entertainment and the quick satisfaction of a customer wish. Millennials also have to be picked up at several touchpoints, to match their habit of switching between tablet, smartphone and work computer.
Generation Z – social media and brands as equals
From a marketing point of view, the biggest difference between Generation X, Y and Z lies in the use of social media. The Zoomers are a special case here: for many of them it is no longer social media first, but social media only. TikTok, YouTube and Instagram serve as search engine and browser in one. Being sent out to a real browser feels almost old-fashioned to them and is simply a potential drop-off point.
That also means the sales funnel has to be built towards social media. If an influencer’s post does not lead into the shop with a single click, that is already too much of a detour. Remember: Generation Z grew up with a seamless online experience and will settle for nothing less.
To achieve anything here, you need to be able to compete with the user experience of Apple or Amazon. Influencers are listened to as well, because those more or less well-known faces are constant companions for the people who follow them.
“Communication has to be fast and to the point here, so use messenger marketing rather than email. Not least because email is barely part of everyday life for Generation Z.”
Generations are a guideline, not a science
As our own division into generations and their habits already shows, these are not clearly defined categories but rough guides. The differences between Generation X, Y and Z are not that pronounced in practice, and you should not underestimate the variance within a generation either. In other words, the characteristics inside a single generation differ widely too.
Whether a Gen X’er was born in 1966 or in 1980 makes an enormous difference. A large part of Generation Z is not even old enough to sign a purchase contract on their own, and their media use will keep developing — possibly with devices that count as curiosities today, VR headsets among them.
So does the distinction between Generation X, Y and Z belong in the digital wastepaper basket? There is no need to be that strict, because a quick overview definitely has its advantages. Knowing which age group you are targeting, and how to reach it, is always a plus.
“If you build audiences along generations, keep a critical awareness of the limits of the generational definition as well.”
Fortunately, you have far more tools at your disposal for matching your online marketing to the needs of your customers.
