Dialing for demographics has become a must activity for retailers and vendors looking to sell to new customers and Gen Z consumers most certainly have their own set of characteristics that need to be understood.
And given that many sellers got a late start understanding Millennials, there’s a renewed sense of urgency not to miss the boat on the next big demographic group. Gen Z expert Jasmine Glasheen, writing in a recent analysis for The Robin Report, the online newsletter for retail and fashion executives, provided a very detailed look at Gen Z and what makes them tick.
Here are five big takeaways:
- Hearsay: Reviews are ubiquitous now and they’re an essential touchpoint along the online impulse shopping journey. If you leave bad reviews unattended, they will turn customers off before they ever get to “add to cart.”
- Sustainability: Gen Z customers expect actionable guidance to support the claim. They also want retailers to balance low prices with eco-friendly brand practices.
- One World: Gen Z is the most diverse consumer demographic, and they expect to see this diversity reflected in workforce staffing, not just in the stores, but also in the C-suite of the brands they love.
- Toxicity: Next gens are more health conscious than their predecessors, meaning the toxic ingredients used in fast fashion will deter many of them from purchasing.
- Bottom line: They want every purchase they make to be valuable, affordable, good for their bodies, good for the planet and good for the employees of the companies they patronize, she wrote.
With Glasheen forecasting that Gen Z has $450 billion in spending power right now and will represent 17 percent of global retail spend by 2030, understanding what makes them tick is more important than ever for those looking to sell to them.