For some years now, Generation Z has been driving change in marketing and advertising. They are very different from their millennial counterparts in that they are more socially conscious, more influenced by global trends, more evaluative, and so on. To tackle these problems, marketing has had to step up to the plate. It is now promoting short-form video and interaction, which are popular with the younger population.
However, Generation Z's successors are hot on their tail. Generation Alpha refers to children born between 2010 and 2025, with the generation's end date set for 2025. This places them in the preteen range. While they are now too young to buy much (if anything) online, they are undeniably the customers of the future.
It goes without saying that I oppose marketing methods geared towards children. However, marketers may find it beneficial to assess Gen Alpha's Internet habits in order to forecast future issues.
What Do We Know About Gen Alpha's Current Lifestyle?
The epidemic robbed a whole generation of students of a moment in their lives that is meant to be unusually social and, most critically, in-person. Suddenly, their entire educational experience was reduced to a single day in front of a computer screen.
It's understandable, therefore, that Gen Alpha's goals diverge from those of Gen Z in this regard. Despite being more connected online, they value meeting their friends in person significantly more than they did last year in this post-pandemic world (if such a world exists). In 2021, 38% of Gen Alpha stated they would want to visit their friends in person on weekends, while 43% preferred to communicate with them online. This year, the percentage has nearly fully flipped: 43% prefer to socialize in person, while 39% prefer to socialize online.
Many stereotypes about young people apply to Gen Alpha as well: they use social media often, prefer TikTok over Facebook, are extremely socially conscious, and so on. They do, however, differ in some important ways:
- An astounding 85% of Gen Alphas claim their favorite pastime is playing video games, with more than half of 8–11-yyear-olds especially playing Roblox. Roblox, Minecraft, and Fortnite are extremely popular among the younger generation. Gen Alpha's participation in online collaboration and gaming is clearly here to stay.
- Some refer to them as "mini-millennials," implying that they will adopt some of the behaviors and ideals of millennials because they are their parents' generation. Unlike Gen Z, who are radically different from anyone who has come before them, Gen Alpha are being nurtured in a totally different manner. This might imply recalling previous thoughts and strategies—an intriguing distinction.
- Despite their love of screen time, Gen Alpha is also quite interested in audio-based media. Podcasts are more popular than they were last year among Generation Alpha, and their popularity is growing. When it comes to addressing the next generation, organizations should surely consider audio formats.
What Does Gen Alpha's Future Hold?
The most noticeable distinction between Alphas and past generations is their interaction with technology. They are the first generation to be raised with technology as an integral component of daily life. As a result, they will be reliably tech-savvy—that is, they will be accustomed to and expect rapid and dependable service from businesses. They have no recollection of dial-up or even slower broadband connections. To compete with this knowledgeable generation, businesses must be prepared to provide round-the-clock help and their own technological skills.
Cranfield University predicts that "Generation Alpha" will be the wealthiest generation yet. This is due to a combination of reasons, including greater social mobility, dropping birth rates, which means fewer individuals to compete with, growing worldwide education standards, and the exponential growth of digital commerce. As a result, they will have immense spending power, making them a huge target for business.
They will also most likely be the brightest and most socially savvy. This does not inherently create new obstacles, but it does imply that organizations should maintain current trends. Gen Alpha, like Gen Z, will most likely demand that corporations be conscious of their societal influence and give an authentic, unambiguous message.
So, what comes next?
In the future, firms should be conscious of changing views as generations change. Millennials demanded a transformation in marketing, and Gen Z followed suit. As a result, we must expect Gen Alpha to impose much greater change. Knowing the trends in their present Internet usage might help them predict what will happen in the future. Gen Alpha appears to be an appealing blend of their two predecessors, but this does not imply retreading old advertising territory. Every new generation has new problems; it is always best to stay current.