ViacomCBS just completed a seismic study called Wired for Mobile and has a few answers and insights on the subject.
“The study delves into how devices have really changed the ways that Zs and Millennials not only see the world but learn and consume news and information and what role they play in connections with each other with brands and with culture at large,” explained Tristan Marra, VP, Ad Sales Research and Insights, ViacomCBS.
The national study, conducted between June and September 2020 at the center of the pandemic, included a range of methodologies from Desk Research, Digital Quals, Deprivation/Alteration exercises, Expert interviews to, finally, a 3500 respondent quantitative survey. The results underscored the vital importance of mobile. “While there are still a lot that connects Zs and Millennials regarding phones and technology, there are some nuances that we uncovered,” Marra began. Generation Z are mobile natives and as such, their cellphones are critically important to them. “Their cell phones are inextricably woven into their DNA. There is no separating from them entirely. It’s just so fundamental to who they are,” she revealed. Because of this, they experience the world very differently from generations before them.
Takeaways
The Complexity of Relationships – The relatively easy access through social media impacts the strength of relationships and creates nuance and complexity in how Gen Z prefers to connect from a text to a DM to a phone call. “The number of platforms we use to connect has been growing rapidly and becoming more nuanced. Because of this, relationships that Zs and Millennials have are also becoming more complex,” she revealed. Levels in relationships – from weak ties like with your local barista or friends of friend to strong ties like with your family - have their own rules and ways of preferred communication. Both are important in boosting happiness, creating a sense of belonging and facilitating discovery.
Unfortunately, “during Covid, we are challenged to having those brief chats, at least in person with our weak ties,” Marra noted. But the pandemic generated other forms of communication that helped facilitate connection. “What we are seeing now are different levels of intimacy. Because of social media, those weak ties that used to exist on the fringes were pulled in a little closer.”
Sharing content is integral to both Zs and Millennials with the top being content that is funny (even more so for Zs), photos or personal stories (for Zs) and inspiring content (for Millennials). Yet, despite the ability to bond via a range of platforms and channels, many Zs expressed a sense of loneliness that might be attributed partly to the virtual-ness of their smartphones or because of the pandemic … or both.
The Age of Mutual Influence – “There used to be a separation between celebrities and authority figures and us,” Marra noted. But that has now broken down as a result of social media which has changed the dynamic. “Now, there is an expected two way relationship between celebrities or brands and followers or fans,” she added. Further, social media enables both the celebrity and fan to interact and respond to each other. “Now that is the expectation. Fans and followers expect that two way relationship between themselves and previously unattainable figures,” she explained, creating a new set of standards for followers.
Take note marketers - These expectations also apply to Z’s and Millennial’s relationship with brands. “One way statements are no longer enough. Youth today expects brands to engage them honestly and personally where both sides are contributing equally like regular human relationships,” she concluded. For both generations, Instagram is proving to be the preferred platform to engage with brands. But brands should be careful not to be creepy by using personal information for targeted ads. This is a turn off for Zs.
Empathetic Facts - Which is, “how social media and an earlier, wider world view has made it complicated for youth today to decipher fact from opinion,” Marra explained. This blurring of fact and opinion holds a particular danger for an increasingly divided and complicated world. According to Veronica Fabiani, Director, Ad Sales Research and Insights, ViacomCBS, “Over 70% of young adults hear news on social media first. That means that it is filtered through that personal lens or, at very least, it is very open to opinion and comment. Only 14% of 15 year olds can tell the difference between fact and opinion.”
The challenge today is to help Gen Zs make sense of the facts without going through the filter of social media. It is not easy but the study’s Deprivation exercise may offer a solution. Respondents indicated that when they consciously avoided their smartphone’s social media feed for a certain length of time (as part of their participation in the study), it helped them step back and process how they felt about the news without all of the feedback and reactions that posts collect in real time.
When does too much become too, too much? “It is unique to the individual and dependent upon the day,” Fabiani began, “Social media has given them access to unfiltered news and current events whether they asked for it or not and because Zs are the most diverse generation in history, they already know more people that are different from them. As a result, they are more empathetic.”
Digital Nutrition – Sadly, the stress of the pandemic as well as the potential loneliness cultivated from communicating virtually has created a need for mental health for some Gen Zs. Fabiani noted that, “Six in 10 agree that they sometimes feel like their smartphone has a negative effect on their mental health but not having their smartphone with them, they would miss out on important things.” Digital access offers opportunities for wellness, “seeking that balance of media for both meditation and emotional safeness,” according to Marra.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. “Phones are used as an emotional defense mechanisms by both Millennials and Gen Zs who are looking for content to help them self soothe and protect boundaries and seek out apps to help generate this peace of mind,” stated Fabiani.
“Americans now check their phones 96 times a day,” she added, “And when it comes to social media, 44% of Generation Zs say that they check in at least hourly with 7% checking in more often than every 15 minutes,” creating a digital pacifier when they are lonely or afraid. They seek meditative media to mindlessly consume where they can take a break and have a mental pick me up to feel better. This is particularly true of Gen Zs rather than Millennials. “The content they are choosing is driven by emotion and largely that emotion is happiness more than being inspired,” she noted.
Conclusion
The insights from the study are not only useful for programmers, they can also help guide marketers to effectively connect and resonate with both Zs and Millennials. “This was such a big study. We talked to so many people and we got so many insights. It was hard, in a good way, to prioritize the important insights. We got there in a way that was meaningful,” Marra concluded.
This article first appeared in www.MediaVillage.com
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