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Can you believe that Generation Z are pretty much ready to enter the workplace? It’s daunting to think that people born this side of the millennium are already fast-approaching adulthood!

Putting my fright aside after realising I’m no longer a spring chicken, welcoming Gen Z into the workplace is a really exciting opportunity for us to get a glimpse into the future.

We’re a digital business trying to meet the needs of our ever-more technically skilled audience, so what better way to put us to the test than to get in some Gen Z talent. They’ve grown up in a completely different world even to us millennials, so it’s been an awesome experience getting to see what makes the next generation tick… And what doesn’t!

Research has shown that (on any device) for more than 10 hours every day and that their key skill areas lie in online research, technology and innovation. On the contrary, with all this technology available to them, actual face-to-face conversation is .

For 2 weeks, we’ve had the pleasure of hosting Molly and Mines, two students from local schools, who joined us on their work experience placements. Naturally, we put them through their paces, but in all honesty, this was the perfect chance for us to gain valuable insight from Gen Z themselves!

So, what lessons did we learn when two members of “” came to 17�Թ�����?

If you want them to engage, you need to impress them

This might not come as a shock, especially with research showing that the average Gen Z member has an . To put this in perspective, brands have lost 4 seconds of prime engagement time compared to millennials. And what does this mean? Everything we post needs to be punchy, catchy, relevant, attention-grabbing and purposeful – got that?

Recent changes to Facebook’s algorithm have left brands with small budgets or those who only post organic (non-paid-for) content, restricted from the news feed. That is unless you’re creating content that is highly relevant to your audience, resulting in a high level of engagement from your Facebook followers. Once a post starts experiencing engagement such as likes, comments and shares, the chance of the post appearing in your followers’ news feeds is increased.

A recent study has shown that email marketing is one of the most effective channels to reach your customers, with an average on an email. But again, it’s not just about utilising an effective channel, it’s about making sure the content you’re creating is relevant, authentic and punchy. Sounds simple enough, right?

Whatever platform you use to interact with your audience, the most important thing is making sure you get the right information in front of the right customers – relevance is key.

It’s all about influence

I’ve written before about the influencing power of Gen Z and how they’re guiding our creative decisions – and after speaking to the students, it’s clear that influencers are a really prominent part of their lives. If celebrities they follow on Instagram or YouTube are passionate about certain issues, or they’re seeing boundaries like being smashed on a daily basis, the drive and desire to speak out about the things that matter is passed on. Talking to Mines, she discussed how she’d like to create a website that raised awareness about things such as racism, sexism, LGBTQ+ and mental health. She also pointed out that most people she knows are aware of these issues and how her generation are rising to find solutions.

Influencers have a slight advantage to the majority of brands right now, and it’s not just because they remain unaffected by Facebook’s recent algorithm changes. It’s because of the level of understanding they have of their audience. People follow influencers across a range of social platforms because they care about what they have to say, because they talk about issues that are relevant to them, and because there’s a much more personal feel to content created by a ‘real’ person.

The key learnings I took from this are:

1. Take the time to understand your audience – find out what they’re interested in, what they want to see on your social pages and the things they don’t
2. Use what you find out to guide the content you create and post. You can use the insight you’ve gained to drive your content strategy and make sure you’re creating relevant and interesting posts for your audience

They’re way more in tune with current events than I ever was…

From reading about mindfulness in photography to having ambitions of setting up their own website about LGBTQ+ awareness, it’s safe to say that Gen Z are more than on top of the most prevalent social and cultural issues. Part of this comes from interest and exposure to influencers like Amandla Stenberg, who’s “a voice for the future”, whilst part of it comes through the development of society as a whole.

More people than ever before are finding a voice and starting to speak out about mental health issues. There’s an increasing openness about sexuality and gender and society is progressing in its acceptance of people whoever they are.  Add to this the rise in publicity at events like the Oscars with regards to representation of minority groups and movements like #TimesUp, and it’s clear to see why the next generation are so switched on.

Molly told us that she’s signed up to receive e-newsletters from sites like YouTube as well as petitions that she can get involved with – something that wasn’t even on my radar at 14. But in the digital age where everyone is encouraged to find their voice and use it, this really isn’t a surprise.

The main take-away here for brands is to stay aligned with the causes that matter to their audiences and optimise the key platforms they’re using.

Research is their forte – and they enjoy it!

It took me a good few years at uni to get to grips with the fact research was in fact invaluable and not just lecturers making me do a mundane task… But both Molly and Mines at the age of 14 are already well aware of how beneficial research can be. What makes this even more impressive, is that they both enjoy doing it!

When I asked Mines if she had any advice for other students doing work experience, she told me: “Research is good and you learn a lot from it. It’s a good experience because you get an input and your opinions and thoughts are heard.” – A lesson for us all, I think.

There was a nerve-wracking moment when a research task led the girls to our own website. After learning that minimalist website designs are popular at the moment, combined with the knowledge that Gen Z have a short attention span, the next step was obviously to put the 17�Թ����� website to the test!

Luckily for us, here was the feedback:

“I like that there isn’t a lot going on and it’s a simple layout. Also, since it’s all about photographs, there’s not a lot of text which is good as it would just be ignored by a person with a short attention span.”

Thumbs up to the marketing and web design teams, we passed the Gen Z attention-span test!

Take a peek at these awesome lightboxes the students put together at 17�Թ�����: 

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