On authenticity with gen Z, amid the DIABLOG conference

Going towards the third edition of the DIABLOG Conference in Zagreb, to be held on November 21, 2018, which will discuss bloggers, influencers, and the influence on the GenZ, we have been researching what authenticity of content means for young people, how much time they spend in the online world and how they perceive the world around them.

Generation Z makes up to 18% of the world’s population, and it includes people born between 1995 and 2005. Social networks and smartphones are an integral part of their lives, and according to MaryLeigh Bliss, head of digital content at Ypulse, GenZ members are dependent on their mobile devices and cannot live without them. She explains that it’s no longer just your regular addiction, but an upgrade – an indispensable digital extension of their body, which is confirmed by the fact that they spend six hours a day on their mobile devices.

Always online and socially aware

Although they are often criticizes for the time they spend in the online world and are constantly connected to their devices, research has shown that GenZ-ers actually communicate more with their friends than the generations before them. Technology fits into their daily life and a new way of socializing. They socialize in live chat, they do their homework together while livestreaming, and sometimes they’re just silent, doing separate things, but they’re together on a platform like FaceTime.

GenZers are a generation that is constantly surprising, following the trends, changing them and setting new.

They are a generation that is driven by causes, and more than 50% of them want to be a factor that will make the world a better place, which directly affects their behavior, communication, purchases, and the content they adopt. GenZers will follow brands and influencers who understand their identity, purpose and values, and possess the authenticity and relevance for what they are interested in.

Live video as confirmation of authenticity

One of the best ways to create authentic messages is to create live content. Livestreaming on social networks and other platforms has set a new era of live content that changes the world of entertainment and members of GenZ follow it, and create it. According to the Ypuls research, most GenZers livestream with their friends every day, or create live content for the platforms they use, and three out of four said that they watch live content from influencers and brands that they follow on Instagram, Facebook or YouTube for hours. For them, being live means being authentic and creative, and it’s what keeps their interest in the content they want to follow.

GenZers are often referred to as the streaming generation, and according to the research there are several reasons why this is their ideal type of content.

Availability

Anyone who feels free enough can record their authentic content, share it with others, encourage a change or potentially earn money. This same content can be available to everyone in a very short time, and because of that availability, GenZers can be in tune with all the trends, with their friends, and the content they want to follow.

Personalization

GenZers don’t want to spend a lot of time searching for interesting content, but want the media they use to offer it to them on the basis of their previous searches. In this case, there is no involvement from their part, but it is just that false sense of inclusion that the personalized choice gives them that is important. The best example of this is Netflix’ssystem of recommended movies and series based on previous viewing (Because you watched …) or Twitch, a platform where viewers can watch other people live while their play games on the basis of their previous choices.

While most of the research deals with how much time GenZers spend in an online environment, they also show that they are the biggest consumers and creators of digital content, and are a very important group of young people that we all can and must learn from, because they are part of the digital future.