Despite Gen Z’s reported reduced attention span, new research from Snap and Kantar Media shows that Gen Z, an audience that impacts $1.2 trillion in purchasing power, is able to recall advertising just as well – if not better – when compared with older generations.
According to the study, Gen Z research participants spent less time with skippable content than Millennial and Gen X / Baby Boomer participants but recalled it better — both for advertising and non-advertising content, with 59 per cent of Gen Zs correctly recalling the advertiser they saw compared to 57 per cent with Millennials and 47 per cent for Gen X.
In addition to being able to recall advertising content better than Millennials and Gen X, Gen Z showed better ad recall after viewing ads for less than 2 seconds. The study also found high rates of brand preference among Gen Z, along with other key insights for advertisers on what drives Gen Z brand loyalty.
More than half (60 per cent) of Gen Z said their favourite brand was recommended by family and friends, compared with 52 per cent for Millennials and 39 per cent of Gen X and older — establishing brand advocates in Gen Z’s social circle is important for advertisers.
“Gen Z represents a meaningful opportunity for brands and we have all seen the speed at which this group rapidly tap, swipe and scroll through mobile content, raising the question as to whether what was viewed was actually read and absorbed,” said Snap Inc head of international measurement & insights Andy Pang.
“This study proves that Gen Z audiences are far faster at processing information than we might have given them credit for. This faster speed of cognitive processing means that brands who want to engage Gen Z need to tailor their video creative and focus on communicating brand and product messages as early as possible.”