Case Study
Speaking to Generation Z
It is clear that younger generations speak differently and through different platforms than older people.
What is less widely discussed is the ways in which the change effects not only the content but the structure of language. It’s not the words that change, but the grammar of communication.
The Generation Poetry Project was conceived to explore this change of language from the angle of art, culture, education and social communication. But it also identified a need to investigate the implications for business.
Brands and business often rely on tactics such as hiring young people to speak for them on social media, but struggle to design a coherent communications strategy that doesn’t expose their lack of fluency.
What does a change in the structure of communication mean in practical terms? How does this new language shape Gen Z’s view of the world? What is this generation trying to say? How can brands establish a long-lasting connection?
We needed first to spend time ‘in the life’ of Generation Z, and an Immersive HD approach was chosen.
A number of young individuals from diverse backgrounds were interviewed longitudinally (over 3 encounters) in the USA, Brazil, Italy, UK and Indonesia.
Although the Generation Poetry Project is ongoing, the picture that has emerged through Immersive HD is clear and compelling, and has been further reinforced through time and changes driven by the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a self-funded project, it’s been crucial to crystallise findings into a ‘Generation Z Bible’ that allows the Hidden Depth team to reference commercial and marketing applications when clients face specific problems concerning younger generations.