By Adonis Fryer

In 2014, Burger King scrapped its longtime slogan, “Have it Your Way,” but Generation Z never got the message. 

Unlike their predecessors, Gen Z wants personalization in not just their whoppers, but with a whopping amount of products.

To sell to them through emails, promotions, products and everything in between to be interactive & individualized to them. They like to know how the product is made, what values the company supports and that their voice is being heard by the company.

Generation Z loves personalization for multiple reasons. 

For starters, Gen Z is one of the most entrepreneurial generations that the country has ever seen. An astounding 40% of kids from 5th-12th grade say that they plan to start a business when older and there are countless stories of young entrepreneurs who already do. GenZ Designs is a perfect example of that kind of entrepreneurial spirit. 

This means that from a much younger age than ever before kids are more in-tune with the process & beliefs of business mindsets than their predecessors and are more invested in the operations of the businesses that they patronize. 

Second, Gen Z is often cited as being the most diverse generation to date. As a result, they desire to see their identity and diversity represented in their products & they respond negatively to companies who leverage that diversity for simple cash grabs. 

Third, Gen Z was born in a time where adding a personal touch was easy. They’ve grown up with their ability to develop a publicized personal brand with their own social media profiles, a generation of customizable fast food places like Subway and Chipotle and come to age  watching a generation of digital stars from platforms such as YouTube be born from their creativity.

Oftentimes, allowing that level of freedom is difficult. It’s hard to see how a firm can give that type of experience to a customer, but here are some solid places to start.

1. Use Their Name

There’s few things that affect identity more than a person’s name. We all take pride in our names, their spellings and meanings and a great way to get Gen Z involved with your business is by using their name.

Starbucks is a great example. It’s not just the customization of your favorite order that’s exciting, but also the personalized connection of hearing one’s name when called. Other great examples exist on social media where people use their names (or alter-egos) to make their presence known online. 

Whether it be in an email, a coffee cup or a profile on your service, allowing Gen Z to put their name on a product will keep them coming back and build a more personal relationship.

2. Let them pick the details!

Another great tip for giving Gen Z control is to give them options on the finer details of their experience. This is fairly easy to implement. Giving your Gen Z consumers options on the finer details of their meal, outfit or experience is a great way to personalize their experience.

A great example of this comes from Chipotle.

While consumers pick from different bowls, there’s no set way to get your meal. You don’t go up to the register and say, “I’d like a number three!” No way. Instead, the consumer carefully picks each specific topping/protein/sauce that they want for their bowl. 

Besides the delicious tastes, this unprecedented level of control is what keeps bringing people back. Every time a consumer goes to Chipotle, they have full control over their experience.

3. Engage with their feedback!

The last great tip for engaging with Gen Z is pretty straight forward -- value & engage with their feedback. 

As seen with protests, Generation Z is eager to have their voice heard and their say in the world. They’re a generation of people who don’t just want a product sold to them, but for it to reflect their values. A great way to instill Gen Z’s feedback into your product is by taking it directly from them!

A great way to do this is by using surveys or rating systems. Netflix is a great example of this.

The rating system allows for consumers to give a quick, honest review of the shows/films they’re watching and get recommendations based on what they liked/disliked.

This type of personalization is key in building a relationship with your Gen Z consumer. Once they start finding other products, entertainment and services that are recommended from your firm based on what they like, it’ll give them an incentive to look through more of your firm’s offerings & share your product with a friend.

This isn’t just key for algorithms but social media too.

Engaging with consumer’s comments on social media profiles is an excellent way to show that your firm values input/consumer opinion. Gen Z is more likely to cross reference information than previous generations so if one social media profile engages with its followers and one doesn’t -- that’s a major red flag.

In conclusion, these are just some ways to help engage with Gen Z. To get a full analysis of how your brand engages with Generation Z, buy one of our Gen Z score reports today!

By the end of the year, Gen Z will make up 40% of the US consumer base -- you don’t want to wait to get their attention!