Influencer Marketing and Generation Z

Influencer Marketing works - especially with millennials. The halo effect of having someone you trust in branded content seems authentic and transparent.

While big brands and celebrity influencers continue to explore the best ways to work together for maximum effect, another trend is developing that deserves attention.

Generation Z is fast approaching and this could be the largest ever consumer cohort weve seen yet. From a report by Fung Global Retail and Technology Gen Z is:

• 2 Billion Globally; 25% Of Current US Population
• First Majority Non-White US Generation
• 40% Of US Consumers By 2020; Spend $44 Billion Annually
• Influence $600 Billion Annual Family Spend

Gen Z doesnt just want passive messages from influencers - they want full experiential immersion into the influencers world. I had a chance to catch up with Chris Jacob from Time Inc. to discuss the INSTANT platform, which was launched at VidCon in June 2016. Working with Gen Z influencers like Karina Garcia--popular DIYer of the 10 Viral Slimes Test (with over 10 million views on YouTube )--for their live streaming weekly show on musical.ly and live.ly , the audience is literally brought into the experience and invited to participate real-time.

Getting ahead in this space is critical. Accenture reports that Gen Z will switch a majority of their purchases to retailers who provide the newest digital tools and channels. Turns out Gen Z likes to go into stores - but only those that are fully digitally enabled. And YouTube is their channel of choice, at least right now.

So forget about those confusing millennials - its now time to take a deep dive into Generation Z.

Beverly is the author of the best selling book The Power of Real-Time Social Media Marketing . She also teaches the Business of Media, Entertainment & Sports at UCLA Anderson School of Management and is a thought leader in business strategy, IoT, big data and digital media trends.