Gen Z users are themselves prolific creators. For brands to resonate, their marketing creative must meet or exceed the standard set by the audience itself, not just traditional advertising benchmarks.
While brands focus on public feeds, the real conversations and influence happen in chat. Grace Kao argues this channel is underestimated and will become central with the rise of AI-driven conversational UIs.
Snap's internal brand analysis revealed its core function is not entertainment but utility—a camera, chat, and map for close friends. This pivot sharpens their differentiation against entertainment-driven platforms.
As AI makes content creation seamless and ubiquitous, consumers will increasingly crave authenticity and "realness." Marketers must recognize this counterbalance and not abandon raw, human-centric storytelling for purely AI-generated content.
Public metrics like likes and shares are secondary. According to Snap's CMO, the ultimate test of brand resonance with younger audiences is whether they are organically discussed in private group chats.
Instead of just analyzing data, building a brand for a youth audience requires an "out-of-office culture." Marketers must actively participate in the culture—attending concerts, using platforms, and making content—to gain genuine inspiration.
A highly successful Spotify B2B campaign targeted media planners with a direct mailer formatted like a spreadsheet, including a real RFP. It succeeded by being creative, native to the audience's workflow, and on-brand.
To embed AI into the culture, Snap's leadership, particularly founder Evan Spiegel, actively models experimentation and use. This top-down approach removes fear and encourages a "more shots on goal" mentality across the organization.
Snap's CMO posits that previous generations were just as creative but were culturally encouraged to conform. Gen Z, by contrast, is raised in an environment where creativity is valued and fostered as a desirable skill by parents and schools.