Lessons From Down Under, How The Youth Disrupted The Marketing Funnel and Gen Z vs. GenAI
Because we can't just slack all these links back and forth between the two of us anymore.
Youthquake and Stuff is your bi-weekly dose of the latest trends, practical strategies, and straight talk on connecting with the younger crowd, curated by media industry geeks Liesbeth Nizet and Danuta Breguła. We genuinely believe news publishers can win over the youth. However, to make that happen, we've got to shake things up a bit. You can learn more about the reports we publish here.
Welcome! It's Lies and Dana here, back from an epic trip to Asia with some mind-blowing audience-first insights, too good to just keep for ourselves, because #sharingiscaring.
[WHAT’S HAPPENING DOWN UNDER]
Last week, we were invited to WAN-IFRA Digital Media Asia in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to discuss young audiences, but more importantly, to listen to global insights. Topics ranged from authenticity and politics to news literacy and willingness to pay. Below is the first part of what we found inspiring. To be continued.
The Daily Aus: Empowering youth through news literacy
We were captivated by the remarkable journey of Sam Koslowski, co-founder of The Daily Aus, and equally impressed by their astounding success in engaging young audiences (aged 15-35). Their Instagram boasts over half a million followers, TikTok surges past a hundred thousand, while their newsletter has amassed over 200K subscribers, and their podcast garners more than 280K monthly downloads.
What truly stands out is their commitment to fostering news literacy. They address issues that deeply resonate with young Australians, who often come across news solely through social media. 👀
Alongside their journalistic endeavors (🤍), they also collaborate with brands that share and support their mission (Sam mentioned, for example, a great campaign concept for women's hygienic products).
However, there is an uncertainty with Meta planning to shut down news on its platforms in Australia (Meta claims that news was “highly substitutable” and when there was less or no news on Facebook, people continue to use the site; Meta also pointed to the recent news ban on Facebook in Canada to demonstrate it had not had an impact on the site). But resilient as TDA is, they go full throttle on newsletters and games allowing them to build a one-on-one relationship with their community. 🚀
The Spinoff: Reviving magazine vibes for today's audience
Duncan Greive, the founder of The Spinoff, shared his inspiration: a yearning for the magazine nostalgia of his youth. He didn't seek the relentless urgency of breaking news, but rather the timeless allure of articles delving into niche interests. This deeply resonates, reflecting what younger audiences crave: meaningful content that sparks genuine curiosity and invites deeper exploration.
Adapting to the challenges of the pandemic, The Spinoff transformed its business approach. Once reliant on partnerships, unforeseen circumstances prompted a successful shift towards a donation-based model.
So, what are the takeways?
It is possible to engage young audiences beyond socials, but when on socials use the platform as they want to use it e.g. a full article on Instagram account 👇
Go for authentic brand partnerships. Think long term.
Consider other models than (native) advertising and subscriptions, ask your audiences directly what they are willing to pay for and in which way.
[SOCIETY]
The kids are in trouble and we should act now
In this very recent TED talk, NYU's Professor Scott Galloway paints a synthetic picture of the not-so-encouraging perspectives of American youth based on selected statistics. He's disillusioned with the economic system, the lack of wealth redistribution, dysfunctional social mobility, and proposes concrete recommendations that should not sound radical in 2024 but still do, like taxing the wealthy, regulating big tech and the housing market, or implementing age-gating on social media. The reality for young people isn't much brighter elsewhere in the world, so before you launch any new marketing campaign about journalism saving democracy, consider how the world is perceived by the growing number of disenfranchised youth.
If I sound ageist, I am. And you know who else is ageist? Biology.
- Scott Galloway
Watch this brutal reality check:
[MARKETING]
Gen Z's impact on classic marketing strategies
For the marketing folks here, we have a really fun and insightful recommendation today. The youth marketing agency Archrival teamed up with Vogue Business to launch “How Gen Z Broke The Marketing Funnel”, an interactive report about how marketers can connect with Z’s in 2024.
In a reality where the newsrooms constantly feed, e.g., Google Discover with the updates (in other words, they primarily address the “update me” need, leaving others such as “inspire me,” or “divert me” unaddressed), it is worth making sure that your media presence does not just become fast, predictable and flat:
Brands need to be where the people are: traversing the infinite loop of inspiration, exploration, community and loyalty.
The report is packed with data and examples that can help to get your product and subscription marketing sharper and more convincing.
Our most loyal customers really want to see us evolve — they’ve loved what we’ve done already, but to replicate that again and again would be oversimplifying things. Continuing to build that bond with a wider community is always our goal.
PEIMAN RAF — FOUNDER, MADHAPPY
[GEN Z vs. GEN AI]
AI IRL: accelerating, yet striving for usability and safety
A recent report from The Verge gives us some insights into how different generations are adopting Gen AI. The primary motivation still appears to be increasing productivity rather than fostering creativity.
As we all await regulations, the younger generation is notably open to developing their own AI-based tools.
The evolution of chatbots is taking an intriguing turn, especially with platforms like Character.Ai. Through engaging in multiple user-generated chats, users can learn, have fun, or find solace— the possibilities are endless, and it can become quite addictive. Check out this article from The Verge: The teens making friends with AI chatbots.
[LOVE]
Rethinking romance
Here's an update to a section from our last year's report, which looked at what media companies could learn from dating apps: there's a new report on Gen Z dating from Hinge, one of the top dating apps (famous for being "designed to be deleted"). Some findings apply broadly to dating (there's even a dating cheat sheet), some offer useful concepts, like digital body language (DBL), and some claims, though not scientifically backed, could ignite valuable discussions within your marketing teams. Ultimately, we all strive for our brands to become "love brands."
[ALSO WORTH READING]
Personalities: If you haven't heard about the 26-year-old author and niche icon Honor Levy yet, you must have been living under a rock. But you can catch up with her in The Cut’s feature here and in this NYT’s book review titled Young, Cool, Coddled and Raised on the Internet.
Algorithms: The Conversation’s piece about how teens see social media algorithms as accurate reflections of themselves.
Age gaps: reflections on the dynamics between generations, loosely inspired by a new Anne Hathaway movie “The idea of you” available on Prime.
User engagement: LinkedIn is investing in gaming, setting an example of how media platforms can adopt the psychological mechanisms that attract people to gaming, in order to increase the time users spend on the platform.
Work-life fit: Apparently Gen Z helps fuel rise in sabbaticals (another reason to love them).
Gen Z travelers: In our work, we look for tricks and tips that media companies can borrow from other industries. And for today's wrap-up, we've got some fresh insights from a just-published “Travel in 2024: The New Traveler” report by PMG.
“I think [consumers are] going to be more discerning where they exert their time,” said Taki. “Where am I really going to get return for my dollar and my time? If I'm loyal to a brand, am I really going to be rewarded? And I think that is the difference.”
Do not miss
Hello Copenhagen! We're both attending the WAN IFRA World Media Congress at the end of May, where Lies will be speaking about reader revenue. Let us know if you're coming and would like to have a chat.
Hope your May kicks off in style!
Best
Dana & Liesbeth
P.S. Thank you for all your feedback 💜! We would love to hear more of your thoughts!
Want more?
Download our recent “How publishers can grow with today’s youth. Navigating engagement and monetization” report.
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