Gen Z's Buzziest Brands

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Welcome back to Morning Consult’s new newsletter on young consumers: We’ll put the headlines you’re reading about Gen Alpha, Gen Z and millennials into context with our high frequency survey data to help you better understand exactly how they’re spending their time — and their dollars. 

Let’s dive in with a look at Gen Z’s buzziest brands and who’s using Facebook Marketplace. 

📱TikTok tops Gen Z’s buzziest brands 📱

Gen Z’s buzziest brands are, well, extra buzzy.

TikTok earns the top spot on the list with a total buzz — defined as the share of respondents who have seen, read or heard something about the brand, whether good or bad — of 75. That’s a whopping 21 points higher than baby boomers’ top brand. (TikTok also wins big with millennials, grabbing their No. 1 rank with a total buzz of 59.8.)

TikTok’s high buzz isn’t an outlier among Gen Z. In fact ​​buzz largely declines by age, meaning younger consumers are more attuned to brand news than older ones. For example, the average total buzz for Gen Z adults is 70.4, compared with 45.2 for baby boomers.

Brands trying to reach the generation should take note. Gen Zers are clearly paying attention to messaging from brands, especially the ones they are frequently interacting with like TikTok, Netflix and Starbucks. But, that also means smaller or newer brands have to break through a lot of noise to reach these coveted consumers. 

▶️ For more brand rankings, check out our full analysis on the buzziest brands for every generation. 

▶️ To learn more about Morning Consult Intelligence, request a demo here.

📈 Marketplace is keeping young people on Facebook 📈

Gen Zers may not be using Facebook as frequently as other generations, but there’s a key feature that looks to be drawing them in: Facebook Marketplace. One in 5 Gen Zers who use Facebook say they use Marketplace at least once a day. 

But Gen Zers aren’t the only frequent users. The reality is that use of Marketplace is likely more driven by lifestage than generation. The coveted consumer group of 18 to 34 year olds, in the early stages of adulthood, are really the most avid users of Facebook Marketplace. This group blends the nostalgic love that millennials have for Facebook with the digital fluency of Gen Zers. And, most importantly, they are also looking for cost-effective ways to build their wardrobes, furnish their homes and perhaps make some money from selling the things they no longer need.

Notably, Marketplace is not the most common use case for Facebook amongst this group — they are more likely to say they use the platform for staying connected with loved ones and up-to-date on current events, pop culture and brands, but they’re more likely than all other age groups to say they use Marketplace, as well as buy-nothing groups (where participants gift all types of items).

▶️ For more details on what young adults are buying and selling on Facebook Marketplace, check out our new analysis, The Secret to Keeping Young Adults on Facebook Is Marketplace.

What Else We’re Reading 

Almost 1 in 4 millennials and Gen Z-ers say they won't have kids due to finances (CBS News)

Gen Z women will be critical in this year’s election. Here’s what they care most about. (MSNBC)

Gen Z: Will they finally solve the plastic crisis? (Los Angeles Times)

Boomers like pickup trucks, but Gen Z is going in a different direction: These are most popular cars among the generations (MarketWatch)

The meaning behind the ‘Ohio’ meme and why it’s taken off in popularity this summer (Forbes)

Millennials, Gen Xers lead jump in "religiously unaffiliated" (Axios)

Coming Up

9/18 Report: The Media Divide. In this report, we’ll take a look at how Democrats’ and Republicans’ media consumption habits differ.

9/25 Report: What Americans Think of the News. In this report, we examine Americans’ current news consumption habits and what they expect of the industry.

9/26 Webinar: Americans' News Consumption Habits. In our upcoming webinar, we’ll discuss how news consumption habits are changing in the general public and more. Register here.