Reaching Zillennials: How Financial Brands Are Leveraging Social Media
Picture a stereotypical Millennial. What comes to mind? We’re thinking skinny jeans, side hair parts, iPods and MySpace accounts. Now, think of a Gen Z’er, bopping to TikTok dances, scrolling on their iPhone and sporting the baggy jeans.
These two generations may feel like separate demographics, but there is a population that straddles them. They’re aptly called – you guessed it – Zillennials and according to Forbes, there’s about 30 million of them.
Zillennials have unique traits, preferences and habits. Now that they’re established in the workforce, they’re gaining buying power, which means tapping into this demographic could give credit card and payment marketers new opportunities.
Let’s take a closer look at who Zillennials are, what matters most to them and what that means for marketers.
First: Who the heck are Zillennials?
This micro-generation describes individuals born between 1993 and 1998 who are influenced by both their older Millennials and younger Gen Z’ers. They’re basically too Gen Z to be Millennial, and too Millennial to be Gen Z.
Broadly speaking, hot topics among today’s Zillennials are TikTok trends, nostalgic media, social justice, diversity, authenticity, sustainability and, of course, what they should wear to the Taylor Swift Eras Tour. They’re digital natives, so the internet and their smartphones are the go-to source for pretty much everything, from shopping to entertainment.
Zillennials’ financial habits
Given their comfort with online channels, Zillennials also prefer to access financial services through digital channels. As a report from PYMNTS explains, “Zillennials value subscription-based services, pay later plans and investing. These tendencies break with older generations’ in how they spend money, manage debt and grow wealth.”
Here are a few other key takeaways from the PYMNTS report that can inform marketing approaches to this demographic:
- Zillennials like subscriptions. In fact, 75 percent of Zillennials paid for at least one recurring subscription within the past month. Think: Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu and Walmart +. The report also indicates that as Zillennials’ incomes rise, they also increase their spending on additional subscription services. PYMNTS attributes the strong preference for subscriptions to the convenience and personalization that they offer.
- Weighed down by debt, Zillennials are attracted to flexible payment options. According to PYMNTS, “82 percent of Zillennials carry outstanding balances in at least one type of debt.” Student loans are the main reason, followed by credit card debt. To cope with these balances, Zillennials are 58 percent more likely to use Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) plans. As PYMNTS explains, “1 in 3 Zillennials choose merchants based on the availability of pay later options. This exceeds the 1 in 5 consumers overall who do the same.” And don’t discount high-income Zillennials, either: They also rate pay later plans as “highly important.” It’s also important to note that when it comes to spending, Zillennials are frontrunners in the shift toward online shopping — 37 percent of Zillennials prefer shopping exclusively online, according to PYMNTS. This is a higher percentage than both Gen Z and Millennials, who sit at 34 percent.
- Debt doesn’t stop Zillennials from investing. “One-third of this generation invested in assets such as stocks, mutual funds and cryptocurrencies in the month before the survey,” PYMNTS reports. That number rises in the context of high-income Zillennials: Nearly one-half engaged in investing during that same time. This demographic is also branching out beyond traditional stocks and bonds and is investing in private equity, real estate, cryptocurrency and more.
How marketers can capitalize on and speak to Zillennial preferences
If marketers want to meet Zillennials in their “natural habitat,” the logical move is to head (or swipe) over to the social media realm – specifically Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. There, we see brands like Glossier, Airbnb and Chipotle pushing social campaigns that include influencer collabs, raw and real user-generated content (UGC) and creative storytelling that speaks to their audiences’ values of community, authenticity and social consciousness.
Financial brands are winning the hearts of Zillennials this way, too. Let’s take a look.
- Several of Chase’s Instagram posts use infotainment to cleverly connect with younger audiences who are eager for financial guidance. These posts serve helpful financial tips in approachable, bite-sized pieces, including ways to pay off debt and establishing money goals.
- This post from Chase spotlights Black-owned restaurants in NYC, which feels experiential and immersive, but also speaks to Zillennial desires for community and diversity.
- This Instagram Reel from Affirm shares a fun, first-person perspective on how one Zillennial influencer (#AffirmPartner) used their Affirm Debit + card and app to manage expenses from a day of spending in glitzy Los Angeles. Both the treat yo’self vibe and the sticker shock of Los Angeles prices are engaging, which also rightfully brings attention to the perks of the card and app: the ability to easily split, manage and make purchases. It gives the impression that it’s possible to live a luxurious lifestyle on a budget – an idea that’s hard to resist.
- While this Instagram post from American Express isn’t necessarily targeted toward Zillennials, it does illustrate a tactic that should resonate with that audience: AmEx highlights how their card gives special access to an experience inspired by The Bear, a show streaming on Hulu and Disney +. Remember what we said earlier about Zillennials’ love for streaming services?
- This TikTok post from SoFi isn’t flashy or buzzworthy in itself, but it does a great job of serving Zillennials information they crave in a way that’s easy to understand. Here, an expert from SoFi weighs in on how to tackle debt and save for retirement in a practical way. It’s digestible and feels trustworthy – a balance that isn’t always easy to strike on social.
In short, there’s no singular “right” way to reach Zillennials, but there are certainly lots of meaningful (and clever!) avenues. We encourage financial brands to be bold and creative in exploring marketing strategies while sticking to some of the “facts” we know about this demographic: They prioritize conveniences, like personalized online shopping. They’re hungry for practical financial information, as they struggle with saving and have significant debt. They care about the world and community around them. And they really, really like their phones.
