We’ve all seen it: marketing articles, research reports and social media posts that try to capture generations as in the event that they were a single, predictable group. But in point of fact, these generational labels often oversimplify and stereotype, missing the complex mixture of influences that shape people’s behaviors, values and selections. Here’s why it’s time to move beyond labels and how to adopt a more nuanced approach to understanding today’s diverse market.
The problem with generational labels
We’re all acquainted with the language of generations:
- Gen Alpha.
- Gen Z.
- Millennials.
- Boomers.
- And the often-forgotten Gen X.
“Familiar” might even be an understatement — references to generations, especially the coveted Gen Z, appear in nearly every marketing article. As a researcher, I’m often asked for my thoughts on Gen Z and why “they are that way.”
My answer, though, normally disappoints. For many years, now we have been inundated with opinion passing as research on generational differences, and it is just getting messier. However, few individuals who use these terms have a deep, nuanced understanding of what they mean. Contrary to many individuals’s claims, there’s little or no supporting evidence for the generational labels we typically use. Sadly, referencing a generation has just turn out to be a way to lazily stereotype a gaggle.
Growing skepticism within the research community
It’s not only my opinion. In 2023, Pew Research Center addressed this issue directly, stating:
“…generational research has turn out to be a crowded arena. The field has been flooded with content that’s often sold as research but is more like clickbait or marketing mythology. There’s also been a growing chorus of criticism about generational research and generational labels particularly.”
— Kim Parker, “How Pew Research Center will report on generations moving forward”
This shift didn’t occur in isolation. Concerns about generational labels have been build up in academic circles for a while. This discontent culminated in an open letter signed by 180 academics urging Pew to move away from the usage of generational labels.
Pew will not be the one major research provider to rethink how they discuss generations. In their 2023 report, Ipsos states:
“Marketing is overrun with stereotypes, hot takes and clichés. Some of essentially the most enduring in the primary 20 years of this century centered on the post-1980 millennials, who were proclaimed as a brand new generation that might completely disrupt business.”
— Ben Page, “We need to discuss generations — Understanding generations”
The millennial example: A case study in stereotyping
In 2016, writer Simon Sinek gave an influential interview about millennials as they were entering the workplace. Many of you reading this are probably classified as millennials and may be surprised that he describes you as having lower self-esteem, being highly self-absorbed, narcissistic and entitled.
But here, Sinek was just repeating the party line for generational research on the time — that millennials would give businesses an enormous headache. Several things are being conflated. Was Sinek talking about millennials or simply young people? And was his claim that they were addicted to social media truly a millennial trait or simply an indication of the times?
People complaining about younger people’s access to media is nothing latest. In 1790, the Reverend Enos Hitchcock wrote:
“The free access which many young people have to romances, novels and plays has poisoned the mind and corrupted the morals of many a promising youth…”
Dig deeper: How to move beyond performative segmentation and embrace authenticity
Why generational labels oversimplify: 3 key distinctions
When we lump a gaggle of individuals right into a generational label, we mix up three completely various things.
1. Life stage
Teenagers have done dumb things because the dawn of humanity, and middle-aged people have complained about them for just as long. People change after they get a job, have kids and retire. Young people are often on the forefront of social change. If we assume that these traits are everlasting, then we’d have to assume that each one boomers are still hippies!
2. Era
There are differences in our world that each one people experience, no matter generation. We all have access to the identical media landscape and experience the identical political environment, which is different from that of 10 or 20 years ago. Social media addiction is real, nevertheless it will not be confined to Gen Z (or millennials). Many of us have older relatives who are just as addicted to their Facebook.
3. Cohort
This is a flowery term for a gaggle of similarly-aged individuals who’ve experienced the world in the same way. This is the crux of generational differences. Still, it’s (as Pew admits) very hard to untangle from the above two features. Cohorts rely on other aspects reminiscent of wealth, urban or rural situation and family history.
To complicate things further, generational groups are highly diverse. In some ways, a young individual’s values are likely to be more closely aligned with their family’s than those of random (but similarly aged) individuals from a completely different background.
Practical guidelines for marketers
What does this mean for us? Here are just a few thoughts to aid you navigate all of this.
- Generational labels may be useful, but we must at all times do not forget that at best, they are a short-hand, at worst, a stereotype.
- Be careful to discover the difference between age-related traits and true cohort effects. Do not expect people’s values and behaviors to be set in stone by their generation.
- Explore the breadth of generations, not the soundbites. If 75% of Gen Z are using TikTok, what are the opposite 25% doing?
- Avoid any marketing actions that are based on one-dimensional interpretations of a generation. Nothing is more cringe-worthy to a Gen Zer than an organization pretending it could possibly “talk like Gen Z.” Don’t just discover a hot phrase and repeat it in your marketing. Just have a look at Reddit ads that try to pretend to be “authentic.” (TL;DR, IYKYK!)
- Finally, do your personal research. Don’t just give attention to a mythical generation. Look into your customers as an entire. Identify how younger and older people relate to your brand and experience your products.
There are good ethical reasons for moving on from the drained stereotyping of generational labels — but there are also compelling marketing reasons to gain a more nuanced view of your market. Assuming that each one your customers are the identical, even those of the same age, won’t ever be a winning strategy.
Dig deeper: How to revolutionize your market segmentation with genAI
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