Gen Z Think Tank: Gen Z Social Media Habits

Gen Z reflects on the blue check marks, going stealth, and setting new boundaries on social media.

Adolescent gets our info straight from the source. Our community of Youthtellers spans the globe, and our research scales finite moments into larger demographic behavior. Regular think tanks, surveys, and polls tell us what Gen Z cares about; we’ll then distill down what that means for you from an actionable perspective. After all, the best way to stay in the conversation of current culture is to engage the people making it. 

Image credited to Xia Liu

https://www.instagram.com/adolescentcontent/p/C3Ifdf8R_YV/?img_index=1 

TL;DR 

A fun-sized summary of this article

• Gen Z social media habits are changing as we do; it’s time for brands to refresh their strategies to reach us there. 

• For our generation, engagement is the only metric that matters - especially when there are more bots on the internet than people.

• In 2024, blue check marks are more accessible, but also less credible.

• Gen Z is big on boundary setting both on - and with - social media. But that doesn’t mean that we’re unreachable. 

Gen Z reflects on: The End of Status Symbols

The blue check mark used to be that thing. Coveted, yet elusive to most, all the girls wanted to be her - all the girls wanted to have her. Now all the girls can buy her, and, consequently, we all care less about it. 

What was once a stamp of legitimacy and status on social media is now just another commodity. Some may argue that it levels the playing field for growing creators; democratizes the clout, if you will. But access to credibility is probably better earned than bought. 

RIP Blue Check Mark: 2009 - 2023

In loving memory of another internet thing that used to be cool. 

However, even though blue checks are quickly losing their influence, Gen Z still relies on verification systems to inform our engagement. It's just that, nowadays, we’re paying more attention to the content itself to discern who - and what - matters on our feeds. 

Sabrina: I most definitely think that [influencers] purchase [the blue check] just because they can… most people don't have the followers, the likes, and the content to actually have a blue check on their own. 

Indigo: I don't really understand the point of the blue check. Honestly, I guess it kind of makes somebody seem a little bit more important on Instagram, but then it's like, really - who are you?

Blessing: I don't care what people are doing with the checks I guess. As long as they're not pretending to be somebody else or whatever. I don't really know the things that you have to do to get a check - like, can’t you just buy it?

Insight:

• While we’re not saying a blue checkmark is a bad bet, it’s also not one worth turning out your pockets for. If you’re a brand building a Gen Z audience, invest your credibility into your content, not a diminishing status symbol. 

Gen Z reflects on: Engagement and Gen Z Social Media

These days, more people are going stealth online, not just private. Keeping likes and comments hidden on your personal page is our version of boundary setting in the social media space. It’s more lowkey - and low-pressure. And while larger creators and public figures can abuse this feature to rebuff criticism and controversy, the option is also pretty helpful for keeping trolls off your page. 

Brands, though, have to play by different rules. Gen Z is big on feedback and active listening; a brand with a disabled comment section is at best a red flag, and at worst a middle finger. Vanity metrics - follower counts, likes and check marks - matter less to us, because engagement matters more. If your brand isn’t facilitating a two-way conversation with your audience, Gen Z won’t be joining it. 

Sabrina: People are very nosy. People like to go in your likes and see who's on your page. So most of the time, I do have my likes hidden and my page private.

Indigo: I think with some creators, people get crazy in their comments for no reason; they get a lot of unwarranted hate. But then there are some scenarios where the creator did say something questionable, and they are aware of it, so they turn off the comments - but don’t delete the video. However, I think there is always a clear distinction between the two.

Denver: I'm the type of person where I don't comment on social media frequently, so I don't turn off my comments - but I would if necessary. So I don't mind when brands or other people do it. I kind of actually prefer it. 

Blessing: Engagement is especially important with brands because of the whole bots thing; you can buy followers, but if they're not watching your content, a sponsorship would get only like five people out of the hundred thousand that are supposedly following you to actually like it. 

Insight:

• Followers are great, but engagement is better. Brands that have - and keep - Gen Z audiences aren’t trying to be influencers, but community spaces. Your focus should be on what you can do with the audience you have, not how fast you can get the follower count to tick upwards.

Gen Z reflects on: Social Media Detox

Sometimes it feels like the apps we spend so much of our time on are built to make us upset. The most engaged user is an angry one; the algorithm has taken note. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok want us to stay and scroll as long as possible, and are highly inclined to keep us miserable while there. Consequently, Digital detoxes are becoming more frequent these days -  but so are permanent app time limits, boundaries, and downtime hours. 

Sabrina: I do take breaks from social media. Like I'll stay on Tik Tok of course, but Facebook can get very overwhelming. I feel like sometimes it messes with people’s mental health because it can make them think that they're not where they are supposed to be in life. And I see a lot of bullying. So I will deactivate my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Blessing: I took [Facebook] off my phone because I was arguing with people too much. I want to educate people, but I'll see ignorance, or people being mean/problematic, and I just can't move past it. So I had to get off. 

Indigo:  I know for a fact Twitter was fueling my depression. It was so bad. Like, the negativity on that app… it's just so low vibrational. I found that I was addicted to the dopamine from scrolling and it was consuming me. So I now, every night I sleep with my phone downstairs, and I don't look at it until a few hours after I get up. I had to establish that habit because it was destroying me; I couldn't sleep at night. 

Denver: I used to just love scrolling. Even if I didn't spend a lot of time on [TikTok], the effects that it would have on me would still leave with me after I closed the app. So I was just like, I have to delete this - because this is not okay. I started implementing one-hour time limits on all of my social media apps. I only use Instagram,  Reddit, and YouTube now; it's less exhausting. I still don't really like social media all that much, but at least I can control it.

Insight:

• Gen Z gets serious social media fatigue, and, as a result, have become in the habit of setting hard boundaries with our scrolling. But don't see that as an obstacle to your brand’s strategy. Taking note of and then adjusting to our habits and priorities will optimize your engagement and show us that you get it.  

Feed Favorites

Indigo: Jackie Aina

Blessing: Crutches and Spice

Sabrina: Krew Season

Participant Overview

Sabrina 24 TX

• Primary Social Media: Facebook and TikTok

• Thinks Blue checks are purchased

• Personally hides likes

• Considers 100k a lot of followers

• Follows family-owned brands

• Does not like Get Ready with Me videos but likes a Day in the Life videos 

• Takes breaks from social media

Denver 15 FL

• Primary Social Media: Instagram

• Thinks we should limit who can get blue check marks

• Does not mind when brands or people turn off comments

• Considers 10k a lot of followers

• Likes A Day in the Life videos, but thinks they’re fabricated

• Used to have an addiction to doom-scrolling, but implemented 1-hour time limit for social media

Blessing 23 NY

• Primary Social Media: TikTok, Facebook, Instagram

• Doesn't mind the blue check, but doesn't understand all of the rules around it

• Doesn’t notice when brands turn off comments, but does when people do after problematic behavior 

• Content over following count - bought followers are on her radar

• Considers 100k a lot of follows

• Follows a lot of sustainable brands

• Has taken breaks from social due to arguments with commenters

Indigo 24 GA

• Primary Social Media: Tik Tok

• If the name is unheard of, then the assumption is that the blue check is bought

• While some creators garner unwarranted hate others do and turn comments off ahead of time to avoid accountability

• Seeing a large following makes her more likely to check out the rest of the content

• The only brand that she follows is Fenty Beauty

• Starting to get tired of Get Ready with Me but highly entertained with A Day in the Life videos

• Has taken a break from Twitter