The best Gen Z marketing campaigns have these characteristics…

TL;DR 

A fun-sized summary of this article

Use the algorithm in unexpected ways. The best campaigns subvert expectations.  

Elevate viral moments in a way only your brand can. If you don’t have anything new to add to the conversation, don’t join it. 

Your activism needs to have skin in the game - Gen Z is over the performance of social responsibility. 

Leverage your brand’s unique perspective on pop culture.

Have serious goals - but don’t take yourself too seriously.

How to be an Internet It Girl

Not every brand can be an internet darling, but those that are share one major characteristic; Gen Z absolutely adores them. Gaining a Gen Z cult following is no easy task, but it is well rewarded if achieved; our crowd just brings a certain kind of cool to the table. But to bag a Gen Z audience, your brand has to find a way to stand apart in the crowded digital space. Surviving this online gladiator arena is one thing; beating out your competition is a whole nother beast. But the brands that do usually… 

…Use the algorithm in unexpected ways 

Reverse engineering what feeds the algorithm can gift your brand social media’s most secret of secret recipes - how to subvert what’s expected. That’s what TikTok-famous haircare brand Olaplex did when they infiltrated the most infamous hashtag on the internet, reviled by product marketers everywhere: #dupe. Yeah - they faked a fake.

When Olaplex first introduced Oladupé, it was an instant hit on Tiktok… mainly because everyone thought it was a copycat product. 700 influencers, 400 posts, 21.9 million views, and 4 days later, they revealed the truth: Oladupé is, in fact, the real deal, and their brand is, in fact, undupable. Very badass. 

The smartest thing about the campaign is that Olaplex seized it as an opportunity to both solve an issue and strengthen their branding; they made clear that, despite being the most duped brand on TikTok, the competition doesn’t even come close. The next best thing is still, well… Olaplex. 

…Elevate viral moments in a way that only their brand can 

When it comes to brands and virality, we really gotta raise the bar. Not to say a repost doesn’t have its place on the feed once in a while, or that your TikTok skit isn’t funny (I’m sure it is!) - but those things just don’t cut it anymore, not if your brand is looking to make us stop our scroll. Sure, it can make your brand identity feel contemporary - but it can also make it feel basic.  

Think of something that everyone on the internet is obsessed with this week - now think about how you can repurpose that thing to make them obsessed with you. That’s what GAP did for their SS24 campaign "Linen Moves,” featuring a freshly Grammy-ed Tyla and the internet-famous music group Jungle. The artists recreated TikTok-sensation “Back on 74” in Gap’s Linen Collection, schooling everyone on how to hop on a trend by elevating it. And you know what? They served. 

…Get some skin in the game

Gen Z doesn’t just want to save the world - we want you to save it, too. This generation holds brands to high standards when it comes to social responsibility, especially as it’s become more and more evident that an ethical stance can also be a lucrative one. The performance of activism doesn’t fly anymore - to get it right, you have to mean it. 

Canadian-based brewery Molson did just that this International Women’s Day in their sponsorship of the Professional Women's Hockey League. They knew that, in the industry of professional sports, women are still fighting to be paid, respected, and, most of all, seen. So, in partnership with the agency Rethink, Molson redesigned the league’s jerseys with that problem in mind and shifted the players’ names below their number - even if it meant their own being hidden. 

By switching up the traditional placements of player name and sponsor, Molson made their priorities clear: “We Covered Our Name So Hers Could Be Seen”. 

And that is the type of energy we’re looking for. 

…Leverage their brand’s unique POV on the Culture

That’s *Culture*, capital C. And being tapped into it is how Sweet Hearts seized the opportunity to do the funniest thing ever and create a special brand of Situationship-themed candy hearts for the generation so infamously unlucky (and undefined) in love. This works on two levels - it is funny in a way that is both pop-culture and brand-aligned, the execution accomplishing a cheeky subversion from what we expect of Sweet Hearts and its brand. However, it’s also practical because, boy, did these babies sell - Situationships are very popular these days. 

…Are not afraid to be unserious 

Saving the environment is serious business - but sometimes, it works better to let the convo be delightfully unserious.

Gen Z is not playing around when it comes to civic engagement and social responsibility. We want to do good and will utilize our purchases as an extension of our values - even if that sometimes requires a boycott or two. However, we want brands as our partners and peers in the endeavor, not disingenuous lecturers. Conveying your commitment to social responsibility is important, but it can also make you sound stiff.. and even a little phony. That’s why Who Gives A Crap took a more unconventional route. 

Yes, that is really their name - the cheekily-monikered brand is a hit with Gen Zers for both their contemporarily snarky humor and their commitment to sustainability. This year, they won Valentine’s Day with a call for customers to submit old love letters for a unique cause: turning them into recycled toilet paper. It goes without saying that 'Flush Your Ex' was a huge hit. It also drove home that you don’t have to sound like a textbook to be genuinely educated and actionable about your social values. Because 'Flush Your Ex' was informed, sustainable, and on-mission - it was also sooooo Who Gives A Crap, irreverent humor and all.