For Immediate Release Contact: Lisa Cohen, 310-395-2544

May 22, 2013 lisa@lisacohen.org

Intelligence Group’s Gen Z Cassandra Report Paints Portraits of

Independent Rebel Kids with Purpose

New Survey of 7-13 year-olds Sheds Light on Life, Times, and Consumption Habits of

Young Consumers Driving the Future of the Marketplace

Los Angeles, CA -- Generation Z (those currently under 16 years old) may be young, but

their pragmatism and independence makes them the most challenging generation yet for

marketers, according to a new Cassandra Report survey of 7-13 year olds and their

parents. Growing up constantly connected, members of Gen Z are practical, driven,

curious and self-sufficient, due in large part to technology. As society's first true "digital

natives," they feel empowered by their access to information and seek to influence the

products and content they consume.

“The children of Generation Z are having online conversations about brands well before

companies are even thinking about marketing to them, making it critical to stay ahead by

understanding their wants and needs,” said Jamie Gutfreund, Chief Strategy Officer of

the Intelligence Group. “Those who are baffled by their older Gen Y siblings will find

this generation of rebellious pragmatists even more potentially elusive, as they will

demand even more intimate and honest relationships with the brands, artists, and

institutions they follow.”

Based on the Cassandra Tween Report, which included 800 online interviews with 7-13

year-olds and their parents around the country, The Intelligence Group released its top ten

Gen Z marketing tips, which include:

1. Tap Into Their Entrepreneurial Spirit: Zs are self-starters, itching to make an

impact, a change, and a name for themselves. Brands can be a resource for

insights and investments that start these young individuals on a groundbreaking,

innovative path.

2. Listen and Respond to Them: Gen Zs’ multitasking, multi-think mentality keeps

them tuned into various streams of content all at once—and they expect brands to

keep up with their rapid-fire pace of conversation, content consumption, and

Q&A. Marketers need to embrace and embody the real-time turnaround that Zs

crave.

3. Invite Them Into your Decision-Making: The real-time pace of online interaction

has led Zs to expect to be heard by brands, whether they’re voicing a complaint,

asking a question, or giving a compliment or suggestion. This generation wants to

feel that its input makes an impact, and Zs love to have their ideas considered and

realized.

4. Let Them Try Before They Buy: Gen Z are uber researchers and bargain hunters,

and they expect to be able to test out products before they commit to anything.

Brands should provide these savvy young consumers with opportunities to try,

play, and experiment pre-purchase, both virtually (through augmented reality) and

physically (through trial periods and sample offerings).

5. Make Sure You Are Innovating and Digitally Evolving: Gen Z sees little

distinction between their digital and physical worlds. They aim to seamlessly

engage with both. Marketers should begin to think about ways to further integrate

their digital and physical communications, creating products, content, and games

that feature both tangible and virtual elements working together and well.

6. Encourage Them to Get Creative With Your Product: Zs are always seeking new

opportunities to display their most inventive, beautiful, and brilliant creations.

Brands should give them platforms upon which to share their projects, get ideas

and inspiration, and interact with likeminded young people, and prominently

feature their best works to give them a moment in the spotlight.

7. Make Them Feel Secure: Growing up in the wake of 9/11 and the midst of a

Recession has made Gen Zs inherently security-minded. Brands should feature

marketing messages that speak to Zs’ and their parents’ desire to feel safe and

secure, and partner with the right causes to remind them that you’re working to

make the world a better and safer place.

8. Inspire Them to Change the World: Gen Z considers it a given and a necessity to

recycle, conserve, and make green choices, and they are participating in some

form of community service through their school, family, or church in

disproportionate numbers. Brands can be great resources for information and

motivating young people to improve their schools, communities, and their world.

9. Build a Relationship Early On: Since trust and transparency are such important

social markers for Gen Zs, marketers should engage them on their level and offer

experiences they can enjoy at their current age—even if what they’re selling

doesn’t seem imminently useful to kids. Earning their trust now will have sticking

power when these young individuals enter adulthood.

10. Show Them the Bright Side: Gen Zs may be born realists, but they still desire and

respond to messages of hope and optimism. Brands can enhance Zs’ outlook by

showing them the brighter sides of life, and encouraging them to find and share

the bright moments, themselves. Marketing messaging can remind them that, in a

sometimes-scary world, they can still find positive people and opportunities.

Survey Methodology

The 2013 Cassandra Tween Study is the result of two concurrent studies fielded from

January 21, 2013, to January 31, 2013. Each study consisted of a total of 400 online

interviews with 7- to 13-year-old boys and girls. The sample composition for each study

was ethnically and geographically representative of the US population. In compliance

with COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act), all 7- to 13-year-old

respondents were recruited online through one of their parents. The Intelligence Group

also utilized its Cassandra Speaks online community for the qualitative research used in

this report. This research was conducted among a panel of tweens and their parents from

around the country.

About The Intelligence Group

The Intelligence Group (IG), a division of Creative Artists Agency (CAA), is a youth-

focused, research-based consumer insights company dedicated to identifying emerging

movements in popular culture and translating them into relevant knowledge for

companies, brands and institutions. For more than 15 years, IG has been publishing the

quarterly Cassandra Report, the leading on-going cultural study of young consumers and

cultural trendsetters. IG also publishes Cassandra Daily, a free daily trend email

newsletter and website that highlights emergent social and cultural trends of the

moment. Through its Cassandra Solutions consulting work, IG helps major companies

and brands, as well as top artists and athletes, engage young consumers effectively and

with lasting impact. And, thousands of executives of top consumer companies have

attended IG’s immersive, daylong Trend School programs, where critical consumer

trends and insights are brought to life through provocative presentations, panels,

demonstrations, and workshops.

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