Constantly wondering how to appeal to your teenage kids? A new study by Google might help you out by providing a glimpse into the minds of Gen Z—the demographic of people roughly born between the mid-1990s to early 2000s.
Conceived and executed by Google's Brand Team for Consumer Apps, the study queried a representative sample of 400 teens between the ages of 13 and 17 about all things culture.
The results touched upon a variety of subjects: from who teens deem to be cool celebrities (they must be "philanthropic and genuine") to fashion (Gen Z is obsessed with shoes), sports (football and basketball are the most watched but soccer, track and basketball are the most played), food (chips, pizza, Oreos and ice cream are considered the coolest foods) and streaming media platforms (YouTube dominates the latter category, followed by Netflix, Spotify and Hulu).
What is arguably most interesting is that Gen Z, comprised of people that aren't familiar with a pre-Internet world and are therefore an incredibly informed set, believes and relies on brands to shape their existence. The coolest, therefore most powerful, brands out there? YouTube reigns supreme, followed by Netflix, Google, Xbox, Oreo, GoPro, PlayStation, Doritos, Nike and Chrome—clearly, technology rules their lives.
In terms of social media, Snapchat and Instagram are considered the coolest platforms whereas Facebook, albeit a daily destination among the participants, seems to only be used for consumption and stalking—posting on Facebook is, apparently, not cool.
But what, exactly, is cool? It depends on your gender. Male participants defined "cool" as something deemed cool by fads and friends whereas female participants bestowed coolness upon something based on how it made them feel.
Take a look at the entire study right here.