[Column] Igor Blystiv: How Gen Z is shaping the future of marketing

It’s now hard to imagine a music concert without thousands of smartphones raised above the audience. Just a decade ago, this gesture was seen as a safer alternative to waving lighters, which symbolized the connection between the crowd and the performer. Today, Generation Z lift their phones not to signal “We’re together,” but to instantly share the moment on social media and say, “Look, I’m here.”

You can endlessly criticize or marvel at how young people experience emotional moments and significant milestones through their smartphones. For marketers, it’s wiser to accept that for Generation Z, the digital world isn’t just an add-on to life — it’s a central part of it, with social media serving as a primary source of information shaping their decisions. This fundamentally changes how they perceive brand communication and what they expect from it. Their spending is growing twice as fast as previous generations, and this year Generation Z is projected to make up nearly a third of the workforce in the world’s most economically advanced countries, meaning their influence will only continue to expand.

A generation that doesn’t buy dreams

Advertising once attracted consumers with polished images of celebrities: brands created an idealized vision — a dream — and sold access to it. People weren’t just buying a car but the lifestyle it represented, not just cosmetics but desirability and confidence. This approach still works, but not with Generation Z. Young people born between 1997 and 2012 don’t believe in manufactured dreams; for them, reality matters more than ideals.

While “entertainment” in a general sense often appears among their demands, I believe their need for authenticity is equally important. In the context of the FMCG sector, they want to see what a product is truly made of. The ingredient list is just the tip of the iceberg. For Generation Z, a product’s composition reflects the brand’s everyday actions and decisions. They care about its inner life: leadership reputation, whether the company’s internal culture matches its stated values, working conditions in production, environmental impact, treatment of animals, and more.

Generation Z expects brands to take a clear stance on issues that matter to them and to actively engage in addressing global challenges. Environmental protection, inclusivity, mental health, and ethics are no longer just aspects of corporate social responsibility — they are integral to a brand’s value proposition.

If a company uses child labor or ignores sustainable production practices, it will create emotional discomfort, and Generation Z consumers will readily abandon the brand — even if the product is high-quality and convenient.

Not consumers, but co-creators

Young people from Generation Z won’t listen to a brand that tells them how to live while ignoring their individuality and values. They want brands that are ready to hear them, communicate in their language, and recognize each person as an individual rather than the “average consumer.”

They reject the role of passive consumer and instead seek to become co-creators within communities where participants’ opinions matter. This explains their attraction to platforms like Discord and Twitch. On Twitch, for example, viewers can influence a streamer’s actions in real time and collectively decide which snacks they buy. They spend hours discussing favorite brands and flavors, giving brands not just product contact but a chance to build emotional connections and loyalty.

I observe this desire for dialogue and participation even in my teaching practice — most of my students in the Master’s program in Marketing Management belong to Generation Z. I see that they aren’t interested in simply listening to a lecture; they want to immediately apply knowledge in practice and receive feedback.

For marketers, this generation presents a particularly challenging task. On one hand, brands must be authentic, speak honestly, and be able to listen. On the other hand, communication must be customized for very different audiences: some value structured information, while others seek a lively tone of voice, engaging visual style, and an element of entertainment.

What this means for marketers

I believe that the desire for dialogue and co-creation is the defining trait of Generation Z that will transform marketing in the coming years. A marketer’s role will no longer just be about crafting the right message for an audience but about creating spaces for interaction and responding in real time. In the new communication culture, if a brand reacts to a trending or sensitive topic too slowly, it is perceived as silence.

Generation Z is already entering the profession and reshaping marketing from within. Young marketers quickly adapt to shifts in audience sentiment and have a strong sense of digital dynamics. Under their influence, marketing is increasingly becoming a platform for interaction rather than merely a tool for broadcasting messages.

Igor Blystiv is a Global Marketing and Innovation Officer at Kormotech

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