In partnership with Oxford Economics. SnapchatRecently, I set out to investigate the role of Gen Z and the digital economy in driving post-pandemic recovery. Also, how they impact marketing efforts and what this means overall for the industry.
We’ll take a closer look at some of the themes and trends unveiled by the findings, but amongst the key pieces of information in the reportInclude:
- Gen Z will support $3.1 trillionSpending by 2030 in six key markets: Australia, France Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States
- The global AR market is expected to grow FourfoldBy 2023
- Technology and COVID-19 have the potential to transform skills demand. The majority of jobs will require advanced digital skills.
- A greater emphasis for the future workforce will be put on skills such as agility, curiosity, creativity, critical thinking and problem solving playing into Gen Z’s natural strengths
Gen-Z: The engines for consumer spending
Gen Z will emerge as a strong and independent source for consumer spending. Despite being on the fringe of the labor market due to their age, Gen Z is expected to shift dramatically in the next few years. Their consumer spending will grow six-fold from $467 billionIn 2019, $3 Trillion2030 equivalent to 11 percentof total household spending. Further, Gen Z’s share of total employment will rise noticeably from a mere 10%In 2019, 30%2030
Snapchat identified several key traits that will make Gen Z-ers successful in the workforce, beyond digital competence. These include agility, a quick grasp of information and an open-minded and innovative approach to new challenges. They’re also more creative and compared to their older cohorts and very curious to engage in forms of communication and content creation including AR, emojis, lenses and filters.
The rapidly changing AR market
It’s no secret that COVID-19 will act as a significant disruptor, accelerating shifts towards a more digital society and fundamental changes that will transform our world of work.
AR is one of the fastest-growing technologies. Outlined in Snapchat’s report, it is estimated that the global AR market revenue nearly quadrupled between 2018 and 2020. It is expected that the next three years will be marked by a similar trend, with estimates projecting a similar trend. 10xFrom 2018, the number of AR-certified digital professionals will increase by 2023. Stats aside, what is key to note is that AR’s characteristics pave the path for a significant demand in digital skills comparable to that seen in 2010 with the rise of social media platforms.
Allowing new forms of expression, entertainment, utility and information-gathering it is not only essential to how brands attract attention and connect emotionally at scale, but the technology is facilitating immersive experiences that are redefining retail and online beauty. According to research by ShopifyAR/3D interactions accounted for nearly 80% of all interactions 94 percentThere is more conversion to sales than non-AR channels. AR will continue to change the way we experience healthcare, education and architecture.
The future of learning for a dynamic workforce: re-skilling and learning
While disruption to formal education among Gen Z is a major concern, its impact on their labor market prospects is still uncertain. To put the rise and popularity of online learning in perspective, platforms like Coursera or edX enrolled more than 180 million Students enrolled in courses in 2020, an increase of 1,000 percentComparable to five years ago. As we face increased reliance on remote working, Snapchat’s analysis points to Gen Z’s higher digital competence as largely supportive to their adaptation to this new way of working.
Additionally, in common with all recessions, the pandemic is set to accelerate a new wave of automation driving demand for creativity and curiosity in the workplace—two of the inherent traits of Gen Z mentioned earlier. As a result, lifelong learning will become more important as workers are required to adapt to ever-changing demands. This includes learning new technologies and software to stimulate new ways of doing business, respond effectively to structural changes and challenges, and reskilling in a dynamic workforce that will set a tone for 2020.
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