Skift Take
If you want to engage Generation Z, ditch the paper, be authentic, and keep those presentations moving.
Just as meeting planners are learning how to reach and engage Millennials who range in age from 18 to 34, the next generation, known as Gen Z, is shifting the landscape. While there is not yet an exact definition of this generation, demographers generally use the birth years from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s to describe them.
In 2015, the U.S. Census Bureau reported a Gen Z population of 73.61 million, just behind Millennials at 79.41 million, and far ahead of Gen X at 65.72 million. It's estimated that by 2020 they will account for 40 percent of all consumers. Even more so than their Millennial siblings, Gen Z are digital natives, but their engagement with the digital world, and especially social media and social activism, is even stronger and more influential – and that's how to engage them.
"If it's not interactive, they're not going to stay at the meeting," said Cindy Lo, president and event strategist at Red Velvet Events in Austin, Texas. "They need to be entertained and they're looking for those 'Instagramable' moments."
In that sense, Gen Z is no different from Millennials, but it's not enough for the younger folks to have a great image; they want to know that a brand or company gives back to the community. Lo cited the examp
