Will Gen Z want to live in Georgia?

 

Last week, the state of Georgia led by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, passed one of the nation's most restrictive voting bills, designed to suppress minority voting.  The bill imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, limits the use of ballot drop boxes, and - wait for it - makes it a crime to give food or water to people waiting in line to vote. 

No wonder President Biden called it Un-American.

While it may be part of a national trend - Republican lawmakers in more than 40 states have introduced more than 250 bills to restrict voting, Georgia appears to have gone a step too far. (Blake, 2021)

This weekend on Twitter, calls went out to Coca-Cola asking them to announce that they will supply Dasani water to all Georgia voters; while support for #BoycottGeorgia which targets Coca-Cola, Delta, Home Depot, AFLAC and UPS trended.  (Romero, 2021)

Golf's Master Tournament, scheduled to begin next week and Major League's Baseball's All Star game scheduled for July are also being pressured to move/cancel. (Moore, 2021)

So what is Gen Z making of all this?

Gen Z is more racially and ethnically diverse than previous generations.  Only 52% are White.  29% are Hispanic, 14% are Black, 6% are Asian, and 5% identify as Other, which includes mixed race. Roughly two-thirds of Gen Z say that Blacks are treated less fairly than Whites in this country. (Parker & Igielnik, 2020)

Gen Z showed up to vote in 2020.  Turnout among voters 18-29 rose from 46.5% in 2016 to 54.5% in 2020.  (Siddiqui & Ngo, 2020)

And, 53% of Gen Z say they have purchased a brand/product to show support for the issues the brand supported.  An additional 23% said they would consider doing so.  While 40% have stopped purchasing if the company stands for something or behaves in a way that doesn't align with their values.  And an 27% would consider joining them. That's 67% willing to boycott under the appropriate circumstances. (Hessekiel, 2018)

So will Gen Z boycott Coca-Cola, Delta, Home Depot, AFLAC and UPS?  Will they choose not to live in a state that actively fights against their beliefs?  Or will practicality outweigh activism much as it does when they keep reordering from Amazon despite its anti-union stance?  

 

Blake, J. (2021, March 28)  Georgia Republicans made two big mistakes when they attacked voting rights.  cnn.com.  Retrieved March 29, 2021, from https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/28/politics/voting-rights-georgia-souls-polls-blake/index.html

Romero, D. (2021, March 26)  Calls for economic boycott grow after Georgia adopts voter restrictions.  nbcnews.com.  Retrieved March 29, 2021, from  https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/calls-economic-boycott-grow-after-georgia-adopts-voter-restrictions-n1262241

Moore, T. (2021, March 29)  Sports world should boycott Georgia over racist voting law.  cnn.com.  Retrieved March 29, 2021, from  https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/29/opinions/georgia-voting-restrictions-sports-moore/index.html

Parker, K. & Igielnik, R. (2020, May 14)  On the Cusp of Adulthood and Facing an Uncertain Future: What We Know About Gen Z So Far.  pewresearch.org.  Retrieved March 29, 2021, from   https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/05/14/on-the-cusp-of-adulthood-and-facing-an-uncertain-future-what-we-know-about-gen-z-so-far-2/

Siddiqui, S. & Ngo, M. (2020, November 26)  Young Voters Helped Biden Beat Trump After Holding Back in Primaries.  wsj.com.  Retrieved March 29, 2021, from https://www.wsj.com/articles/young-voters-helped-biden-beat-trump-after-holding-back-in-primaries-11606399200

Hessekiel, D. (2018, June 26) Engaging Gen Z In Your Social Impact Efforts.  forbes.com.  retrieved March 29, 2021, from  https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhessekiel/2018/06/26/engaging-gen-z-in-your-social-impact-efforts/?sh=1f2d93066499

 

Will this campaign from Fisher persuade Mills and Gen Z to cook with nuts?

 

Fisher Nuts, a century old company with less than 50% household penetration is attempting to boost its Millennial and Gen Z users with a new holiday campaign.

 

They believe that they can "teach new generations" to cook and bake and "remove younger consumers' nervousness around cooking with nuts." (Ellwanger, 2020)

 

Hmm.  That's a pretty tall order.  And it presumes that Mills/Gen Z are actually interested in learning to cook and bake - with nuts. 

 

The campaign features this video depicting baking as a family bonding experience shared across generations...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTMybsootXc

 

The campaign also includes cause marketing.  As this spot explains, for every #FisherTogether post Fisher will donate $30 to Meals on Wheels America...

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF28sM2IGDo

 

On the ecommerce side, Fisher is running shoppable ads on Amazon, Instacart, Instagram and Pinterest.

 

Based on what you know about consumer behavior among Millennials and Z's, do you think this campaign will be successful?  Does either of these generations cook/bake?  Do they want to start?

 

Do you think men and women are equally likely to bake?  Does it make sense to try to reach out to both genders in a single spot?  Is the spot successful in doing so?

 

Would the video appeal to either Gen Z (ages 8 - 23) or Millennials (24-39) or both?  If so, which group and why?  Would Fisher be more successful if they focused on one generation instead of both?

 

What do you think about the #FisherTogether cause marketing campaign?  Will this appeal to Gen Z?  Millennials?  Both? 

 

Will the shoppable ads have an impact?  Are the social media options suitable for the target?  What changes would you make to the selections if you were the marketing manager?

 

Finally, do you think this campaign will be successful?

 

 

Ellwanger, S. (2020, November 17)  Fisher Nuts Lures Younger Consumers With Recipes, Emotion.  mediapost.com.  Retrieved November 18, 2020, from

https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/357891/fisher-nuts-lures-younger-consumers-with-recipes.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=120484&hashid=ybq2buULrntyGS6NfbELk0afrrI