Our Most Surprising Insights
We're launching our own esports league this year for the armed forces community, which is open to people aged 13+. We want to make sure we understand the next generation. So, we held our first ever young people's focus group at BFBS to answer some of these questions.
We had a mix of very late Gen Z and Gen Alpha youngsters join us. Pizza was put on, vegetables left untouched...
We asked them about three parts of their lives - gaming, social media, and esports.
And, what we learned was surprising.
- They are not phone zombies. Young people are often unfairly demonised by older generations. It's easy to assume they are glued to their phones scrolling social media for hours. Our participants said they actively avoided TikTok as they knew how addictive and toxic its algorithm could be. They actively put apps and filters into place to help limit their screen time. This had a social element too - apps like Flora and Opal were mentioned as a way to keep each other accountable while revising.
"TikTok is very addictive. It's not very good for you....they are using you for money."
- Celebrities and influencers don't matter as much. Other than the ultra-famous like Taylor Swift there was little interest in celebrities. Influencers are sometime thought of as filling this gap - but there was even less interest in them. For these group it was all about the individual piece of content and how worthwhile (or not) it was.
- Identifying one chat app to reach this audience can be difficult. Many mentioned Snap as the main way they DM'd each other. However, there was a divide here between the Gen Z and Gen Alpha participants. For Gen Alpha iMessage/Facetime or WhatsApp were more popular.
- There is a big difference between these two generations. Our Gen Z participants laughed when we mentioned YouTube Shorts. It is seen as a deeply embarrassing format with a whole culture dedicated to mocking it. For Gen Alpha, only a few years younger, YouTube Shorts was everything.
"There is a stigma about YouTube Shorts"
- Gaming started at home. Every participant recalled their first gaming experience with a parent - primarily dads. Nostalgia for classic PlayStation models and early FIFA games sets this generation apart from Millennials, who often faced less parental encouragement or suspicion towards gaming.
So What? Research and audience insights are vital if any project to engage people is going to succeed. It's something we believe - and do - rather than just talk about. As we build this esports league we are striving to understand those we want to reach as well as possible.
It's something we can help you with too. If you are struggling to reach different audiences then speak to us.