“
dentsu Z, is a pioneering force of Gen Z young creatives with a mission to proactively make strategic plans and propose solutions for clients, explore innovative ideas by putting cutting-edge technology into practice and create profound cultural experiences. As both consumers of generation Z and young creatives deliver direct insights, create an intimate psychological connection between the brand and the consumers of the next generation.
During the pandemic, the moonlight clan, those who live from paycheck to paycheck, realized they couldn’t live without backup savings, so they began to invest in financial products and launch side hustles.
Last year, one of our dentsu Z team started to buy funds, then everyone followed suit and invested a little to officially embark on the financial business path. Disappointingly, one year on, we’ve failed in this business. With news on funds crashing jumping into hot topics from time to time, the dentsu Z team suffered daily “heartache”, and a blind box fan even bought her favorite toys to make up for the loss of money and happiness.
While saving money like crazy and trying to make money however they can, young people also splash out on their favorite items. Below are some ways Gen Z consumers save and earn today.
Fund wave & sidelines
The “Gen Z Investor Behavior in Tier 1 Cities“ report shows more than half of Gen Z have been engaged in financial management since the age of 18-20, and 80% of them have previously bought fund products.
The fund market where we could easily make money last year stimulated young people to engage and invest for the potential returns. It has also become part of our social life over lunch or after work when we talk and check the status of each other’s funds. Sometimes, we view and learn how to manage finance from short video APPs like Douyin.
For sure, fund investment is not the only way for young people to make money.
It is said that 50% of post-95s have sidelines. That’s certainly true with dentsu Z. Compared with the stable jobs and lifestyles other generations seek, this younger generation pursues the achievement of self-value. More than ever, we long for financial independence as soon as possible, and this motivates us to try harder to make money.
“In how many ways do the post 95s make money?” As the hot social buzz on Weibo implies, we work as cosplayers, join live acting role-playing games, do street vending, sell used goods, vlog, raise pigs... We’ve tried all kinds of unexpected ways to earn cash.
Little Red Book social account management
Splash out money for fun
Besides functional consumption, there is a shift within Gen Z in how they consume brands based on their emotions, whether paying for companionship with a pet, a virtual lover service, or blind boxes. The Zhihu topic, “What is it like to have a hobby that makes you keep spending money?” One of the most liked answers that gives a lively portrait of a Gen Z’er is they prefer to have a 14,000 USD-worth bicycle while saving money by using an 80 USD Redmi phone.
Game players save money to spend on various skins. Every weekend we get together to indulge in a live-action role-playing game on which we spend at least 200 or 300 RMB at a time. It may be a substantial amount of money to a young professional, but it’s never too much for those who play.
Gen Z consumers who like to save are more than prepared to spend money on their hobbies. Over half of Gen Z bought blind boxes more than seven times a year, as indicated in MobTech’s ‘Blind Box Economy Insights Report.’ The dentsu Z team are also big fans of blind boxes and are frequent visitors to the POP MART store downstairs from our office. Everyone likes a different blind box collection, like the popular Satyr Rory collection, the newly launched cute HIRONO collection, or the Marvel collection. All fans are happily surprised as they open their box, and the more you buy, the more addictive you are.
While sometimes it turned to be quite unpleasant experiences when we spent 79RMB or 99RMB on a toy with very poor quality. Earlier this year, the Shanghai Municipal Market Supervision Bureau issued the guideline on blind box business to protect consumers' interests. Some of the clauses include the regulation on the blind box pricing, and the probability of getting the surprise item that blind box operators are encouraged to set a better mechanism. We were overjoyed to see this and hope every toy we buy worth the value. The blind box industry in China is expected to reach 4.5 billion by 2024. Given the growing fans community and a well-organized market, we have no doubt it will.
KFC X POP MART Figure Blind Box
Get the best deal to save money
Being “smart” is the motto for young people when it comes to consumption. Whether getting samples or collecting coupons, Gen Z consumers in China are innovative in their methods of saving money. The “2022 Post-00/90s Financial & Consumption Behavior Insight Report” shows that most of the post-00s and post-90s now have fixed term savings accounts while keep accounts, which enables us to know what every penny we spent on.
We never tire of hunting for deals. We have a deal hunter master in our team who continually introduces ways of getting great deals. For example, always get coupons in WeChat before ordering your food delivery, compare several platforms to find the best promotion deal before checking out dinner bills, buy a bunch of nearly expired food for your home. In conclusion, if we buy cheaper, we save and earn money.
Sometimes, when we are not sure which brand we like or what suits us, we go to the sample zone first. No waste, no mistake. The popularity of sampling cosmetics in the retailer brick-and-mortar stores demonstrates how Chinese brands understand this thrill is an important part of the consumer experience, and these cheap thrills are as much fun as the purchase. On Little Red Book, there are over 570,000 sampling-related articles.
Money saved by using coupons and promotion deals
Saving, and spending, that’s us—a generation of contradictions. From satisfying functional needs to consuming for self-pleasure, Gen Z pursues optimal emotional consumption, balancing material and spiritual elements. Brands and products that understand young people’s consumption choices and focus on meeting their interests could become the next consuming craze.
AUTHOR | dentsu Z
- End -
You might be also interested in：
Generation “Also Me” | dentsu Z
Gen Z elder or wisdom? | dentsu Z
dentsu Z Looks into the World of a Generation of Contradictions
No involution, that’s the real Gen Z | Passcode Z
Gen Z, moving between virtual and reality | Passcode Z
We threw a b’day party for virtual idol Luo Tianyi | Latest Work
Cool to be a creative… Q&A with Yiqing Chi from dentsu Z team
We craft distinctive brands and innovative experiences for a connected future.
▽
