designing for generation z: how kids are rewriting the rules of their own user experiences

@2015 Fuel Industries Inc. / Fuel and Generation Play is a trademark of Fuel Industries Inc. / For internal use only, do not distribute

Designing for Generation ZHow Kids Are Rewriting the Rules of Their Own User Experiences

Jeff Roach, Chief Strategy Officer & Group Executive Creative DirectorFuel Youth Engagement

@Silverstarme @FuelYouth

Fuel is an advanced technology & creators studioWe help brands connect with Generation Play through future technology and creative content

Private and Confidential – Not for Distribution ©2015 Fuel Youth ©2015 Fuel Industries Inc. All Rights Reserved



What constitutes great youth design?

When it comes to Gen Z and interaction experiences, how do we evaluate design?


So let’s think about interaction design from a youth perspective

And in order to think from a youth perspective, we need to understand the fundamental insights into this new generation.

We help brands engage kids and families around the world.


Generations

Generation Y, or Millennials, born between 1984 and 2000-2004, is The Social Media Generation. As children and teens, they were the first wave of social networkers.

YGeneration X, those born between 1965 and 1984, is The Personal Computer Generation. We grew up with the introduction of computers to the home.

X

2008


As Millennials reached adulthood they had to realize a world in flux, defined as much by the technologyfueled optimism of their youth as a freshlyformed, jaded socio-economic outlook.



Generation Y, or Millennials, born between 1984 and 2000-2004, is The Social Media Generation. As children and teens, they were the first wave of social networkers.

Generation X, those born between 1965 and 1984, is The Personal Computer Generation. We grew up with the introduction of computers to the home.


Generations

Which brings us to Generation Z, The Mobile Generation. Some are calling this generation the iGeneration. Our kids to teens today don't know a world without smartphones and tablets.

X Y Z


Multicultural, globally connected, and blinder to age and race

The first mobile generation who is always-on, everywhere


What’s in a name?

A generation in contrast to the Millennial Me, this is Generation We

iGenPlurals Gen We

They are realists, with agrounded perspective about the future that is equally pragmatic and optimistic


Three Themes

Future RealistsThey learn differently, and their education and digital prowess is preparing them to be inventors, makers, and entrepreuners

Laterally WiredThey are collaborative,global and diverse –more blind to race, gender and age than any other generation

We First


Future Realists Gen Z are realists. This theme is common throughout all of the Gen Z research to-date and it’s largely based on the idea that the Gen Z upbringing came during a socio-economic world that included a global recession, drawn out war, and political uncertainty at home



And 1 in 4 American children are living in poverty. Their outlook and their media reflects a more dystopian world-view. Where Gen X had Reality Bites and Singles, Gen Z has Hunger Games and Divergent, with explicit themes of distrust and wealth disparity.

73%of Americans were personally affected by the recession



“Their exposure to the impact of the recent economic slowdown on their families is expected to lead to financial conservatism.” Consumers of Tomorrow, Insights and Observations About Generation Z”, Grail Research, June 2010

50%of teens 12-18 years old already save for technology



Future Realists

“If Gen X are anti-authority, highly individualistic, and self-reliant and Millennials are confident, digital thinkers who are needy with a sense of entitlement, than Gen Z are realistic, creative, and hyper-connected. Their realism is a defining aspect of this generation.” Sparks & Honey, Pew Research, 2012

We First


One common theme that comes through in all the Generation Z reports is how diverse this generation is. They have been called the Plural Generation as they are growing up in an America where multiracial children are the fastest growing group.


increase in multiracial marriages in the last 30 years. A 1,000% increase in Asian-Whitemarriages. A 50% increase in multi-racial youth population since 2000. A 1.5% decrease in Caucasian population compared to a 7.6% increase in the Hispanic population.


400%@Silverstarme @FuelYouth

It’s not just race, it’s about age as well


“Because Generation Z is growing up in the Great Recession they share many of the same values as Boomers, the Great Generation who lived through global war and depression.” U.S. Census, 2010 Census Brief



And 50% of global tweens 8-12 years old are online daily (Millward Brown, 70 cities, 15 countries). As a result, Generation Z tends to even think more globally.

25%of tweens 8-12 years old connect with a friend from another country daily


And they’re learning collaboration in the classroom


“In preparing our students for college and careers, 21st century skills call on us to develop highly collaborative citizens – it's one of the 4 Cs, after all.”Rebecca Alber, Edutopia



They learn not just the value of collaboration, but how to collaborate

“They are collaborative team players where everyone is equal at winning and losing.”Sparks & Honey, Pew Research, 2012


Laterally Wired


This generation thinks differently. From new visual forms of communication, to 4D video, to hacking and making, Generation Z has the tools and the opportunities to think more creatively unlike any before them.



They’re visual communicatorsGen Z speak in emoticons and emojis. Symbols and glyphs provide context and create subtext so they can communicate tone in their conversations. Emoji alphabets and stickers replaces text with pictures. If Millennials were the text message generation, then Generation Z is the emoji generation.



So they love Instagram

4D Thinking


“Gen Z have always known how to pinch and swipe. They have grown up with hi-def, surround sound, 3D and now 4D – 360 degree photography and film is their normal. Ultra slow motion and hi-speed video is their standard.” Sparks & Honey, Pew Research, 2012



Video is their world


“Where the average American attention span has decreased to 8 seconds, from 12 seconds in 2000, 11% of children 4-17 years old have been diagnosed with ADHD, up from 7.8% in 2003." National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine)

84%of Gen Z multitask vs only 2% of the general population



“Amongst kids in grades 5-12, 42.1% plan to start their own business, 46.9% have schools that offers classes in how to start and run a business, and 16.9% already work at least one hour per week, while 37.8% believe they will invent something that changes the world.” Gallup & Operation Hope

72%of teens expect to start a business vs 64% of young adults



As entrepreneurs they start young: Tavi Gevinson (fashion editor, founder Rookie Magazine), Kristin Prim (fashion influencer, founder of Prim Magazine), and Charlie Lyne (The Guardian journalist)

This is a generation that is learning how to make 3D models in school and print their own products on 3D printers, who have learned how to program their robot toys, and who make their own video games


They see the world as one they can program – they don’t expect it to be handed to them, because they know they can makeit: we are increasingly teaching our children that they can program anything.

Makers Entrepreneurs Hackers


So, what does it mean for the future?

As a generation bound both by immense technology potential and tough socio-economic environment, this is a generation who wants to create and innovate, who believe they can hack the world around them for the better.


And what does it mean for design?

Future Realists Laterally WiredWe First


Three Design Principles

A visual language that is simple, easy-to-understand, and guides the user into content types or through a purposeful user journey, with only simple cues that connect

Functional, purposeful, and rewarding for interaction – a pragmatic design philosophy for youth experiences uses design as a tool to inform discovery and creation

A multi-dimensional design approach for digital youth experiences considers the capabilities of youth and their ability to be lateral thinkers – it’s not a linear journey

Pragmatic Simply Visual Dimensional

@2015 Fuel Industries Inc. / Fuel and Generation Play is a trademark of Fuel Industries Inc. / For internal use only, do not distribute@2015 Fuel Industries Inc. / Fuel and Generation Play is a trademark of Fuel Industries Inc. / For internal use only, do not distribute


Youth will look at interaction design with a different perspective

And digital interaction to them might actually mean engineering design over visual design – as makers and hackers, this generation thinks differently about what digital design even is…

Private and Confidential – Not for Distribution ©2015 Fuel Youth ©2015 Fuel Industries Inc. All Rights Reserved


Thanks.Digital youth insights: genplay.co

Jeff Roach, Chief Strategy Officer & Group Executive Creative DirectorFuel Youth [email protected]