Young Consumers Want Niche Brands

A new study by communications firm Confidant and marketing insights firm Vytal found that younger generations are opting to engage with and buy from brands that feel more niche and authentic.

Why It Hits: Culture has fragmented into countless niche communities… meaning most brands should focus on marketing to smaller, passionate fanbases rather than trying to reach a mainstream culture that barely exists outside of blockbuster movies, superstar musicians, and institutional companies like Coca-Cola and Apple. 

Behind the Purchases: Confidant and Vytal surveyed 1,000 adults aged 18 to 59 on their brand loyalty. (We guess Boomers don’t count, for some reason.)

Some findings, per Axios:

• 88% of Americans “engage in niche communities.”
• 45% of Gen Z, Millennial, and Gen X Americans “feel more connected to these communities than to mainstream culture.”
• 46% of people prefer to engage with or shop from a brand that caters to a niche community rather than the mainstream.
• When it comes to Gen Z, that share of niche shoppers jumps to 53%.

The Future: The study also found that when people feel like they’re part of a community, recommendations from community members carry a lot of weight — 53% are likely to try a brand simply because someone within that community recommended it. But brands can also create their own community — 51% say feeling a part of that community is important to them. So, the key to marketing a product in the new year may not be about advertising but building a distinct community that wants to test products as a means of connecting with like-minded people.