‘Both GenZ and millennials prefer genuine, transparent & authentic communication’

At the recently concluded e4m PR And Corp Comm 40 Under 40 Summit, industry experts discussed PR Execution: Millennials vs Gen Z - How AI is impacting the whole PR system. In an era where AI is transforming industries, understanding its impact on public relations is crucial, especially when targeting diverse generational cohorts like Millennials and Gen Z. These groups have distinct preferences, behaviours, and expectations, making it essential to tailor PR strategies effectively.

A crucial question is: How can AI-driven PR strategies bridge the gap between these two dynamic generations? Moderated by Karishma Sain, Chief Executive Officer, Goodword, the panel featured Silky Chopra Mehrotra, Group Business Director, Avian WE; Shashank Kaushik, Account Director, Fuzion Public Relations and Ashish Rao Kopparti, DGM (Business Development and Marketing), REC Limited.

Saini opened the floor by asking about the fundamental differences between the communication preferences of millennials and GenZ to which Mehrotra said, “The first thing that comes to my mind while talking about the GenZ is ‘Instant’, that is what they are looking for - instant communication. It has to be short-form, video-centric, catchy and bite-sized. Whereas millennials are looking for detailed information, they prefer engaging content and storytelling. But one thing that is common with both is that they prefer genuine communication - transparent and authentic and brands have to be careful while talking to them.”

Coming to the content consumption preferences of millennials and GenZ and how PR teams can evolve their strategy to talk to both of these cohorts, Kopparti added, “Most millennials and GenZs are consuming content digitally, it is only the format in which they might differ.  For millennials, it will be mostly long-format like podcasts or testimonials where the trust is built. As a brand custodian, rather than advertising something and standing for it I would try to inform people how people using the service feel about it. For GenZ, it is instant gratification - using my long-form content in short forms like reels or instant testimonials. It has to be on the go and through multiple channels.”

In an era where GenZ who need instant gratification are bombarded with too much information and communication, Kaushik talked about how one can make their messaging stand out from the clutter. He explained, “When we talk instant in the case of GenZs, instant is for engaging them as they have short attention spans. Once you engage them and they find it interesting, they can go to any length. GenZ are the biggest binge-watchers out of all generations. 43% of podcast consumers are GenZ but that is because that podcast must have resonated with them.” He added that since GenZ have been exposed to the world through the internet, there are a plethora of options for them to resonate with. He further adds, “Hence, the PR person’s job has become difficult, we have been dealing with millennials but GenZ are the upcoming consumers, we have to see what they resonate with.”

Chiming with the sentiment, Kopparti added, “Most of the brands through their communication are trying to build communities.”

Further debating the role of AI in PR execution for these cohorts, Mehrotra shared, “If there is this technology, we must use it to empower you but make sure that it doesn’t overpower. With AI, we get a vast amount of data to understand our audience and we can leverage this data to curate our messaging accordingly, to curate our campaigns. It gives us real-time performance reviews and the opportunity to course-correct. However, while using AI, PR professionals have to be responsible while dealing with data that could be confidential.”

Kopparti contested this by saying that anything artificial is not going to stay, at the end of the day, the what is human is more important. Sharing how GenZs see AI, he added, “For them, it is just a tool for engagement and enjoyment. They don’t know the power of the tool and how it can change the world - that is our responsibility. If there is a technology, it should be used in a manner that it is supporting the human mind and not exploiting the human mind.”

For Kaushik, AI is a blessing and he shared his belief by saying, “For GenZ we have so many platforms to cater to and AI has helped us do away with the boring and redundant tasks and focus more on tackling the GenZ audience. Considering GenZ is such a politically correct audience, you have to take human intelligence into account.”