Generation C: Who or what are they?

Have you heard of Generation C? If not, join the club. I heard of this cohort just last week while discussing target audiences for a presentation for class. They are the new cohort that must be catered to in the future by all brands and marketing professional according to the latest research. Think with Google defines Gen C as a “powerful new force in consumer culture.” According to Brian Solis, a digital analyst, Gen C is defined as “essentially, a group of individuals, irrespective of age, who use an abundance of technology during their daily routine” (Jenblat, 2018). What I wanted to know was, what does the “C” in Generation C stand for? I came across different views ranging from content, collaboration, community, computerized, change, co-creation, curation, chameleons, cyborgs, to curiosity. (Holmes, 2016; Nielsen, 2010). However, ‘Connected Consumer’ and ‘Connected Collective’ (Holmes, 2016; Nielsen, 2010; Pickett, 2018) seem to be the winners in this race. And, this holds true as those who fall into the Generation C cohort are considered “digital natives”, with a pulse on what’s going on in the world of social media (Holmes, 2016; Jenblat, 2018; Nielsen, 2010)

As Generation C is not defined by age but by their technology usage, shared values and attitudes (Pickett, 2018), any of the traditional generations — Baby Boomers, X, Y, Millennials or Z — can fall into this cohort. While it is undeniable that Millennials make the largest group within Generation C, they were born in an era of digital evolution after all, many Gen Xers and Yers, and even Baby Boomers who are tech-savvy and use digital media to keep informed of the latest developments in their defined communities and in the world are encompassed by Generation C. Therefore, this new cohort, which was first identified in 2004 and made more prominent is 2012 with the changing digital landscape, only continues to grow with the ease of access to mobile technology, high-speed internet and the addition of Gen Z who were born with technological adept minds.

Accordingly, Generation C is tagged as the future target audience of marketing and branding campaigns. What remains is trying to keep pace with this ever-changing and diverse cohort group acknowledged as constantly seeking content worth sharing, being community-minded while seeking control and creativity with a tribal mentality (Nielsen, 2010; Pickett, 2018).

But I think that this future has arrived. And we as communications professionals must gear ourselves to tackle this new tech-savvy Generation by giving them relevant content to drive our brand message into the future which will continue its evolutionary change habits driven by our target audiences.

Here’s an overview of Gen C

References:

Holmes, R. (2016, October 12). Move over, Millennials: 5 things you need to know about Generation C. Inc. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/ryan-holmes/move-over-millennials-5-things-you-need-to-know-about-generation-c.html

Jenblat, O. (2018, January 29). Is your business prepared for Generation C? Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2018/01/29/is-your-business-prepared-for-generation-c/#61bc87eea4be

Nielsen. (2010, October 27). Introducing Generation C the connected collective consumer. Neilson Insights Newswire. Retrieved from https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2010/introducing-gen-c-the-connected-collective-consumer.html

Pickett, P. (2018, July 13). Learn the Characteristics of Generation C. The Balance Careers. Retrieved from https://www.thebalancecareers.com/who-is-generation-c-and-what-are-they-all-about-2071937

Think with Google. Retrieved from https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/introducing-gen-c-the-youtube-generation/