Gen Z customers are the future of the retail world. With the oldest of the generation now being adults and entering the workforce, their spending power is on the rise. According to a study from research and advisory firm Gen Z Planet, the generation will have an estimated US$360 billion in disposable income.

This provides the ultimate opportunity for brands, retailers, and marketers to adapt their strategies to suit this younger generation of consumers. This entails understanding the behaviors and tendencies of this tech-savvy demographic through market research.

Of course, the concern then becomes, how do you encourage Gen Z to participate in your study? Here are some of the best market research incentives to motivate Gen Z participants.

Gen Z As Customers

Gen Z is the generational cohort following millennials, born between 1997 to 2012. As with every generation that came before them, they bring their own set of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors when purchasing products or services.

This generation is described to be one of the most critical consumer groups to date, often prioritizing brand transparency, authenticity, and sustainability when shopping compared to older consumers. Being born in the age of digitalization, they basically grew up with a mobile phone in hand and the internet at their fingertips. Naturally, this has caused them to rely on social media to research products, connect with brands, and seek inspiration.

To earn their place in Gen Z’s wallets, companies need to better understand and cater to the evolving needs of these younger consumers.

 

Types of Market Research Incentives for Gen Z 

When it comes to sharing knowledge, Gen Z expects a value for value exchange. They want to feel that the time and effort they spent on your panel is worthwhile. Incentives are a powerful way of showing your appreciation to respondents when conducting Gen Z market research.

Here are three ways to incentivize responses in your study:

Monetary

This type of incentive is a straightforward time for money exchange that everyone is familiar with, including Gen Z. As the name suggests, monetary incentives are given in the form of money or anything convertible to cash, such as gift cards, coupons, donations, and even cryptocurrency.

Impact

One of the things that this young generation values is making a positive impact, whether that be on the environment, society, or economy. By simply knowing that their ideas can affect research and influence decision-making, Gen Z members may be more driven to participate in a market research study.

Introspective

This type of incentive takes inspiration from personality tests by providing participants a perspective on themselves based on their responses. This non-monetary reward satisfies Gen Z’s curiosity about themselves and how they relate to the world and the people around them – which is considered valuable for a majority of their demographic who are just starting out in their lives.

 

Tips on giving incentives for Gen Z market research

1. Know What They Like 

When choosing which incentive to give your Gen Z respondent panel, be thoughtful of what they would like to receive. Some popular participation rewards for this age group include gift cards or discounts to their favorite retailers or services (e.g., DoorDash, Apple, Amazon, Xbox). Another good idea to increase engagement rates would be to offer different incentive options so that participants could choose which type of reward they prefer.

2. Determine Appropriate Reward Value 

Once you have identified which incentives to provide, you must now determine how much those incentives should be worth. For example, you could offer college students a $10 gift card to participate in a 20-minute interview.

Some contributing factors to determining the appropriate reward value for Gen Z respondents would be the time and effort exerted on your study, how rare or hard-to-reach your sample is, as well as your research budget. Remember that while these factors can influence value, the incentive offered should still be enough to attract Gen Z’s attention.

3. Don’t Make Them Wait

Growing up in a digital world, Gen Z members have become accustomed to instant gratification. From shopping to ordering food, everything nowadays is done at the click of a button – and receiving incentives is no exception.

Automating the delivery of your market research incentives allows Gen Z respondents to receive their incentives immediately after participation. This helps create a good research experience and build trust in your brand, making them more likely to respond to future research requests.

Trust CiviSelect™ to Handle Your Incentives 

Leave your incentives to us so that you can focus more on your study. Civicom’s dedicated respondent recruitment platform has the ability to suggest appropriate payment amounts as well as distribute and track survey incentives to ensure that everyone is rewarded for their time and effort.