When Mattel unveiled its new cellophane-free “Nothin’ But Paper” Uno last year, the toy maker was clearly trying to appeal to consumers looking for more sustainable options that are better for the planet. Yet the target customers for the eco-friendly version of the classic card game aren’t just salary-earning adults—it’s also their environmentally-conscious children, a group that believes packaging matters and what’s on the outside—and the inside—both count when it comes to brands.

Marketers like Mattel are reading the writing on the wall and rolling out the welcome mat for Generation Alpha. Born beginning in 2010 through 2024 to millennial parents, Alpha kids are the group following Gen Z. Like their elders, they care about issues such as sustainability and social equality—but unlike previous generations, they have embraced activism from a very young age and expect brand change as a result. And while the pandemic has undoubtedly caused a shift in many consumer behaviors—including the rise in buying online, the demand for more flexible office arrangements and the need for better work-life balance—it’s the globe’s youngest consumers who will experience the most lasting repercussions from its toll.

Subscribe to Ad Age now for the latest industry news and analysis.

“Millennial parents are much keener on their kids standing up and speaking out and will support them to do that, but also these kids have lived through this traumatic event—this pandemic, and what they’ve been able to see firsthand is they can make a difference,” says Helenor Gilmour, director of insight at Beano Studios, a youth-focused entertainment studio and creative agency. “They were asked to step up and protect their beloved elders—a lot of young people made sacrifices, we saw lots of many pieces of activism across the globe. I think they felt empowered in many ways and they felt part of it rather than children of it.”

Extreme screen time

Hand-in-hand with such personal empowerment is Gen Alpha’s technological prowess. It’s no coincidence that the group’s first year of existence coincides with the debut of Apple’s iPad, a device many kids have used on a regular basis during the last 18 months for everything from virtual school and playdates to scrolling social media. More tech savvy than prior generations, Gen Alpha is consuming content differently—a change some brands are beginning to pay more attention to. Yet while kids still care about young influencers—mini-celebrities such as Ryan Kajli, the young YouTuber behind Ryan’s World, for example—the recent time at home has taught them to care more about social issues such as the environment and equality following the death of George Floyd in 2020. According to a March Beano survey, 48% of kids ages 7 to 12 believe technology can solve some of the world’s problems,

“Screens are a big part of where their opinions are being shaped,” says Laura Macdonald, co-president at communications consultancy Hotwire, which has conducted studies on Gen Alpha. “The things they’re exposed to is so much more broad and diverse than when I was a kid and we had four channels on TV.”

The generation carries a big influence that is growing every day. Australian-based social researcher Mark McCrindle, who coined the Generation Alpha phrase, says more than 2.7 million of the group are born each week. By 2030, six years after the last Gen Alpha baby is born, the cohort will comprise about 11% of the workforce, he estimates. In a recent article, McCrindle noted that Gen Alpha is more “materially endowed” and “empowered” than previous generations. (Alphas come after Gen Z, so McCrindle wanted to start over using the Greek alphabet "to signify this different generation will be raised in a new world of technological integration," he has said.)

“They have been shaped in an era of individualisation and customisation where they can get their name printed into the storyline of books, embroidered onto their shirts or put on a jar of Nutella,” he wrote. “While Generation Alpha are yet to hit their teens, they have brand influence and purchasing power beyond their years, engaging with brands, toys and products that speak to the future needs of this generation.”

Bridging the digital divide

And smart marketers are noticing. Since COVID, several brands have begun paying closer attention to this cohort with new options that try to bridge the digital divide with family-friendly options that embrace both physical and virtual experiences. Last summer, The North Face created a virtual summer camp with agency Sid Lee for stressed-out parents, for example. Crayola and Mattel have also rolled out more free resources for parents and their children.

“With tech-savvy millennial parents introducing smart devices and social media, these kids were already born into a digitally native world. The pandemic has intensified this,” wrote Michelle Bekas, head of program management, U.S. at Sid Lee, via email. “They live online because they haven't had the opportunity to live anywhere else. Marketers and brands are changing entire infrastructures and building entirely new engagement categories to provide new tools, toys, applications and learning opportunities virtually.”

Some experts credit the rise in sensory toys items like fidgets, pop-its, slime and putty that are all the rage with the elementary school set, as a direct result of kids seeking an alternative to being online.

Toy brands such as Aaron’s Putty have introduced items like Thinking Putty for kids to play with while studying, and Disney has pop-it keychains in familiar characters like Baby Yoda. Demonstration videos on social media sites like Pinterest and TikTok are helping to fuel the craze. The term “Pop it” has been in the top 10 of searched items consistently since the end of March, according to retail research firm Profitero, which notes the items are now more popular than iPhones and Playstations. For the week ended Sept. 4, "Pop it" saw a 951,067% incrase in Amazon search requency rank compared to the same period last year, Profitero found.

“Kids still yearn for the physical and it’s why fidgets are exploding,” says Lei Duran, senior VP of Kantar Consulting. She says brands could continue to feed this need by including sample gift bags with all online purchases to better engage young shoppers.

“If you are a kid-focused brand, you need to think more about experience and exposure than necessarily getting into the right people’s hands,” she says.

New shopping strategies

The pandemic has also changed the way Gen Alpha shops, a shift that could have permanent implications for how brands attract these young consumers in the future. With so many adults buying online, or taking solo trips to physical stores to avoid potential coronavirus germs for unvaccinated offspring, today’s kids are missing out on something called “imprinting,” according to Duran. The group has not been able to shop by impulse in person by calling out things in a store at the end of an aisle or near other items on their shopping list to their parents. Instead, they are only used to e-commerce sites and Amazon. In the past, marketers have spent a lot of time, money and resources on shopper marketing—a strategy that Gen Alpha might completely overhaul.

“It will have a long-term impact of how to deselect and select, how to find products beyond using a search bar,” says Duran. “There’s elements of physical shopping that are core to the economy—seasonal queues, impulse, that haven’t been matched online, and they’re big parts of the business—they’re currently big parts of our macro footprint of shopping and engaging and from a brand standpoint, key things that they take part in.”

Those brands that will be the most successful in capturing Alpha’s attention are those that problem-solve for parents. With so many kids home over the last 18 months, some marketers promoted family-friendly products that offered a solution for how much time children were spending online. Crayola has a CIY “create it yourself” option that provides inspiration videos, how-tos and encouragement for do-it-yourself home projects.

“Crayola marketing teams have rallied CIY activities, Crayola at Home, and Crayola Kingdom You Tube channel to provide Gen Alpha inspiration, engagement, and entertainment throughout the pandemic,” says Kim Rompilla, executive VP, global product marketing, development and activation at Crayola.  

While some of the brand’s work involves watching videos online, it also mixes both physical and digital, a strategy that is key in enticing Alpha, experts say.

“Brands that come in hard with a solution are going to set the stage for how retail looks in the future for that generation, as well as win in the short term from a sales standpoint,” says Duran.

Keeping mindfulness front and center

While Headspace, the meditation and mindfulness app, is known for its adult offerings, the Santa Monica, California-based brand has also been focusing on children—at a time when overuse of screens and social media is causing many young people anxiety. Headspace recently forged a partnership with TikTok in which the wellness brand sponsors a pop-up window reminding TikTok users to take a break from their scrolling after a certain amount of time. In June, the app also developed a sleep podcast with Sesame Street to help kids calm down at night and rest more peacefully, free of the digital stimulation of screens. In addition, Headspace worked with Google on a Headspace Breathers program that helps kids and parents embrace healthier habits.

“Mental health and wellness has come to the forefront of conversation,” says Val Kaplan Zapata, who joined Headspace earlier this year as its first chief marketing officer. “Not only is it destigmatized, in some ways it’s actually cool to talk about. You have a generation  of children who are seeing by example that it is okay and it is necessary to take care of your mental health.”

She notes that Headspace is positioning itself as a resource for kids today dealing with the stressful worries and issues brought on by the pandemic.

“Being a digital, global-first solution for mental health and wellness in some ways we are the natural support system for these kids who are struggling with these challenges,” she says.

High-quality journalism isn’t always free.
Subscribe to Ad Age now for award-winning news and insight.

Gen Alpha is also more cognizant of mental health and wellness as a result of watching their role models struggle with such issues. When gymnast Simone Biles dropped out of the women’s finals during the Tokyo Olympic Games over the summer, citing her mental health, kids saw and understood. Brands like Athleta, which has a partnership with Biles, announced their support of the athlete—a smart move, according to experts. A similar situation happened with tennis pro Naomi Osaka earlier this year following her withdrawal from the French Open and Wimbledon.

“People like Simone and Naomi might have lost their brand backing before now, but actually their stance has made them more attractive, made them more human and made them more relatable,” says Beano’s Gilmour. “Your brand ambassador has to be real and authentic and human now.”

Making good on brand purpose

Brands have begun to give a nod to the priorities of this younger generation in their advertising. A video from General Motors released in January promotes its electric vehicles—claiming such cars are better for the “all-electric future” and “Generation E.”

Several kids are in the spot, and one young girl concludes the clip by whispering, “The electric future starts now.” GM’s spot is quickly becoming the norm as more auto brands use children as an argument for moving to greener technology, Gilmour says.

“We are seeing pretty major shifts from brands around purpose,” she adds. “Before, brands were talking about purpose, but now they really mean it and they have to mean it because they know this generation will interrogate it they will ask the why and they will expect more.” She notes that children saw that the environment improved during the pandemic, when there was less car usage and pollution—animals returned to places they hadn’t been to before, and vegetation grew back in certain regions. Now, Gen Alpha is essentially equipped to call out any excuses about eco-friendly improvements “taking time,” she says.

Purpose is playing a big role in Mattel’s strategy. In addition to greener packaging, the toy giant is incorporating programs like Mattel PlayBack, a toy return initiative that recycles old materials for new items, and products like Barbie Loves the Ocean, a recently released line of dolls made of recycled, ocean-bound plastic.

“Sustainability continues to grow in importance with our consumers, who expect large corporations to take action to protect the environment,” says Tasja Kirkwood, Mattel’s VP, global consumer insights.

Brands that shy away from labels in their marketing are also better poised to capture this generation’s attention. The culture of the group is different, experts say, as many kids avoid gendered products and embrace a non-binary existence, either for themselves or for others. Kids prefer not to be grouped by girl or boy, for instance. Marketers should look to actual interests instead.

“From a brand point of view do you market to boys and girls, or do you market to what they’re interested in—science or makeup, unicorn ice cream, and does gender matter?” says Hotwire’s MacDonald. “Cultural norms for Gen Alpha are very different from that of older generations.”

However, she cautions that brands should do their homework when it comes to making shifts and understand, and have a plan, for any possible negative backlash from consumers who may not share Gen Alpha’s diverse attitudes, for example. Hasbro appeared to fumble the potato earlier this year when it seemed to give its Potato Head product a gender-free identity that no longer included “mister.” The company backtracked following the announcement, noting that Mr. Potato Head would live on but be accompanied by a gender-neutral creator kit option. Such confusion could damage a brand’s reputation with Generation Alpha.

“Brands have tough choices to make—how do they future proof themselves from the criticism that might come if they do a campaign that’s gender neutral,” says MacDonald. “There are opinions on all sides—if you’re going to do something like that, be really clear because there’s nothing worse than backtracking. It doesn’t do the brand any good ultimately."