Gen Alpha facts vs. hype—what every marketer should understand

As marketers aim to define Gen Alpha, many are grasping for insights that will help them understand how to connect. For example, there are the recent alarming headlines about “Sephora Kids” who are investing in skin care and makeup that belie their youth. Some of their favorite brands include Drunk Elephant and Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty, which can cost anywhere from $14 to $99 for a single product. For as much hype as there is about Sephora Kids, there’s also profound hope, as cultural pundits and researchers express that this will be the generation that could save us based on their predicted commitment to the environment and social justice. Both alarm and hope are arguably myths or at the very least, clickbait. The oldest among Gen Alpha is only 14, and as they are still children, there are many things we can’t know yet about this demographic. But regardless of age, we can take a marketer’s lens to the headlines and research to define these myths and truths. The biggest myth: that Gen Alpha even exists We know kids behave differently today than they have before. You’ve seen the headlines. So how can we say Gen Alpha doesn't exist? To answer that, we must distinguish between a generational cohort—the generational groupings that drive many marketing strategies—and a demographic group. Follow us on social media X Bluesky Instagram LinkedIn YouTube Children under the age of 14 don’t belong to a known generational cohort yet. Right now, they are a demographic—a slice of the pie of all people living today. A generation, on the other hand, comes to exist through shared formative experiences and the impact they’ve had on the cohort’s general outlook, risk tolerance, political motivations, and more. For example, millennials are defined by their memory of 9/11 and often also a pre-9/11 world, as well as the Great Recession’s impact on their futures. This dynamic between experiences and their impact typically plays out over the first two decades of a person’s life. Once established, generational cohorts typically become standard designations for marketers and researchers. If paradigm-shifting upheaval is fundamental to a cohort’s development, nothing can top the pandemic. Children born before 2015 remember the global pandemic’s effects on their family, community and education. But as enormous and lengthy as it was, it’s still only one instance of upheaval that impacted a small fraction of alleged Gen Alpha. Here’s what we can know about future Gen Alpha: They have millennial and older Gen Z parents These parents were raised by Boomers and thus were likely raised with structure and discipline. In direct response to their own childhood experiences, young parents have taken a gentler approach. This can yield kind and self-aware children, or it can yield ones who must have their own way. They are raised with screens There is a good reason this cohort is often referred to as “iPad kids.” A recent Morning Consult study revealed that 39% of these kids spend at least three hours a day looking at screens, while 24% spend at least seven hours a day on smartphones. Even if children aren’t exposed to iPads and smartphones regularly in their homes, the screens cast a powerful halo effect. Children are highly aware of them via their classrooms, peers, and their parents’ own screen usage. They are “up-agers” They are maturing earlier—physically, socially, psychologically, educationally and even commercially. They are incredibly diverse This is one of the most ethnically and racially diverse groups of young people, with the most diverse media exposure and consumption. What do we not yet know about future Gen Alpha? We don’t yet know what years bookend Gen Alpha As Kantar’s J. Walker Smith pointed out, we may find out that the children marketers and journalists are calling Gen Alpha are nothing but the long tail of Gen Z. We need to remember that time reveals the generations, and that ages 22-25 are the sweet spot where this clarity sharpens. We do not know they will save the world Twenty years ago, people said millennials were going to change the world with their rare hopeful zeal. But 10 years ago, millennials were described as narcissistic try-hards, and Gen Z was the generation that would change the world with its unique political zeal. Now, to many, Gen Z are narcissistic chaos agents, and Gen Alpha is the future—the new generation to save us. Do you see the pattern? As beautiful as youthful hope is, kids inevitably grow up to face the realities of life. We older generations should take responsibility for the change we crave instead of projecting it onto the young. Ad Age Creativity Bookmark our section covering the best in brand creativity every day Read more here On the other side of the coin … We do not know they are doomed All generations face unique technological advancements, and the pressures and insecurities that come with them; by the time they reach adulthood, the tech they grew up with becomes ubiquitous. Don’t get me wrong—it is extremely concerning that 10-year-olds are scrolling TikTok and 8-year-olds’ parents are pursuing their children’s virality. We must do our part to protect and care for these kids. But let’s be mindful not to project our fears onto their future paths, making their potential complexes self-fulfilling prophecies. We know so little about future Gen Alpha because they’re so young that research claims about them are purely speculative. In fact, these kids are so young that they’re not even old enough to embody youthful zeal, so it has to be forecasted—as if it makes them distinct from past generations. I suggest taking Gen Alpha research and those alarmist headlines with a grain of salt. We can acknowledge children’s media usage, diversity, millennial parents and even brand affinities. But let’s recognize that these are demographic parameters, not generational ones. Let’s not discount all Gen Alpha research, but rather account for what we don’t yet know about their values, attitudes and priorities. As marketers, we should accept our knowledge gaps, casually speculate about what might happen and approach others’ forecasts with a balance of skepticism and informed curiosity. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs

Gen Alpha facts vs. hype—what every marketer should understand

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