GenZ: How to create awareness about financial services

As the leading fintech ecosystem, finleap is constantly on the lookout for new trends in the financial services industry. Recently, Thomas Pribbenow, Head of Research, and Enrico Ohnemüller, Management Associate, published a report on the Generation Z and the future of financial services.

The report explores questions like, what does GenZ’s behavior mean for the financial world and players in the financial industry? 

Let’s take a look how we can make the next generation aware of financial services. 

The finleap team’s research showed that GenZ’s focus on the ‘here and now’ leads to little involvement with finances on a general level. Slightly less than half of the respondents don’t even begin to deal with finances, due in part to the lack of trustworthy, tailor-made starting points. They still rely on their parents as the primary source of information rather than using the internet.

This could possibly be a reflection of a lack of trust in their own abilities and their own knowledge as well as the ability to judge information correctly. This is also driven by the fear of making the ‘wrong’ decision, because the immediate consequences could be adverse and result in financial losses.

The internet plays only a small role here and social media doesn’t seem to play a role at all. When asked about their preferred source of information regarding finances, only 8% of respondents stated that they use Instagram. Because they are a generation of digital natives, GenZ have developed the ability to assimilate information and content from a variety of brands and topics that they understand. However, when it comes to relatively complex topics, they struggle to leverage this ability. This is particularly true when they are uncertain about the trustworthiness of the source. This also becomes even more apparent for topics like financial services that could have an immediate downside.

The information prepared for the target group needs to present content that is considered trustworthy. However, it’s not just a matter of adapting the expressions or phrases used by GenZ, rather of the sender being perceived as authentic. 

“You shouldn’t just try to act cool. If older people do it, it’s embarrassing.”

In conclusion, the information available about financial services appears to not be embedded in the daily life of GenZ. Consequently, they are less likely to access relevant information and thus are less aware. Yet, in order to increase awareness, companies need to build trust and trigger their interest, e.g. through illustrations, a fitting tone and engagement. 

GenZ is interacting with social media, accessing Instagram and TikTok on a daily basis. However, they still rely on familiar relations when looking for information on financial services. With our Instagram page @gomoneycircus, we are looking to open up a prominent, but novel space in order to educate the next generation about financial services. 

Interested in partnering with us, reach out to us here.

Want to join the team in reshaping the future of financial services? Check out our open positions here. 

Download the full GenZ Report here.