Credit: Jeremy Perkins via Unsplash
Fewer than 30% of Gen Zers believe brands truly understand them, according to Gen Z Pulse, a new annual study from Ogilvy Consulting and consumer insights platform Ideally.
Gen Z Pulse, surveying more than 2,000 aged 18 to 28 across Australia, the US and the UK, found the generation is not confused or hard to read, but is navigating contradictions created by modern life.
The study maps four tensions shaping how Gen Z lives: function (optimisation versus indulgence), control (independence versus guidance), identity (individual identity versus collective connection) and presence (social natives versus skin hunger).
The tensions are universal, but how each market moves through them differs. American Gen Z resolve pressure through productivity, in the UK they lean on trusted guidance and self-care, while Australians back themselves.
Among the findings for Australia, fewer than 30% of Gen Z believe brands truly understand them and fewer still say brands share their values.
Australia is the most autonomous market surveyed with 25% wanting to make important decisions entirely on their own, ahead of the US (21%) and the UK (17%). Only 7% rarely seek guidance at all.
Digital fatigue is also emerging in Australia.
Three out of ten (31%) of Australian Gen Zs say AI tools make them feel less connected to others, the highest of any market surveyed.
Australia is the only market where AI is a net negative for connection.
In-person time remains essential. More than half (55%) say digital connection helps but in-person time is essential, and 21% say digital connection feels incomplete, the highest of the three markets.
Sleep is the first thing sacrificed when life gets full in every market, at around 21%, with work or school the last, at 5% to 6%.
In Australia, social time goes next. Emotional support is the top priority for Australian Gen Z, with 45% wanting support with mental health and emotional wellbeing, the highest of the three markets, followed by physical health at 39%.
Australians also index highest on wanting recognition and status within a brand community, at 18%, compared with 15% in the US and 13% in the UK.
About 15% of Australian respondents want to slow down, stress less and live in the present, while among Australian men, self-growth narrowly outranks enjoyment.
Reid Litman, global director of Ogilvy Consulting, said Australian Gen Z were the most self-directed of any market surveyed.
"Gen Z isn't confused, but they are making trade-offs earlier and more often than previous generations,” said Litman.
“Their instincts are increasingly global, but the resolution depends on the context of the market.
“Australian Gen Zers are the most self-directed of any we surveyed, more likely than their US or UK peers to want the final call on their own life decisions.
“Brands still marketing a single, imported idea of Gen Z are missing the key traits that actually define this market.”
George Robertson, global agency lead at Ideally, said the Australian story was distinct.
"This is the most self-directed Gen Z market in the study, and the one feeling the limits of digital connection most sharply," Robertson said.
“The brief for brands is clear. Respect their autonomy, offer connection that's opt-in and real, and earn recognition rather than demand attention. You can't guess your way there. Be curious, and seek to understand.”
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