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  • Neil: Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Neil.

  • Rob: And I'm Rob.

  • Neil: Rob, what generation are you?

  • Rob: Well what are my choices?

  • Neil: You can't choose what generation you are,

  • it depends on when you were born.

  • Rob: Oh, OK then, what are the different generations?

  • Neil: Well, there are baby boomers, who

  • were born in between the 1940s and the early

  • 60s. Then there was Generation X, born

  • between the mid 1960s and the early

  • 1980s. Then there is Generation Y,

  • also known as millennials, born mid

  • 1980s to late 1990s, and ...

  • Rob: OK, let me guess, Generation Z? Born

  • in the late nineties or early noughties?

  • Neil: You're very smart. So, which one are you?

  • Rob: Ah, that would give away my age,

  • wouldn't it! OK, I have to confess I am

  • Generation X. And what about you, Neil?

  • Neil: Yes me too, Generation X. But today

  • we're going to focus on Generation Z, also

  • known as Gen Z. What marks Gen Z in

  • particular is that they are the social media

  • generation. They have never known a time

  • without social media.

  • Rob: Oh, poor them!

  • Neil: Mmm, well, that's one view. Other

  • opinions are available. Before we look at

  • Gen Z in more detail, a question though.

  • No one can quite agree on who first used

  • the term 'social media', but we do know

  • from which decade it came. Was it...

  • a) the 1980s, b) the 1990s, c) the noughties,

  • that is the first decade of the 21st Century.

  • Rob, what's your answer?

  • Rob: Well, come on, it's quite a recent

  • thing. It's got to be c) the noughties.

  • Neil: We'll find out the answer later in the

  • programme. Now we're going to hear

  • from Hiral Patel who is an analyst for

  • Barclays. She appeared on BBC Radio 4's

  • You and Yours programme and was

  • asked whether there was much difference

  • between millennials and Generation Z.

  • Does she think they are the same or different?

  • Hiral Patel: Most people view Generation

  • Z as mini-millennials - and that's because

  • there is an obsession with the word

  • 'millennial'. Our research shows

  • that Gen Z are different and that they have

  • their own set of values and preferences

  • which consumer brands need to cater for.

  • Our research found that Gen Z are

  • tech-innate, hyper-informed consumers,

  • and extremely savvy. This hyper-connected

  • world that we live in today is a new norm for them.

  • Neil: So Rob, does Hiral Patel think there

  • is much difference between the two generations?

  • Rob: Yes, she does. But she comments

  • that not everyone does. 'Millennial' is a

  • term that is used so frequently that many

  • people think it refers to all young people.

  • Gen Z, she says are not mini-millennials,

  • they are quite different and have their own

  • values and preferences.

  • Neil: And this is important for consumer brands,

  • for companies who want to sell to this

  • generation. They need to cater for that

  • generation, which means they need to

  • provide goods that Gen Z want.

  • Rob: And she describes Gen Z as being

  • tech-innate, hyper-informed consumers.

  • Neil: It's a bit of a mouthful but essentially

  • it means that they are extremely

  • comfortable with modern technology and

  • social media and as a result have a lot of

  • information about what's going on in the

  • world. This makes them savvy.

  • Rob: And being 'savvy' means being able

  • to understand situations well and make

  • clever decisions because of this knowledge.

  • Neil: Now I think I'm pretty savvy when it

  • comes to modern connected technology

  • and media, but I didn't grow up with it, it's

  • new. For Gen Z, this level of technology is

  • what is normal, it's all around and always

  • has been, it's their norm, as Hiral Patel put

  • it. Here she is again:

  • Hiral Patel: Most people view Generation Z

  • as mini-millennials - and that's because

  • there is an obsession with the word

  • 'millennial'. Our research shows that Gen Z

  • are different and that they have their

  • own set of values and preferences which

  • consumer brands need to cater for. Our

  • research found that Gen Z are tech-innate,

  • hyper-informed consumers, and

  • extremely savvy. This hyper-connected

  • world that we live in today is a new norm for them.

  • Neil: Right time to review this week's

  • vocabulary, but first let's have an

  • answer to that quiz. In what decade was

  • the term 'social media' first coined? Was it:

  • a) the 1980s, b) the 1990s, c) the noughties

  • What did you say, Rob?

  • Rob: Yeah, well I said c) the noughties.

  • Neil: You're wrong. Perhaps unsurprisingly,

  • the 1990s is the answer. I'm sure most of

  • you got that one correct. Right, now, the vocabulary.

  • Rob: Yes this week we've been talking

  • about 'generations'.

  • This is a term used to describe people born

  • in a particular period of time, usually, but

  • not always a period of about 18 to 20 years.

  • Neil: And we were focussing on

  • Generation Z or Gen Z which includes

  • those born in the early noughties,

  • which is the first decade of the 21st

  • Century from 2000 to 2009.

  • Rob: The next expression was 'to cater for'.

  • This means to provide something that is

  • needed or wanted for a particular group.

  • And if you are trying to sell something,

  • you need 'to cater for' your target market.

  • Neil: And if your market is Gen Z you need

  • to be aware that they are tech innate,

  • hyper-informed. They have grown up with

  • connected technology and are very knowledgeable.

  • Rob: This makes them extremely 'savvy'.

  • This adjective means 'smart and

  • intelligent'. In this context it means they

  • are able to make smart decisions

  • about what to buy because they are

  • connected so many sources of information.

  • And for Gen Z, this level of interaction and

  • connectivity is 'the norm'. It's what is

  • normal, what is usual for them. So where I

  • struggle sometimes with modern life and

  • technology - for Gen Z, it's easy.

  • Neil: Well that may be true but I'm savvy

  • enough to know that it's time to end the

  • programme. Do join us again next time

  • and remember you can find us on

  • Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube

  • and of course our website bbclearningenglish.com.

  • And let's not forget our app Rob!

  • Rob: Download it now. It's free!

  • Neil: Join us again next time. Goodbye.

  • Rob: Bye!

Neil: Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Neil.

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