A relatively recent Automotive News article contained an interesting quote about a demographic shift that is rapidly approaching:

“Some of the biggest collisions on the horizon [will be] between the millennials and Gen Z. If people try to treat Gen Z like the millennials, that will backfire,” said David Stillman, co-founder of consultancy Gen Z Guru in Minneapolis and co-writer of the book Gen Z @ Work: How the Next Generation is Transforming the Workplace.

Sapiens’ NEW infographic, The Keys to Generation Z for Insurers, offers some helpful (and surprising) statistics on the crucial differences between Generation Y (also referred to as “millennials”) and Generation Z. This data can help insurers sell to the emerging Gen Z, a potentially lucrative segment.

Gen Z is made up of the people who were born from the mid-1990s to the current day (the generation after millennials). Comprising

approximately 26 percent of the global population in 2015, Generation Z is expected to peak at 33% by 2020. How can insurers maximize this large population and their expanding wallets? Here are three of the six takeaways presented in our infographic:

  1. Push Health Insurance – Gen Z doesn’t value benefits such as vacation, paid time off and work-life balance as strongly as older millennials, according to a multi-generational survey conducted by EY…but they DO value health insurance. Our infographic explains that 70 percent of Generation Z chose “health insurance” (70%) as their top “must have” for their first job. There is a global trend of health insurance privatization and Gen Z has lived through economic downswings, so health coverage is extremely important to them.
  2. Security and Privacy Are Crucial – Gen Z has seen some Gen Yers get burned by social media scandals and identify theft. “Unlike the millennial mentality of broadcasting anything and everything to these platforms, Gen Z is shifting to a mentality of sharing only specific stories to specific people on specific social channels,” writes demographic consult Jeff Fromm for Forbes. Insurers must be able to guard customers’ sensitive data.
  3. Show, Don’t Tell – The ability to personalize, streamline and simplify communications with customers via engaging and customized videos and promotions is important for reaching digital natives. The fictional character “Flo” appeared in over 100 commercials for Progressive Insurance, according to Mobile Marketer, and she became a part of pop culture. Progressive recently took it a step further, bringing a Flo Chatbot experience to Facebook Messenger. The tool is buttressed by artificial intelligence and quoting technology.

For three additional important Gen Z takeaways for insurers, and good first steps for maximizing this big opportunity, please check out our new infographic.

  • Customer Experience
  • customer service
  • digitalization
  • Generation Z
  • health insurance
  • insurers
  • millennials
  • personalization
  • Social media
Yaffa Cohen-Ifrah

Yaffa Cohen-Ifrah Yaffa Cohen-Ifrah is Sapiens Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Investor Relations. She is responsible for formulating Sapiens’ global marketing efforts, including marketing strategy, demand generation, branding, and communications. She is also responsible for all aspects of investor relations. Most recently, Yaffa was Vitech Systems Group’s CMO. Before that, she was the Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Corporate Communications of Sapiens. Previously, she held several other senior positions at large global companies, including Strauss Group, ADAMA, Victoria’s Secret, and Saks Fifth Avenue.