To connect with a younger generation, brands should show their human side
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November 2020Share this page
To connect with a younger generation, brands should show their human side
November 2020Many brands are eager to connect with a Gen Z audience, a generation more likely than older ones to care about issues like sustainability and racial equality. In Part 3 of our video series where a CMO meets a creator, Levi Strauss & Co. Brand President Jen Sey and YouTube creator Liza Koshy explain how brands can show their human side to make a deeper connection with younger customers.
Hear from more creators and CMOs in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series.
[Applause]
[Music]
[Liza Koshy] Hey y'all, what up? It's your girl Liza
[Liza Koshy] Koshy you may recognize me from YouTube.
[Liza Koshy] I am a content creator.
[Jen Sey] Hi everyone my name is Jen Sey. I am the
[Jen Sey] Chief Marketing Officer at Levi's.
[Liza Koshy] I am so excited to speak to a woman who
doesn't stop herself. I'm ready to start
the conversation
Miss Jen Sey.
[Music]
There's a way in which we speak today on
our platforms, in person,
online, wherever. It's so different, it's
evolved so much from
from the past, but what makes today's
consumers different
[Liza Koshy & Jen Sey] than other generations? Well, I think they
[Jen Sey] expect to have a voice. I mean social
media has created this world where not
only do they
expect it, but they expect you to pay
attention instantly. We don't say
this is the one style and one way to
wear Levi's. People have always
taken a pen to their Levi's made them
their own. They've all
sort of co-created customized Levi's.
They've told stories, but now with social
media, those stories are projected and
amplified. That sort of relationship with
the consumer, now, is much more public
than it used to be.
That's what we're trying to do and, in
doing so, connect with
younger consumers who expect you to be
truthful and authentic.
Our former CEO Bob Haas, who is a direct
descendant of Levi Strauss himself,
used to say that Levi's is the youngest
oldest brand in the world.
I try to use the Levi's platform to
educate people around
issues of you know sustainability, LGBTQ
equality, racial equality, criminal
justice reform, all these things that we
care about.
What is it that you hear from from your
fans
about sustainability? What are they saying? How
are they kind of
[Jen Sey & Liza Koshy] engaging in this issue? Piggybacking off
[Liza Koshy] what you just said,
getting more bang for your buck is
exactly what this generation is doing.
And, it's getting more bang for others
bucks.
It's thrifting. Up-cycling is huge.
It's a story that never ends. You get to
reinvent it and recreate it as many
times as you want.
My jeans are vintage, if you will
consider some such. These are from
2009.
So, I am I am minimizing myself
by wearing these over and over again. And,
the blue dye has stayed. I will tell you
that.
I'm the youngest of three kids, so
hand-me-downs was something that I got
all the time. So, I feel like
it's been in my story to re-wear, re-rock
anything in a brand new way. I think
it's...
I think it's awesome just giving a new
life to, you know, stuff that you
[Liza Koshy & Jen Sey] already love. I don't want you to buy
[Jen Sey] something from us that you don't love.
It's changed over time, and we haven't
even sort of realized that we've
completely changed the way we consume.
And so,
for myself I think about, you know, love
what I wear and live with it longer. I
try to do the same by
instilling that in my kids. You know, just
love it before you buy it and then
live in it and have fun with it, honestly.
I want every pair of Levi's, every item
from Levi's in your closet, to be one of
your favorite items that you just want
to wear over and over again. That's what
I want. I want you to love it the most.
Speaking of people being vulnerable and
open and caring now more than ever about
themselves and their future,
we need to vote and understanding that
that vote
[Liza Koshy & Jen Sey] matters so much. It's a great point.
[Jen Sey] Voting is a hard one, right?
People died, literally,
to gain the right to vote. How do you not
[Jen Sey & Liza Koshy] respect that? What's interesting is that
[Liza Koshy] as Gen Z and millennials and myself,
we don't mind being millions on Twitter.
You know, having our our Tweets heard.
Like “oh, I tweeted today. My opinion was
heard. I am validated.”
But when it comes to voting, we're like
“oh no, I'm just one person.”
You've seen how many iconic figures in
history have changed the world, so
don't diminish yourself and your power
just thinking that you're one person who
can't do much.
[Jen Sey] You know, I talked about how Levi's is
all about authentic self-expression, well
what is a purer form of self-expression
than the vote.
There is no pure form, so show up
on election day and vote for what you
care about.
[Liza Koshy] Yeah, that's a brilliant point. It's
exciting to see
a brand that I love so much, to see the
human behind it.
They are caring about what they put on
me. They are caring about what they
design
for me and have me in mind when they're
designing it.
I'm really grateful to be able to be a
sponge today and
become a better person for it. So thanks Jen.
[Jen Sey] Thank you for taking the time Liza.
[Liza Koshy] This was so cool. I think
we like each other.
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