Let’s cease pretending all teenagers are some mysterious, moody monolith. That outdated stereotype doesn’t maintain up anymore, particularly with what we learn about how they assume and behave in the present day.
Current analysis from TeenVoice shines a light-weight on how completely different 13-year-olds and 18-year-olds are—not simply in age, however in how they use social media, how skeptical they’re of promoting, and what grabs their consideration. The hole is huge, and it’s an enormous wake-up name for anybody attempting to achieve them.
Right here’s what science tells us about why teenagers aren’t simply older variations of youngsters however are literally leveling up in how they assume and interact:
1. Scrollers vs. Searchers
Youthful teenagers largely scroll social media for leisure and enjoyable; it’s their playground. Older teenagers, alternatively, use platforms as instruments for analysis and decision-making. They’re on the lookout for actual data, not simply distractions. In case your content material isn’t simple to seek out or helpful, it’s such as you don’t exist to them. This matches with what Pew Analysis has discovered: almost half of teenagers say they’re on-line virtually continuously, however the best way they use social media evolves with age towards extra purposeful looking and data gathering (Pew Research Center, 2024).
2. Teen Skepticism Is Actual and Rising
Adolescents don’t simply blindly settle for advertising and marketing messages. Their brains are growing the flexibility to query, analyze, and outright reject promoting that feels pretend or manipulative. This skepticism comes from each cognitive improvement, when teenagers start to assume extra critically and realistically, in addition to social components like peer affect and pure resistance to being offered to (Buijzen, 2009; Lumen Learning, n.d.).
3. Peer Tales Carry Weight
When teenagers hear tales from different college students, actual folks with genuine experiences, it resonates extra deeply than any slick advert marketing campaign. Peer affect shapes decision-making considerably throughout adolescence, generally much more than grownup recommendation. This isn’t nearly dangerous conduct; optimistic peer tales can information teenagers towards safer, smarter selections, too (Chein et al., 2011; Gardner & Steinberg, 2005).
4. Authenticity Isn’t Only a Buzzword
Gen Z, particularly, are human BS detectors. They crave manufacturers and messages which are trustworthy, clear, and aligned with their values. Authenticity builds belief, engagement, and loyalty, straight up. In case your advertising and marketing feels pressured or pretend, they’ll scroll proper previous. That is backed by analysis exhibiting genuine content material generates far more engagement and lasting connections with younger folks (QuirkBank Media, 2025; History Factory, 2024).
5. The Mind Modifications a Lot Between 13 and 18
The teenager mind isn’t static. At 13, many teenagers are nonetheless growing concrete pondering and emotional regulation. By 18, their prefrontal cortex, the half chargeable for reasoning, impulse management, and decision-making, is rather more mature. This implies the best way you talk with a 13-year-old shall be very completely different from the way you attain an 18-year-old who can assume abstractly and critically. Treating them like the identical viewers is a recipe for lacking the mark (National Institute of Mental Health, 2022; American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2023).
What does all this imply to you in case you work in enrollment advertising and marketing, admissions, or monetary help? Listed below are 5 takeaways.
- Youthful teenagers hang around on social media largely to sit back and have enjoyable. So, if you wish to catch their consideration, hold issues mild, entertaining, and visible. Older teenagers need to dig in and determine stuff out. Be sure that your data is straightforward to seek out and solutions actual questions, they’re not right here to waste time.
- Don’t attempt to promote with flashy slogans or over-the-top hype. Teenagers are sharp and skeptical. In case your message feels pretend or manipulative, they’ll tune out quick. As an alternative, be simple and trustworthy, present them you respect their smarts.
- Peer tales aren’t simply noise, they’re gold. Actual testimonials or pupil voices will hit means more durable than any polished advert. Let your present college students share their real experiences. That form of authenticity influences teenagers greater than anything.
- Authenticity isn’t a development, it’s a should. In order for you teenagers to belief and stick round, your advertising and marketing should really feel actual. Meaning ditching company jargon, being clear about what you provide, and aligning with values that matter to them.
- Keep in mind, a 13-year-old isn’t only a smaller 18-year-old. Their brains and decision-making abilities are nonetheless rising. Tailor your messaging for various age teams, easy and interesting for youthful teenagers, extra detailed and logical for older ones. One-size-fits-all gained’t reduce it.
Dive into extra insights into teen conduct within the 2025 E-Expectations Report
If you wish to see how these attitudes play out in faculty planning, what platforms college students are literally utilizing to discover faculties, how they work together with college web sites, what makes them click on (or ghost) your outreach, and the way AI and privateness considerations are shifting the sport, you want the newest information from the 2025 E-Expectations Trend Report.
Within the full report, you’ll discover solutions to questions like:
- Which digital useful resource do college students belief essentially the most for his or her faculty search?
- Is electronic mail nonetheless alive (spoiler: sure), and what position does it play?
- What are the make-or-break options for a school web site?
- Who’s utilizing AI instruments, and what do they really need from personalization?
- Which social platforms drive engagement, and why?
In order for you actual, actionable insights, not simply one other “state of Gen Z” report, this report is your roadmap!
And if you’re curious in regards to the TeenVoice information and need to dive into, read the TeenVoice research here.
