"I have to buy it before it sells out!" What exactly is "buzz consumption," the phenomenon sweeping Gen Z women?

" What are the defining characteristics of Gen Z women's consumption behavior?"

More and more people are likely wondering about Generation Z women (those born from the late 1990s to the early 2010s), who will likely drive future consumption.

To shed light on Gen Z women's consumption behavior, this series features a joint investigation by Dentsu Inc.'s female-focused planning team " GIRL'S GOOD LAB" and zzz.inc., which develops hyper-empathy marketing by Gen Z for Gen Z . We will reveal Gen Z women's attitudes and values by categorizing them into three consumption behaviors.

The theme of Part 1 is Gen Z women's " buzz consumption." We will explore the background of this "buzz consumption" phenomenon, centered around Gen Z women, and unravel the customer journey from the moment buzz occurs to the actual purchase.

What is "Buzz Consumption" among Gen Z Women?

Products that go viral on social media sell out immediately after release. This "buzz consumption" has become a social phenomenon, particularly in the cosmetics and fashion categories, centered around Gen Z women. For example, hair care brand moremo generated a massive 21,000 Instagram posts, leading to its released products selling out instantly and achieving huge success.

Similarly, fashion brand GU saw its "openwork knit" gain 20,000 likes on Twitter almost instantly, selling out immediately after release. Opportunities to witness "buzz consumption" like this are becoming increasingly common.

A survey targeting Gen Z women revealed that 80.2% of respondents said they "often" or "sometimes" purchase products that went viral on social media.

<Figure 1> Have you ever purchased a product that went viral on social media?

Why do Gen Z women buy trending products? The secret lies in the mindset of " I'm afraid it'll sell out! "

The "Fear of Selling Out" Mindset Behind "Buzz Consumption"

When we delved deeper into "buzz consumption" with follow-up questions, we heard Gen Z women express this fear of sell-outs. To the question, "Do you ever buy something online immediately because you're afraid the product you want will sell out?", nearly half responded that they "have purchased something this way."

<Figure 2> Do you ever buy something online immediately because you're afraid it will sell out?

These results reveal that Gen Z women' s "fear of selling out" is a key factor behind "buzz consumption."

So why do Gen Z women feel this fear of products going out of stock when they go viral?

Let's examine this "fear of selling out" mindset in more detail.

Why do Gen Z women worry about items selling out?

First, let's examine the product categories where "buzz consumption" occurs. As mentioned earlier, it centers on cosmetics and fashion. An interesting survey result emerges when looking at these categories.

It's the responses to the question shown in the graph below: "Which items do you feel you buy/spend money on while being conscious of others' opinions?"

<Figure 3> Which items do you feel you buy/spend money on while being conscious of others' opinions?

As you can see, consumption driven by concern about others' opinions is particularly prevalent in the cosmetics and fashion categories. Precisely because these are categories where people care about how they appear, the desire to "buy highly rated items" intensifies, making them generally more susceptible to "buzz consumption." Consequently, Gen Z women are highly sensitive to products selling out, as they want to ensure they can get their hands on highly rated, trending items.

Cosmetics: Diverse Site Searches; Fashion: Comparison on Instagram

After recognizing buzz through social media like Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok, what actions do Gen Z women take? We'll analyze this primarily within the cosmetics and fashion categories, where "buzz consumption" is common.

First, when asked about the time between seeing buzz on social media and making a purchase, 77.1% responded, "I see it, think about it for a bit, and then buy it the next day or later."

<Figure 4> Time from seeing trending information on SNS to purchase

This shows Gen Z women tend not to buy immediately after encountering viral content, but instead take time to consider whether to purchase the trending product. Digging deeper into what they do during this interval, responses indicated they engage in comparative research like "checking user reviews quite a bit before buying" and "checking word-of-mouth."

Let's now examine their comparison and evaluation behaviors in more detail.

While Instagram, known for its high volume of content, is commonly used for searches across both cosmetics and fashion categories, differences emerged between the two. For cosmetics, searches on review/rating sites like @cosme and LIPS, as well as comparisons via Google searches, were identified.

Responses like "If I know what I want to buy, I check @cosme for word-of-mouth" and "I search Google for reviews" were seen, suggesting consumers seek more specific information by researching sites with robust word-of-mouth and review content.

In contrast, for fashion, Instagram searches account for a significantly higher 65.3% compared to other methods. Looking at the number of Instagram posts, "#コスメ" (cosmetics) had 5.67 million posts, while "#ファッション" (fashion) had 27.52 million posts (as of May 18, 2021), a difference of about 4.8 times. This indicates that for the fashion category, sufficient consideration can be made through Instagram's user-generated content search, showing that many Gen Z women use Instagram.

Gen Z Women Are Active Online Shoppers

After recognizing buzz and conducting comparative research, where do they ultimately make their purchases?

While a strong preference for physical consumption—seeing and buying in-store—was a fundamental tendency, many respondents indicated they actively make online purchases when they find information online.

Particularly in the fashion category, with established brand e-commerce sites and platforms like ZOZOTOWN, they don't seem fixated on buying in person. Furthermore, the abundance of user-generated content on platforms like Instagram allows them to fully understand a product's appeal, comfort, and functionality, which also encourages online purchasing.

Four Key Points to Understand Gen Z Women's "Buzz Consumption"

Having examined Gen Z women's "buzz consumption," several key points emerge.

These four points are crucial for understanding Gen Z women's "buzz consumption."

In the Reiwa era, buzz isn't just about creating topics—it directly drives consumption. We'll continue to watch Gen Z women's "buzz consumption" closely.

Our next theme is Gen Z girls' "favorite consumption." We'll uncover why Gen Z spends money on their "favorites" and map their customer journey.

【GIRL'S GOOD LAB × zzz.inc. Interview Survey Overview】

Survey Participants: 6 Gen Z women
Survey Period: March 1, 2021
Survey Method: zzz.inc. Member Teams Roundtable Discussion

【GIRL’S GOOD LAB×zzz.inc. Internet Survey Overview】

Survey Participants: 202 Gen Z women
Survey Period: March 25–31, 2021
Survey Method: zzz.inc. Member Google Survey

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