I think is the first time I disagree with you, Tom.
Maybe you will be replaced in jobs related to social media marketing (or AI), as yes, Gen Z grew up with it, but this doesn't mean that all of that gen are fantastic doing a SM job... It's not the same doing it for your own personal gain than for a company, business, brand...
Also no the same doing tactics (e.g. video formats) than "strategic thinking" that is linked to other marketing areas, and business areas.
As Javier Ferrán pointed above, you cannot replace REAL work marketing experience (and expertise) for someone who hasn't even developed their front lobe yet! And especially with the reasoning that they just did amazing on a social media platform.
I do agree on learning from each other and asking them to how will that idea work rather than shutting it down inmediately. But I'd do that with anyone of my team, so not age-related (nor experience).
I believe you cannot replace a brain who did almost everything without AI for someone who is just used to it (and Google). Good luck if tools and AI are not available to "download" the expertise that took you 20-30 years... In a few minutes 😂
Pretty sure this is ragebait, but I'm a sucker and fell for it...
This sounds more like maybe you let your own talents and competitive edge (ie chutzpa) dull than it is about some savant 19 year old eating your lunch while you wrung your hands over finessing an email (which by the way, kudos; those rapid-fire-off-the-cuff emails she sends are incomprehensible 99% of the time).
And being able to grow audiences on social since she was 13 only tells me she knows how to market one brand to a distinct audience, not translate any brand to audiences she knows nothing about in dynamic and complex environments (which is what tenured marketers know how to do).
To your credit, I do think that giving these 19 year olds an easy entry into the workforce is much needed. I'd love to have her come on as a junior to help with the "grunt work" so I can mentor, guide, and broaden her thinking. That's what's great about this opportunity for both the inexperienced and experienced in the field.
If we reduce marketing to just "Social media", then perhaps this holds true. But good thing, marketing is far above the tactical execution of just one of it's pillars. The creativity and high-level business strategy gained from the lived experience of an expert is something AI and a 19 year old do not have.
as a gen-z marketer, who did in fact grow up on social media, i think there are levels to this!
we may have adopted relevant, transferable marketing skills from being chronically online, but nothing will beat having work experience (beyond social media) on your side. you still see ENTRY level job ads stating they're looking for a candidate with 2-3+ years marketing experience - it's tough out here.
where the values lies, to your point, is about 'kicking ego out of the loop', and that's from the perspective of the candidate and the hiring manager. regardless of age or experience, i'd agree it's about being open to different perspectives, understanding one another's strengths, and cultivating a team that's 'future-proofed' together.
i'm still actively learning the 'old way' through my colleagues who have been in the industry for 10, 15, 20+ years, every week, and you'll quickly realise that new isn't always better when the foundations of marketing are timeless (and important for more junior marketers). plus, who's going to teach me about office culture pre-emails?
truly encouraging to read this. as an old salty dog in the industry I genuinely love working with the younger work force in a symbiotic way. both sides have a lot to learn from each other, and is not nearly as reductive as this piece suggests.
There are definitely a lot more 19-year-olds who are better at social media than 40-year-olds...but here's an instructive story.
A client whose target audience was 40+ year old moms, hired a flashy SMM firm filled with 21-year-olds who then went on to produce videos that were made for teens - and not perimenopausal/menopausal women. They truly believed that everyone was supposed to like the content they made (their friends and their friends' friends liked it, right?)...only problem was that the prospective customers were not watching...and thus not buying (or following).
Talking to them at length didn't help. They literally got angry when they were asked to do some research first. Why would they? They KNEW what worked.
(I know there are quite a few good marketing minds in very young heads - but not that many. That proverbial 19-year-old is still quite a few years away.)
This is why brands go to influencers direct, but the 'vox popular' guerilla stuff doesn't address large portions of the market (as you mentioned); it's Gen X who have a lot of the money now (if not the housing), with the millenials behind them.
That said, it's nice to see that hiring carbon-based intelligence still has it's place at the base of the pyramid -- I read is that Z and alpha are suffering not because of AI per se, but because they aren't as productive remotely (but that was just Gartner so don't know really).
If you think you can replace the expertise of a professional over 50, with more than 30 years’ experience, with someone aged 19, perhaps it’s you who’s going to be replaced. Hey, no hard feelings. Good morning!
I think is the first time I disagree with you, Tom.
Maybe you will be replaced in jobs related to social media marketing (or AI), as yes, Gen Z grew up with it, but this doesn't mean that all of that gen are fantastic doing a SM job... It's not the same doing it for your own personal gain than for a company, business, brand...
Also no the same doing tactics (e.g. video formats) than "strategic thinking" that is linked to other marketing areas, and business areas.
As Javier Ferrán pointed above, you cannot replace REAL work marketing experience (and expertise) for someone who hasn't even developed their front lobe yet! And especially with the reasoning that they just did amazing on a social media platform.
I do agree on learning from each other and asking them to how will that idea work rather than shutting it down inmediately. But I'd do that with anyone of my team, so not age-related (nor experience).
I believe you cannot replace a brain who did almost everything without AI for someone who is just used to it (and Google). Good luck if tools and AI are not available to "download" the expertise that took you 20-30 years... In a few minutes 😂
Pretty sure this is ragebait, but I'm a sucker and fell for it...
This sounds more like maybe you let your own talents and competitive edge (ie chutzpa) dull than it is about some savant 19 year old eating your lunch while you wrung your hands over finessing an email (which by the way, kudos; those rapid-fire-off-the-cuff emails she sends are incomprehensible 99% of the time).
And being able to grow audiences on social since she was 13 only tells me she knows how to market one brand to a distinct audience, not translate any brand to audiences she knows nothing about in dynamic and complex environments (which is what tenured marketers know how to do).
To your credit, I do think that giving these 19 year olds an easy entry into the workforce is much needed. I'd love to have her come on as a junior to help with the "grunt work" so I can mentor, guide, and broaden her thinking. That's what's great about this opportunity for both the inexperienced and experienced in the field.
If we reduce marketing to just "Social media", then perhaps this holds true. But good thing, marketing is far above the tactical execution of just one of it's pillars. The creativity and high-level business strategy gained from the lived experience of an expert is something AI and a 19 year old do not have.
as a gen-z marketer, who did in fact grow up on social media, i think there are levels to this!
we may have adopted relevant, transferable marketing skills from being chronically online, but nothing will beat having work experience (beyond social media) on your side. you still see ENTRY level job ads stating they're looking for a candidate with 2-3+ years marketing experience - it's tough out here.
where the values lies, to your point, is about 'kicking ego out of the loop', and that's from the perspective of the candidate and the hiring manager. regardless of age or experience, i'd agree it's about being open to different perspectives, understanding one another's strengths, and cultivating a team that's 'future-proofed' together.
i'm still actively learning the 'old way' through my colleagues who have been in the industry for 10, 15, 20+ years, every week, and you'll quickly realise that new isn't always better when the foundations of marketing are timeless (and important for more junior marketers). plus, who's going to teach me about office culture pre-emails?
truly encouraging to read this. as an old salty dog in the industry I genuinely love working with the younger work force in a symbiotic way. both sides have a lot to learn from each other, and is not nearly as reductive as this piece suggests.
Talk about feeling old 😂 … great insights though, thank you
There are definitely a lot more 19-year-olds who are better at social media than 40-year-olds...but here's an instructive story.
A client whose target audience was 40+ year old moms, hired a flashy SMM firm filled with 21-year-olds who then went on to produce videos that were made for teens - and not perimenopausal/menopausal women. They truly believed that everyone was supposed to like the content they made (their friends and their friends' friends liked it, right?)...only problem was that the prospective customers were not watching...and thus not buying (or following).
Talking to them at length didn't help. They literally got angry when they were asked to do some research first. Why would they? They KNEW what worked.
(I know there are quite a few good marketing minds in very young heads - but not that many. That proverbial 19-year-old is still quite a few years away.)
This is why brands go to influencers direct, but the 'vox popular' guerilla stuff doesn't address large portions of the market (as you mentioned); it's Gen X who have a lot of the money now (if not the housing), with the millenials behind them.
That said, it's nice to see that hiring carbon-based intelligence still has it's place at the base of the pyramid -- I read is that Z and alpha are suffering not because of AI per se, but because they aren't as productive remotely (but that was just Gartner so don't know really).
Thanks so much Tom, this is a brilliant article! xxx
If you think you can replace the expertise of a professional over 50, with more than 30 years’ experience, with someone aged 19, perhaps it’s you who’s going to be replaced. Hey, no hard feelings. Good morning!