Date of Completion
5-15-2025
Degree Type
Honors Thesis
Discipline
Marketing (MRKT)
First Advisor
Mitchell Hamilton
Abstract
Over the past 10 years, the world has seen a massive increase in the use of social media, specifically with the younger audiences of Gen-Z and Gen Alpha. When the Covid-19 Pandemic rocked the world in early 2020, many of these young generations were forced into their homes, with social media being a main source of communication with their peers. Coupled with a rise of short-form content like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and Youtube Shorts, and social media content was now more widespread than ever. Due to this the digital marketing landscape has been drastically changed, with attention spans getting shorter and shorter. Through secondary research, analysis of company social media data, and case studies, I will examine how companies and marketers have reacted to the increase in short-form content and determine the implications for future generations. I predict that my research will show that attention spans for younger audiences have drastically decreased, especially with Gen Z and Gen Alpha, being audiences who grew up with social media, and that this has led to an alteration of the marketing formula to stray away from traditional marketing methods. I also predict that my primary research will back this, and I will point to several companies and how they have been able to successfully adapt to this change. As younger generations grow up more reliant on social media and technology than ever, analyzing this research will be crucial for marketers to predict how marketing trends will change in the future.
Recommended Citation
Blackford, Collin and Hamilton, Mitchell, "No Turning Back? Examining the Rise of Short-Form Content in Post-COVID Marketing for Gen-Z and Gen Alpha" (2025). Honors Thesis. 590.
https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/honors-thesis/590
