What the next generation means for community management

Written by Jonny Corrall

Yes, if you thought marketing to Gen Zs was tough, just wait until you meet Generation Alpha…

With a name that makes them sound like a squadron of cold-blooded marines, Generation Alpha is the latest demographic cohort to make their mark on the internet.

But despite the tough name, the oldest of these next-gen keyboard warriors is no more than 14 years old!

Yes, we’re dealing with a crop of kids here! A legion of primary school children who can already navigate TikTok natively.

And despite their tender years, they’re apparently already beginning to dictate the market.

As a generation that was able to control an iPad before their own bowel movements, Gen A has very quickly made social media their playground – and they expect us to play along.

Through video game playing and TikTok creation, Gen As have been influencers and creators from the get-go and their digital upbringing means they expect more personal experiences and one-to-one relationships with their brands.

As a copywriter and community manager, I’ve noticed that brand social media channels are not a customer service point for them, but a place to hang out, chat and mess around.

It’s a game to them and they want to beat the system and get brands talking to them on their level and their terms. Which (unfortunately) means I have to understand what the **** they’re going on about.

But whatever you or I think of it personally, it’s incredibly important we get it right.

As getting it wrong risks our brands becoming irrelevant to a whole new generation of followers and brand ambassadors.

So… if you’re a copywriter or community manager who’s finding the comment section a little confusing these days, here’s how to spot some Generation Alpha lingo.

Note: As previously implied, Gen A is enjoying being the new disruptor on the social media scene, so combining the words below into confusing lexical riddles is a great source of amusement. Don’t be the writer or brand that doesn’t understand them!

Brainrot – A word used to describe the overuse and phenomenon around mindless and meaningless internet words… This is one of the few that might enter my own personal dictionary.

Bussin’ – Mostly used to describe incredibly delicious food. (Also how a lot of people commute to work.)

Delulu – Just a faster way of saying delusional. Every syllable is a second wasted for these guys!

Fanum Tax – It’s used to describe the action of stealing a friend’s food. (Named for a popular Twitch streamer named Fanum.)

GYAT – Used for general enthusiasm these days, though it originated as a cat-call for an attractive person. Pronounced like “squat”, GYAT is an acronym that means ‘Girl Yo Ass Thicc’… Yes, I’m uncomfortable too. The older generations have a lot to answer for.

Mewing – This is a strange jaw activity and posture exercise designed to make your lower jaw look more natural and defined. Again, the older generations have a lot to answer for.

Mog – To mog someone is to look better than them. A term I can’t imagine is ever used nicely. Here’s hoping Gen A grow up to be a lovely, considerate bunch!

Ohio – It’s used to mean things that are quirky, weird and cringe, due to the prevalence of odd TikTok content that seemed to be filmed in the state… poor Ohio.

Sigma – You’ve heard of the alpha male. You’ve heard of the beta male. Well, now we have the Sigma male too! Taken from the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet, sigma males are self-reliant and humble versions of alpha males.

Skibidi – I’ll be honest, this is a tough one. Popularised by a series of YouTube videos called ‘Skibidi Toilet’, this originally meant shady or snide behaviour. But trying to understand it is ultimately futile as skibidi has become an endlessly evolving nonsense word that Gen A enjoy toying with. Just try not to let them toy you with it!

K sigmas, I’m going delulu here and finna get brainrot, so let’s leave it here for now.

For example, a brand wouldn’t be caught dead using acronyms like ROFL, LMAO or even LOL in a comment section these days.

They’ve been killed off by emojis and the need to heighten our emotional displays in text form. We no longer LOL. We’re ‘SCREAMING’. ‘LITERALLY DYING’. ‘Hahahahha’ing. Typing out rows of smileys.

These LOL words blew up in the early 2000s, but according to Facebook data, they were dead in the water by 2015. Which isn’t a very long shelf life.

Just a few years ago, brands on social media were asking audiences to get their ‘hands up’ if they were ready for ‘Fri-yay!’ in emoji-scattered posts.

But now we’re already in a completely different landscape.

Brands posting funny photos captioned “us when X happens”. Signing off tweets with an ironic kiss. Actively ‘bantering’ or taking the royal P out of customers. It’s a world that’s been completely reshaped by Gen Z culture…

So while it might sound odd or ridiculous, you best believe these Gen A tweenagers are going to transform the way we interact.

We might not all be yelling skibbidi at each other. But there’s no doubt our phrasing, humour and more will bend to whatever they best respond to.

So go forth my fellow copywriters and community managers and embrace the Ohio of the comment sections.

Because as Whitney Houston once said, ‘The children are the future.’ So let’s let them lead the way!

Jonny is Brilliant’s Lead Copywriter and has been with the agency since 2021. Thankfully not a man of few words, he brings his wordsmithery to Brilliant’s many food and beverage clients, leading on copy for creative campaigns, branding projects and social media marketing.

Specialising in tone of voice work, he’s helped fashion unique brand voices for Lyle’s Golden Syrup, Party Rings, Fox’s Biscuits, Thorntons Chocolate and many more!