How Different Generations in the UK Respond to Digital Advertising

The value of the digital advertising market in the UK stood at £26.1 billion¹ in 2022, more than double the value in 2017, when it was £11.55 billion². While this growing sector promises big rewards for businesses involved in the industry, consumer attitudes towards online advertising are less clear. Different generations have varying capabilities and interests when it comes to online behavior, so we expect their attitudes towards online advertising to differ as well. 

Therefore, this article examines generational perspectives on digital advertising in the UK and their propensity to participate in various related trends.

Older Cohorts Are More Likely to be Annoyed by Online Advertising, Although Rates Are Consistently High Across Generations

Statista’s Consumer Insights surveyed UK respondents in 2023 to assess their attitudes towards online advertising. The following analysis explores their responses, which were broken down into generational groupings. These include Generation Z, or the cohort of respondents born between 1995 and 2012; Millennials, or Generation Y, born between 1980 and 1994; Generation X, with birth years between 1965 and 1979; and Baby Boomers, which includes consumers born between 1946 and 1964.

While the boundaries between these cohorts are loose and vary from publication to publication and institute to institute, the general characteristics and attitudes, especially when it comes to the internet, give us valuable insight into how consumers of different ages approach certain issues. Because Gen Z and Millennials are the digital native generations, they tend to have different behaviors and attitudes than older generations, who tend to be slower to adapt to new trends and digital developments.

The most common attitude towards online advertising - being annoyed by it - shows a positive correlation with age. That is, older consumers are more likely to agree with this statement than younger consumers. Gen Z are the least likely to be annoyed by digital advertising (38%), while Baby Boomers are the most likely to be bothered (50%).

We see that attitudes are more consistent across generational cohorts when it comes to free content offered in exchange for consumer attention. At 37% and 38% respectively, Gen Z and Millennials are most likely to not mind advertising if they get free content in return, while Gen X and Baby Boomers are not far behind at 34% each.

Similar to being annoyed by online advertising overall, targeted online ads based on previous searches tend to annoy older consumers more than younger ones, although to a lesser degree. While 33% of Gen Z users said they are annoyed by targeted ads, the same is true for 36% of Millennials, as well as 42% and 47% of Gen X and Baby Boomers, respectively. 

One trend that advertisers are increasingly relying on is influencer or affiliate marketing, where public figures endorse a product. Here we see a clear trend of younger users saying they have bought products because a celebrity or influencer has endorsed them. Gen Z is the most likely to have done so, at 28%, compared to Millennials at 26%. Older users are much less likely to have bought products because of influencer marketing, with 11% of Gen Xers and 6% of Baby Boomers saying they have. This should not come as too much of a surprise, as influencer marketing has seen its rise with the advent of social media and digital platforms, which are the common playing fields of so-called digital natives, Gen Z and Gen Y.

Another evenly distributed habit is the use of ad blockers. Gen Z is only slightly more likely to use them (27%) than Baby Boomers (26%), while Gen Y and Gen X are equally likely to use them (24%). 

When it comes to the Metaverse, however, the generational divide emerges once again. Gen Z and Gen Y both expressed interest in this emerging virtual reality space at 26%, while Gen X users were less interested at 14% and Baby Boomers even less so at 8%. 

Similar to the statement about targeted advertising, Gen Z and Gen Y are not as bothered by companies using their personal information to deliver ads as Gen X and Baby Boomers. However, despite the generational differences, most respondents across all cohorts did not agree with this statement, meaning that data storage for personalized advertising remains an unpopular practice among UK consumers. 

Surprisingly, younger users tend to have a harder time distinguishing promotional content from regular content, with 13% and 14% of Gen Z and Gen Y, respectively, saying this. Only 9% of Gen X and 11% of Baby Boomers said they had trouble identifying ads as such, which could either be due to lower engagement with influencer and promotional content on social apps in general, or other reasons not specified in the survey. 

Gen Z and Y Are Less Likely to Be Annoyed by Online Advertising, Readier to Make Trade-Offs for Free Content, and More Likely to Respond to Influencer Marketing

As a lucrative sector for UK businesses, the digital advertising market has seen remarkable growth of more than doubling in value in just five years, from 2017 to 2022. A generational analysis of consumer attitudes towards online advertising shows that older generations, particularly Baby Boomers, tend to be more annoyed by digital advertising and are less likely to purchase products endorsed by influencers. 

Younger generations, while more open to influencer marketing, still express significant annoyance with regular and targeted online advertising, and the use of personal data for advertising. Interestingly, these digital native generations have a harder time distinguishing promotional content from regular content. Gen Z and Gen Y are also more likely to be excited about digitally innovative trends, such as the Metaverse, while Gen Xers and Baby Boomers are less so. 

Regardless of generation, however, all cohorts maintain a consistent tendency to value free content in exchange for their attention and relatively equal use of ad blockers.

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Sources: Statista