New brand solutions agency, Wildness, will help companies connect with young consumers.

Multi-channel network AwesomenessTV, which is owned by DreamWorks Animation, has introduced Wildness, a new brand solutions firm aimed at helping companies connect with Generation Z.

Using research in addition to AwesomenessTV’s experience and insights as a leading MCN, Wildness will offers insights and strategy services for brands that want to be relevant with youth culture across all forms of media.

“Generation Z is redefining marketing and media as we know it today. It’s only logical that AwesomenessTV would take what we’ve learned from building our own brand that engages with this powerful audience to launch this new business that can guide marketers to do the same,” says Brian Robbins, chief executive officer and founder, AwesomenessTV. “Independence is key so Wildness can ensure its partners a platform-agnostic approach, and we’re thrilled to have Margaret Czeisler join as the chief strategy officer leading Wildness.”

Czeisler has spent her career pioneering innovative solutions for some of the world’s leading brands, agencies and executives, from experiential consumer activations to real-time marketing solutions. She most recently served as global vice president of Razorfish’s xLab.

“We recognize that today’s youth drive cultural change and are the keys to sustained business growth,” says Czeisler. “Wildness brings information, analysis and experience to brands looking to figure out why they need to reach this audience and also how to activate on it. Our differentiator is we’re able to leverage AwesomenessTV’s learnings and merge them with our unique insights about youth culture derived from our proprietary research.”

Wildness encompasses a team of cultural engineers that will develop custom solutions to create targeted and authentic engagement between brands and fans, working across all platforms and partners.

Wildness Unveils Primary Research Findings

Wildness has released the preliminary results from its recent, exhaustive research study on Generation Z. The study encompassed a nationwide survey of 3,000 respondents, ages 12 to 24, and in-depth interviews with teens, parents and teachers across eight U.S. cities.

Some key findings include:

·      Generation Z interacts with brands, retailers, celebrities and entertainment in a surprising way. Wildness refers to Generation Z as "Culture Collaborators" who seek out partners that co-create, connect and reward them.

·      If left with only one device, zero out of 10 would choose to keep their televisions.

·      31 percent watch their favorite brands on YouTube.

·      30 percent follow their favorite brands and view their posts on social media.

·      Nine out of 10 watch YouTube daily.

·      While Generation Z tends to be connected 24/7, real-life experiences still rule. These are what they “snap,” “gram” and “fav.”

·      88 percent of respondents take intentional, digital breaks.

·      Generation Z has a consistent stance against cruelty of all kinds, with the top three social issues being animal cruelty, cyber-bullying and discrimination and prejudice.

Wildness has also released Wildness Issue One, the first issue of its new publication featuring the latest insights from its ongoing study. Wildness has observed daily life in its rituals and practices in order to create a comprehensive picture of this generation. The team also captured stories through the power of film to further examine this generation’s ideas, connections and the everyday objects that define them.