Netflix Beats McDonald’s, Nike as Gen Alpha’s Favorite Brand

Members of Gen Alpha—those born after 2010—may not yet have the same purchasing power as their Gen Z and millennial elders. However, brands put off getting to know them at their own peril because this demographic had already made up its mind about what’s cool, and what isn’t.

Netflix has been crowned the “coolest” brand among 7- to 14-year-olds in a study spanning 60,000 U.K. kids conducted by family insights agency Beano Brain.

The streaming service knocked 2022 champion YouTube off the top spot, with McDonald’s, Nike and Oreo completing the top five.

Helenor Gilmour, Beano Brain’s director of insight, led the research. Her team spent a year talking to young people, observing their hobbies along with the brands they were buying and talking about. She described Gen Alpha as an increasingly discerning generation of digital natives who expect more of advertisers than their older cohorts.

Don’t expect Gen A to interrogate your sustainability efforts, but do expect them to pick up when you are not living up to your claims.

Helenor Gilmour, director of insight, Beano Brain

Netflix’s “clear and salient proposition,” its ability to create water cooler moments through shows including Wednesday and Stranger Things, along with its exposure to interesting collaborations and edgy, “sometimes dark content,” made it a winner among young people, said Gilmour.

“Brands that can cut through are able to do well, but only if they also live up to their messaging and, most importantly, deliver real emotional benefits for kids,” she added. “Netflix enables them to explore sophisticated topics with quality drama, and YouTube helps them learn and gather knowledge capital.”

McDonalds has been a consistent entrant on the list, holding on to third place for the second year running.

“Consistency and of-the-moment activity is key for McDonalds. Kids know (and love) what they are going to get, and importantly they feel welcome at McDonalds,” explained Gilmour. “The brand stays up to date with food trends, constantly adding new menu items like frappes and tapping into seasonal and other occasions really well.”

Elsewhere, Nike—which was rated equally by both girls and boys—made it into the top five for the first time, following collaborations with gaming giant Fortnite.

There are no U.K. brands in the Top 10. The highest rated U.K. brands were Harry Potter (32, down from 11), bakery chain Greggs (a new entry at 34), retailer Sports Direct (40, up from 45) and JD Sports (47, down from 46).

The BBC experienced the largest fall, dropping 28 places from 43 to 71, and Minecraft dropped 22 places to 28, having failed to maintain buzz outside of its superfans.

What does Gen Alpha want from brands?

The Gen Alpha cohort is expected to grow to 2.2 billion by 2024, according to research firm McCrindle, making it the largest generation in history.

Seemingly born with the ability to skip YouTube ads and navigate smartphones, a recent U.S. study from digital agency Razorfish highlighted just how early Alphas are to adopt tech.

Before the age of 6, more than 40% of Alphas have used a tablet; by the time they turn 7, more than half are using video game consoles.

However, despite growing up eyeing the blue glow of social media timelines and scrolling through endless feeds, they are motivated by a sense of purpose: 92% told Razorfish they value authenticity and, when asked what they wanted to be when they grow up, 30% said they wanted to make a difference to the planet.

Beano Brain’s research reflected this trend too. Among the kids and teenagers interviewed, the climate crisis was identified as one of the most important issues they wanted to see brands address, and there was a strong belief that brands should give something back too.

“Much of the work we’ve done with Gen Alpha indicates that they have high expectations of brands—they expect brands to both give back and minimize their impact on the planet,” revealed Gilmour.

Purposeful and brave activations, such as Disney tackling puberty in the movie Red or championing diversity in the live action The Little Mermaid, were looked upon favorably by the up-and-coming audience.

In short: “Don’t expect Gen A to interrogate your sustainability efforts, but do expect them to pick up when you are not living up to your claims. And expect them to share that widely,” said Gilmour.

“Bland messaging or unrealistic claims will simply not wash. They love to see innovation and sustainability in action. Recycled furniture in coffee shops, helping local communities with donations, limiting food waste by supporting food banks and replacing plastic straws with paper are all things they notice,” she added.

“Brands that can communicate their efforts and clear impacts strike a chord with Gen A.”

.