Feel-Good Marketing: How ASMR Appeals to Gen Z Consumers

Abstract

In rising popularity, content creators use Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) technologies to induce pleasurable stimuli that generate millions of monetizable views in audiences 18-24 years. These Gen-Z consumers are largely online based, seek authenticity and connectedness, represent significant current and future buying power, and skew heavily in favor of ASMR-based technologies and content. The opportunity for marketers lies in their ability to incorporate this ASMR-based technology into their marketing strategies, showcasing their brands and products from a sensory view and triggering a sensory response in their customers. Utilizing ASMR triggers creates stimuli that evoke pleasant feelings, builds brand favorability and subconsciously forces potential customers to remember the central message of the advertisement. This paper identifies useful strategies for incorporating ASMR technologies in a relatively simple and cost-effective manner. It explores tactics such as non-disruptive advertising on popular ASMR channels, partnerships with popular ASMR influencers, volunteering products for video shoots, and embedding ASMR triggers in commercial advertisements to subconsciously impact the audience.