Gen Alpha’s Persuasion Power, and Gen Z’s Still Aboard the Dupe Train

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Welcome to Morning Consult’s From A to Gen Z newsletter. We put the headlines you’re reading about Gen Alpha, Gen Z and millennials into context with our high frequency survey data to help you better understand exactly how and why they’re spending their time — and their dollars. 

We’re bouncing around the wide world of young people this week, highlighting everything from Gen Alpha’s penchant for bugging their parents to make purchases on their behalf to the unique efficacy of NIL marketing among Gen Zers. Enjoy.  

👶🛍️ Gen Alpha can’t stop asking for stuff 👶🛍️

According to our latest Gen Alpha report, today’s kids have the power of persuasion — and they’re using it a lot. Across most age bands, pluralities of the young cohort ask their parents to buy something at least a few times every week.

These requests are most often for toys and food: More than 3 in 5 (61%) Gen Alpha parents said their child regularly informs grocery purchases, and a similar share said the same about toys. 

And as kids age, their influence over family food choices only grows. Roughly 80% of parents said their Gen Alpha kids influence all, most or some of the family’s grocery and snack choices by age 3. Restaurant choices also come into the fold by the pre-teen years: 74% of parents said their 9-11 year olds weigh in on these decisions.

▶️ Check out a full breakdown of Gen Alpha’s purchasing power here. 

👛🤔Dupe fatigue? 👛🤔

“Dupes,” a catch-all descriptor for cheaper alternatives to popular premium or luxury products, have been a defining e-commerce trend in recent years — and young people have been the ones propelling their popularity. New Morning Consult data suggests that while Gen Zers are still very much on the dupe train, their millennial counterparts may be starting to get off. 

The share of millennials who reported intentionally purchasing dupes fell 11 percentage points between October 2023 and February 2025, from 44% to 33%. This movement is likely driven, in part, by life stage: As they enter middle age (and the deeper throes of parenthood), the cohort is becoming less motivated by things like trendiness and convenience. 

That said, low-cost alternatives will never dissipate totally, especially as prices for most goods continue to climb. Plus, a subset of consumers will always be willing to trade quality for cost, and certain retailers are getting more of these dupe dollars than others — namely Amazon and Temu. Gen Zers are also especially fond of Shein and TikTok Shop; the shares who said they have ever purchased dupes from either brand are 19% and 15% higher than all U.S. adults, respectively. 

▶️ To learn more about the data that powers this research, reach out to your Morning Consult contact or email [email protected]. 

🏀🤳 NIL’s unique appeal among young consumers 🏀🤳

The NCAA’s updated name, image and likeness (NIL) guidelines, which allow student-athletes to monetize these things, will turn four years old this summer. Its impact on every aspect of collegiate sports has been massive and well-documented — but its consumer impact is less so. Fortunately, a recent Morning Consult study offers some insight to this end.

While less than 1 in 5 U.S. adults said they have ever purchased a product or felt more positively about a brand because it partnered with a college athlete, these figures were double-digits higher among Gen Z adults and millennials.

Previous Morning Consult research has also repeatedly found that Americans are on a clear sports kick as of late, doing everything from attending professional events to watching sports media properties like ESPN with increased frequency. 

This sports-centric environment, paired with NIL’s distinct appeal among younger audiences, makes such deals not only an opportunity to move some extra product today, but also an opportunity to get an early foot in the door with the mega-stars of tomorrow.

▶️ To check out more sports trends, head here.

What Else We’re Reading

• Health and Wellness in the Age of MAHA (Morning Consult)
• Anti-Americanism and Brands Amid the Trump Tariffs (Morning Consult)  
• The Locker-Room Playbook for Managing Gen Z Employees (The Wall Street Journal)
• Influencer Brands Are Making a Comeback (Business of Fashion) 

Upcoming

April 22 — Memo: Gen Alpha's Most Asked-For Brands. This analysis highlights the three most top-of-mind brands for Gen Alpha across several categories, and explores how the youngest consumers' tastes and preferences are already being informed by online content. Once live, it will live on our Gen Alpha page. 

April 23 — Report: State of Workers 2025. The latest edition of this annual report will probe how employed U.S. adults are thinking and feeling about their work amid ongoing uncertainty fueled by rapid shifts in politics, artificial intelligence and more. It will also provide a look at Gen Z workers, who continue to severely lag in engagement and satisfaction relative to their older counterparts. You can find it here on April 23rd.