United we stream, united we buy
What really brings audiences together?
What does a Gen Z gamer have in common with a 50-year-old who takes yoga classes every day? More than you might think. From what they stream to what they buy, audiences today are up to three times more aligned when grouped by what they value, who they connect with and how they behave – not when they were born. So why are creative briefs and campaigns still built on generational assumptions?
What does a Gen Z gamer have in common with a 50-year-old who takes yoga classes every day? More than you might think. From what they stream to what they buy, audiences today are up to three times more aligned when grouped by what they value, who they connect with and how they behave – not when they were born. So why are creative briefs and campaigns still built on generational assumptions?
Generational labels have long influenced media strategies – but reaching today’s audiences isn’t what it used to be. It’s more nuanced, yes, layered, sure – but with a trove of richer signals and deeper insights, the rules of engagement have changed.
New research from Amazon Ads and Strat7 Crowd.DNA reveals that it is shared values, communities and behaviors – not birth years – that truly unite people, confirmed by the 4 in 5 consumers who say that their mindset defines them more than their age.
Three in four of them say they have things in common with people of all ages. It wasn’t just boomers tuning in to watch Carlos Alcarez make history at Roland Garros; it wasn’t just Gen Z and Alphas who turned A Minecraft Movie into the second biggest box office hit of 2025 so far; and it’s not just Millennials making up the millions streaming Amazon Prime Video’s new crime drama Ballard. These aren’t generational experiences, they’re cultural moments that unite audiences – regardless of age – through their passions.
“It’s easy to put people in buckets, but these buckets don’t necessarily reflect the life experiences. People have individual life journeys… just capturing people generationally isn’t sufficient anymore.”
Dr. Daniel Knapp, chief economist,
Can people between the ages of 13 and 79 (a 66 year age range) really be expected to fit into just four generational boxes (Gen Z, millennials, Gen X and baby boomers)? The media says so: according to an AI-driven analysis of 600,000+ news articles, media mentions of generational terms actually rose 36% last year – contrary to the many consumers who are saying they don’t identify with these labels.
Why does the disconnect continue?
Generational segmentation once served a useful purpose – offering marketers a way to align messaging to life-stage patterns and predictable milestones. But as audiences evolved, media began adopting generational shorthand as a way to connect with readers, though this sometimes led to oversimplified narratives: headlines focusing on 'millennial workplace challenges' or 'boomer technology adoption' became increasingly common.
These broad assumptions may have made reaching the right audience easier, but they also made it shallower – leaving little room for nuance or personal truth. As one participant in the study put it, “I don’t say I’m a 30-something woman when I meet someone” – because those labels say little about who we really are, or what motivates us.
“No brand wants to die with a generation... to be just a millennial brand because when millennials move out of that commercial space, that brand has no relevance.”
Yaw Owusu, music and culture strategist
What can marketers do differently?
That’s not to say that generations are meaningless, it’s that when identities are shaped more by the shows people stream than what year they were born, they’re no longer the most meaningful way to understand people. Marketers need a better lens.
“With the value of first party signals and first party audiences, advertisers are starting to embrace this narrative that people are defined by what they do, what their unique interests and behaviors are, rather than who they are, how old they are, where they were born.”
Ben Allison, director of applied science, Amazon
01
Lead with values
Where the real connection starts
Audiences are 1.4x more likely to be unified by values than by generation, the Beyond the Generational Divide study finds. That’s everything from the shared values they place on maintaining a healthy lifestyle (an average of 70% across all ages), the importance of saving money (76%) and the desire to leave the world in a better place (77%).
value maintaining a healthy lifestyle
value the importance of saving money
have a desire to make the world better
These connective tissues cross generational lines across life stage and lifestyle and shape decisions around what to stream and buy. They are timeless truths that connect audiences across generations and geographies. And when 3 in 5 consumers say they like brands that speak to their values and interests, this can serve as a north star when developing creative and messaging, as well as in the methods used to reach them.
“Traditional reach methods have always been a keystone of advertising, budget decisions, planning and optimization, which remains relevant,” says Dr Daniel Knapp, chief economist at IAB Europe. “But there are other ways of defining audiences and capturing their hearts and minds.”
02
Lean into communities
That’s how culture spreads
Audiences are also 2.2x more unified by the communities they belong to than by the generation they’re labeled as, the BTGD study shows. These communities might form around a shared fandom, a creator economy niche, a gaming channel or a cause – but they often cut across traditional age groups entirely. Think festivals, streaming fandoms, creator spaces which attract a mix of people who are united by a passion.
Audiences are
2.2X
more unified by the communities they belong to than by the generation
Entertainment is a key context where these communities thrive. Twitch, for example, is often perceived as a Gen Z channel – yet 47% of Twitch users are aged 25–44, and over 20% are aged 45 and up. These cross-generational communities on services like Amazon Live and Fire TV offer richer, real-time opportunities for brands to engage and speak to these shared interests in the moment.
“A generational or age-focused marketing strategy is limited,” says Yaw Owusu, music and culture strategist. “And to me, it feels slightly disrespectful to believe that I cannot respond to the same cues that other generations would. When you start focusing more on shared behavior, values, community and those aspects, it allows brands to widen the conscience of who to speak [to]. Being a little bit more nuanced adds a lot more longevity to a brand generally and in terms of cultural relevance.”
03
Follow the behavior
Actions speak louder than labels
Behavior is one of the most powerful unifying forces and the most dynamic way to understand your audience. The report shows audiences are 2.1x more unified by their behavior than their generation – whether that’s watching the same show, following the same creator or shopping with the same intent.
Audiences are
2.1X
more unified by their behavior than their generation
But behavior isn’t just about what people do, it’s what they’re ready for. The rise of contextual and intent-based audience means brands can act on signals – not just media habits – to enable better outcomes.
One example is the rise of ‘set-jetting’ – where viewers visit real-world locations featured in their favorite shows and films. According to the research, 1 in 5 travelers get their holiday inspiration from the screen. Booking.com leaned into this trend with its ‘Travel the Screen’ campaign on Prime Video using Streaming TV and Prime Video ads that ran alongside ‘The Idea of You’ (22.3 million unique viewers; 10% lift in aided brand awareness; 9% increase in brand opinion) and ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ (8% increase in aided brand awareness; 11% increase in brand opinion).
“We are able to show significant uplifts in ‘new to brand’ reach and consideration that ultimately leads to better sales, because rather than focusing on demographic insight, we focus on the behaviors that highlight them uniquely.”
Ben Allison, director of applied science, Amazon
Entertainment is where it all comes together
Relevance today isn’t just a matter of media placement; it’s about seeing the full picture of who your audience really is. As audiences become more connected, expressive and selective, the brands that succeed will be those that meet people on their terms – through what they care about, where they belong and how they behave.
Conversion rates are up to
2.2X
higher than campaigns that only use age-based audiences
And there’s proof that it works. Advertisers using Amazon DSP found that, on average, campaigns that use both age-based and interest-based audiences together have conversion rates up to 2.2X higher than campaigns that only use age-based audiences.
Entertainment moments are marketing moments – if you understand the signals behind them. It’s not just about reach anymore. Music, gaming, streaming is where values, communities and behaviors converge, and where advertisers can build an audience strategy rooted in building something even better: resonance.
Key takeaways
1
Lead with values, communities and behaviors
Audiences are more meaningfully unified by what they care about than the year they were born. Lean into what makes them human.
2
Optimize and evolve for relevance
Understanding is only the first step. Use the tools available to adapt campaigns in real-time based on real behaviors and audience responses.
3
Reach audiences and measure more effectively with Amazon Ads
From DSP audience signals to first-party measurement tools, Amazon Ads helps brands unlock resonance and ROI.