Hello, my name is Aliza Manekia.
I am a Year 3 in the Princeton High School Research Program. My research surrounds the topic of how social media directly influences the purchasing decisions of Millennials and Generations Z’ers. It is hypothesized that Millennials have a more positive reaction towards different lifestyle habits advertised on social media than Gen Z’ers. This research could help brands/companies to make their marketing more effective towards their key demographic and aid them in understanding how these cognitive decisions are made.
Overview
Social media platforms, such as Instagram, have become the core of marketing for many international brands. These platforms allow brands to directly reach their customers through their own content, paid advertisements by influencers, and targeted marketing. Based on this, my research focuses on two generations that have been greatly influenced by social media and not only looks at them as a whole, but compares their habits and decisions against each other.Progress has already been made on this research considering a large survey has been conducted and an Instagram account was set up to determine how the number of advertisements corresponded to the number of influencers followed. The survey consisted of 583 responses which varied in terms of extreme positive and negative purchasing habits and many responses in between.
Currently…
At the moment, I am conducting a survey solely for Generation Z’ers to determine how they spend money on their favorite social media trends and influencer brands. This survey will be given locally and globally. Once a substantial sample size is obtained, the data will my graphed and analyzed.
Future Presentations
In 2022, I plan to present to present at the PHS Three-Minute Thesis, Mercer County Science Fair, PHS Research Symposium, and in Rutgers Professor Kristina Durante’s Class.
Princeton High School Research 