Although Adobe's services are frequently utilized by graphic designers and businesses that tend to be older than Gen Z, it still makes sense for them to appeal to a younger audience. Firstly, Adobe offers student discounts, making their tools more accessible to young learners. Secondly, as Gen Z increasingly enters the workforce, particularly in creative fields, engaging this demographic early can foster brand loyalty and ensure Adobe remains a preferred choice among the next generation of professionals.

They do this well in this simple tutorial of how to design a custom cake decoration using Photoshop. It is easy to follow and doesn't have a lot of steps. There is a lot going on onscreen, which can be appealing to the increasing amount of TikTok users with a shorter attention span. Also the example of the cake in the video shows a picture of a dinosaur, with the caption "You Are Old". This random, meme-like humour often appeals to Gen Z. The video's success is evident, boasting over 8 million views and this is Adobe's TikTok at it's best.

Where they sometimes fall flat however is when some of their tutorials start to feel like ads. For instance, in this video, there is music in the background and the way the woman in the video speaks sounds rehearsed. The whole thing is very polished, which, as I have mentioned, is great for some platforms. However, when posting on TikTok, it shouldn’t be the only form of content one shares, because authenticity is key on TikTok.

What we would suggest is for them to post some tutorials which are more candid. For instance, to have just the creator chatting next to a simple screenrecording to show the steps. They could feature their creators at home, maybe with vlog style clips or with a short storytime of their day that coincides with the tutorial. This adds context and makes the video more personal. Furthermore, featuring the same few creators in the tutorials helps to enhance the intimate connection between the brand and the viewer.

Another Adobe online success story was their collaboration with Kat Dennings, a famous actress, to promote some of their new AI features. Dennings is charismatic, funny and attracts viewers because of her celebrity status. What Adobe also gets right (and where a lot of companies miss the mark) is that the video dimensions are TikTok friendly, aka vertical instead of horizontal. Especially with higher-production videos, companies often just post the horizontal version to TikTok or Instagram Reels without any editing or cropping. This either makes the video vertical and therefore look tiny when watched on a phone, or so zoomed in that it crops important parts out. Therefore, it is important to tailor video's dimensions to the platform that they are being posted on.

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"Utilize Influencer Marketing, host giveaways and competitions to nurture your community on TikTok "

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Another way Adobe could utilize celebrity status is by having influencers host giveaways or competitions for them. Firstly, this increases engagement and UGC or User Generated Content, if for example the competition asks followers to post what they have created using Adobe software. UGC is, as the name says, content which is posted about a specific brand by everyday users and is a great way for companies to authentically expand their follower base. Additionally, being hosted by a well-known influencer would help reach more viewers, and by choosing an influencer instead of a 'traditional' celebrity will ensure to reach a bigger Gen Z audience.

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Key Takeaways

- Random humor based on memes generally comes across well with Gen Z

- Film tutorials in a vlog-like and conversational way to come across more authentic

- Make sure video dimensions match the platform they are featured on

- Competitions and Giveaways are great for generating UGC

- Featuring famous influencers and celebrities brings in more viewers