With the number of baby boomers increasing steadily the question companies should be asking themselves is “are we hitting the mark when it comes to marketing to baby boomers”? For some reason by the age of 55 many boomers seem to drop off a marketer’s radar even though boomers control more than $2 trillion in annual spending. Boomers are known to try new brands and products based on their need and may have less brand loyalty. With boomers, it’s not about age; it’s about being able to see themselves in those brands and products. They feel disconnected from a lot of the brands that they helped make successful, like Levi’s and Gap. This may make it a little harder to market to this group along with not fully understanding how they use technology and social media today.
“As Baby Boomers are aging and accumulating wealth, their spending is growing at a pace that’s leaving younger generations far behind. Spending by the 116 million U.S. consumers age 50 and older was $2.9 trillion last year — up 45% in the past 10 years. Meanwhile, the 182 million people younger than 50 spent $3.3 trillion last year — up just 6% during the same decade, according to an analysis for USA TODAY of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by The Boomer Project.” Big Spending Baby Boomers
When I look at the marketing that seems to be focused on baby boomers it’s less about brand choices for daily living and more about hair color products, health gadgets and medications (such as Natural Instincts hair color, Medical Alert Electronic Bracelet, and Cymbalta). Just because a persons age is increasing doesn’t mean that their energy is decreasing. Many boomers are busy today getting married later in life, becoming empty nesters, prolonging retirement, remarrying, becoming grandparents or even starting a second career. Boomers help to make decisions for three generations – themselves, their children and their parents. It’s imperative to continue marketing to them!
Last week the group of AARP, in collaboration with Advertising Age and Google, held a conference ADVantage: The 50+ Individual, to understand how to better serve, inform and engage Americans 50 and over. This collaborative group is exploring how to respond to the baby boomer (50+) population and its evolving needs, responsibilities, and aspirations. While I think this is a good start I believe that there is much more that can be done to connect with the baby boomers online through new marketing campaigns. Will it be someone from Century College that breaks into a “booming” marketing model targeted at one of the largest spending demographics today?
3 Responses
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Shelly Wagner Says:
First of all, love the comic!
I also really liked your article. I think a lot of us miss the mark on the 55+ age bracket. When you look at how long people are living, the 40s are no longer middle aged – that is moving into the 50s. People are living until they are in the 80s, even 100s. There is still plenty of time to build loyal customers once you understand their needs. Definitely something to consider, afterall, age is just a number.
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Stephen Kelly Says:
This is a great article. Lynn always talks the boomers, and for good reason! Many of them are weathering this recession better than any others, and from a marketing perspective, it just seems like good practice to have a clear understanding of what they want.
A little off-topic, but Rebecca Black has eclipsed 100 million Youtube views. I wonder how many of those are boomers.
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Judelia Says:
I’m not sure if marketers are hitting the mark for boomers or not…. but this statement from the blog article, “Boomers help to make decisions for three generations – themselves, their children and their parents” says it all!
IF the mark is missed – there will be big losses and big loosers! The proof will will be in the profit/loss statements! And for some… it’ll be too late!
