STEP ASIDE MILLENNIALS; IT’S TIME TO TARGET THE FORGOTTEN BABY BOOMERS
By Nicole Beatrice Gorelik
Many companies seem to market primarily to millennials since, according to one Accenture study, this group spends about $600 billion annually. Companies like Coke, with its “Share a Coke” campaign, Uber, with its convenient app, and Toms, with its “trendy cause,” are just three examples of products that have clearly made marketing to millennials their focus. Unfortunately, in their rush to engage one large demographic group, marketers all too frequently ignore another: Baby boomers.
According to Baby Boomer Magazine, up to 40 percent of total consumers are baby boomers. These 65 and up shoppers watch television more frequently than any other consumer segment, read newspapers more than other demographics do and are also progressively becoming more internet savvy.
Marketers have discovered unique ways to connect with this audience.
Such as targeting lifestyles instead of gender, sending out text ads, collaborating with consumers, staging promotional tours and even personalizing generic products.
In addition, because Generation Y is the first generation to be digitally connected on a constant basis, advertising to them is usually done with an emphasis on digital rather than print communications.
However, Baby Boomers are internet savvy too. Eighty percent go online frequently.
In fact, as many as 40 percent of seniors communicate via social media posts regularly with 85 percent texting as well as calling on their phones. Although baby boomers are not yet as active on these channels as millennials, their frequent use of technology means that marketers can successfully reach out to them digitally, too.
Boomers are turned off by a hard sell.
Rather, they react positively to a detailed explanation of how products work and why they’ll benefit them. Even more interesting, they want to know about the companies they are dealing with. When doing research on a company or product, boomers are more likely to read an “about” page on a website than their children or grandchildren. Because a staggering 80 percent use the Internet several times to research products before making a purchase, it is important that advertisers keep their sites informative and up-to-date. This can a crucial difference in marketing successfully to baby boomers.
Refrain from implying that boomers are “old.”
For example, seeing an ad on the side of the computer screen for an anti-aging cream to reduce wrinkles isn’t the best way to advertise to boomers. But if the same company positions its product as a way to look as young as you feel, the consumer reaction will be a far more positive one.
Understanding demographic mindsets is a Crux Creative specialty.
Whatever the market you want to appeal to most, we’ll help you speak their language. We take great pride in creating copy content that is easy to read and appealing to all ages while our social media campaigns and blogs are always developed to be relevant to the needs and interests of specific markets. We’d love to talk to you about how you can expand your market appeal to both millennials and their parents and grandparents. Call 414 -289-7180 any time for a free consultation.
—– ABOUT THE AUTHOR —-
Nicole Beatrice Gorelik
Nicole is a junior at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. She’s studying advertising and public relations and is passionate about writing, women’s rights, politics and spoken word poetry. After graduation, she hopes to work full time developing marketing communications for clients and causes she genuinely cares about.
