Boomers – spanning 20 years, are at various life stages with needs for products and services. One More Reason Why Marketers Still Need to Target Boomers

Though marketers are tempted to lump all Baby Boomers together in one demographic, it is critical to realize that spanning 20 years from leading edge to trailing edge Boomers, they are not all the same. Categorized as being born from 1946 - 1964, the 40-somethings don't really see themselves as relating to the Boomers turning 65 and vice versa as illustrated in a commentary to Matt Thornhill, Boomer Project founder/president. And even within one age demographic, like the larger segment of the audience in their mid - 50's, there can be Boomers with young children or teenagers right through having grandchildren. Not to mention those already taking care of their parents. The key is to focus on life stage no matter what the age and since they're not brand loyal (as described in our last post), there's plenty of opportunity for new marketers and new products or services to catch Boomers' attention. You just have to appeal to what's going on in their lives now and not focus on their age.


Source:  MediaPost Engage:Boomers Blog, article by Matt Thornhill

(On January 1, 2011, the first of the Baby Boom generation begins to turn 65. While marketers have traditionally viewed anyone over 49 as over the hill, there are compelling reasons why overlooking Boomers isn’t smart for business. During the course of the next few weeks, we’ll be highlighting 65 of those reasons.)

Boomers – not brand loyal and are more ready and willing to make a switch. One More Reason Why Marketers Still Need to Target Boomers

Commonly thought to be set in their ways, Baby Boomers are more likely than Gen-x and Gen y to experiment with new products. Boomers are more likely to place importance on perceived benefits such as price, value and customer service, where younger generations are more likely to focus on style and prestige. Consumers in all groups say they will switch brands and pay more to get a product that better meets their needs.

A  Nielsen/Hallmark study updated information on Boomer spending power and compared brand loyalty measures by product across Boomers and younger demographics. Boomer households represented more than 50% of sales in 98 of the 122 product categories analyzed, accounting for almost $200 billion in total sales in those categories.
Yet, despite the fact that the average Boomer share of those categories was 53%, some advertisers do not target Boomers with their media strategy, instead concentrating dollars on younger consumers with the intent of wooing loyal lifetime customers.

Are you targeting the Baby Boomer audience? Is your brand message resonating with them and drawing them in? 

Source: Nielsen

(On January 1,2011, the first of the Baby Boom generation begins to turn 65. While marketers have traditionally viewed anyone over 49 as over the hill, there are compelling reasons why overlooking Boomers isn’t smart for business. During the course of the next few weeks, we’ll be highlighting 65 of those reasons.)