Boomers are reshaping the travel industry. – One More Reason Why Marketers Still Need to Target Boomers

As they have with everything aspect of popular culture Baby Boomers are in the process of reshaping the travel industry. They want vacations that are enriching, authentic, that incorporate learning and above all, unique. Boomers have moved away from the travel agent and have embraced the net when researching a vacation. Social media is now playing a major role in their decision making process as a new form of “word of mouth.”

The travel industry needs to take a close look at the travel selections Boomers make and how they go about planning their trips if they plan on being competitive with group. Boomers are a huge demographic and like with every other aspect of their lives will be the trendsetters for the travel industries.

Source:  Heather on Her Travels, AARP, Travel Insights 100

(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: the New Social Networking Mavens – One of Our 65 Reasons Why Marketers Still Need to Target Boomers

According to the good folks at the Pew Research Center, social networking use among internet users ages 50 and older has nearly doubled—from 22% to 42% over the past year. In fact, almost half (47%) of internet users ages 50-64 and one in four (26%) users age 65 and older now use social networking platforms to help manage their daily communications—sharing links, photos, videos, news, and status updates with a growing network of contacts.

The growth rate of younger users pales in comparison with that of Boomers and seniors.
Between April 2009 and May 2010, internet users ages 50-64 who said they use a social networking site like MySpace, Facebook or LinkedIn grew 88% and those ages 65 and older grew 100% in their adoption of the sites. That compares with a growth rate of 13% for those ages 18-29.

So much for those who say Boomers won’t try new things!

Source: Pew Research Center