An article on the Stores magazine website, Five Things You Don't Know About Baby Boomers, suggests that retail marketers need to take a new open-eyed look and approach to communicating with this important consumer demographic.
The first change marketers need to make when it comes to understanding boomers is to recognize there are vast differences between an individual born in 1946 (the start of the boom) and 1964 (the end of it). While consumers in the front half of the generation are now thinking about traveling and gardening, those on the backend are still involved in raising kids. Interestingly, both younger and older boomers rate Wal-Mart as their preferred shopping destination.
While the majority of boomers are married, 34 percent are currently single. Of these 17 percent are divorced or separated, 14 percent have never been married and three percent are widows/widowers. Married boomers are more affluent, earning an average of $73,380 annually compared to $41,872 for their single counterparts. Single boomers represent a potential swing group for retailers since they are less likely to cite a preference for a favorite store than those who are married.
Boomers are big consumers of media. Ninety-five percent watch television, 87 percent use the internet (93 percent of those use it to do research), 76 percent listen to the radio, 68 percent read a weekly community newspaper and 57 percent read a daily.
While it's reasonable to think of boomers as the current grandparent generation, these nanas and pops do not fit the stereotype. The average age for a boomer grandparent is 53.4 years of age, according to Stores, and their lifestyle has them on the move. Thirty-five percent say they exercise at least three times a week while nearly 11 percent are planning to renovate their home in the next six months. They also plan to spend on their grandkids with toys for younger children and gift cards for older ones.
Finally, there are those people McKinsey researchers described as "U-Boomers." This group, all 24 million of them, is said to be unprepared for their retirement years and perhaps that's because they keep spending. Almost 25 percent of total U.S. consumption by 2015 is expected to come from these shoppers.
An article in Forbes described the U-Boomer challenge and opportunity. "As the economic clout of the cash-constrained, highly discriminating U-Boomers grows, companies will need to rethink how they deliver services while keeping prices down. Web-based tools that lower delivery costs while retaining a sense of personalization and high-end service are part of the solution. One of the fastest-growing usage segments for Skype's Internet videoconferencing is grandparents talking to their grandchildren."
Discussion Questions: What do you see as the most common disconnect between marketers and boomers? Where do you see the biggest opportunity for marketers to reach out to a given segment of the boomer generation?