Marketing to Baby Boomers
Generational marketing strategies can be a good way for organizations to improve connections with their target market. The four primary consumer demographics in the United States are Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, Millennials, and Gen Zers. Of these four generations, Baby Boomers and Millennials make up the lion’s share of the United States population. Generational science can inform marketers how to best communicate with a generation, as generations tend to share similarities in terms of lifestyles, priorities, and consumer behavior. These attitudes and behaviors are generally thought to stem from shared economic, political, and social experiences. Of course, generational observations evolve as demographics age and may not be entirely accurate for all generation members; however, understanding generational differences can help organizations improve the effectiveness of their marketing strategies.
Meet the Baby Boomers
Baby Boomers are the generation boom after the post-World War II baby boom - from 1946 until 1964. In 2021, Baby Boomers are approximately 57 to 75 years old. They are currently peaking in their career success, retiring, and becoming grandparents. In the United States, Baby Boomers account for approximately 71 million people. While closely trailed by Millennials, Baby Boomers currently make up the majority of spending in the U.S. economy. Yet, even though Baby Boomers dominate consumer spending, modern marketing discussion tends to ignore Baby Boomer markets in favor of younger demographics.
As a generation, Baby Boomer’s value system and outlook were influenced by post-war optimism, the Civil Rights Movement, the Beatles, the Kennedy Assassination, the Vietnam War, and the rise of television. Baby Boomers are often noted as being very busy people. Baby Boomers are working longer than any previous generation. Their outlook tends to focus more on the present than the past or the future. While not raised with personal computer access, Baby Boomers are rapidly embracing technology to connect with brands, revitalize dormant relationships, and explore communities. Baby Boomers make approximately 20 percent more online purchases than Millennials. Baby Boomers are noted as valuing convenience, value, and security when making purchasing decisions on and offline. Additionally, Baby Boomers are often characterized as being economically optimistic - a perspective influencing this generation’s consumer behavior.
7 Tips for Marketing to Baby Boomers
Use realistic images and videos.
Baby Boomers tend to respond best to realistic imagery versus highly edited pictures. While modern marketers may be inclined to utilize fantastical imagery in online advertising campaigns, Baby Boomers are looking for brand ambassadors and models that look like them - real people doing real things. Baby Boomers respond best when the advertisements reflect their lives - their challenges, concerns, and interests. Leveraging generation-specific influencers can be an excellent way to connect with Baby Boomer consumers.
Video marketing is very effective.
Over 50 percent of Baby Boomers watch videos online, making video marketing a viable tool for organizations interested in improving connections with this demographic. Facebook and Youtube are Baby Boomers’ preferred social media platforms for video consumption. Baby Boomers consume video content for entertainment and research purposes. Much of this online video content is viewed on mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablets. One significant benefit to investing in video content for advertising purposes is that these videos can easily be shared across multiple platforms via social media.
Write copy that informs consumers.
Baby Boomers are prolific online researchers of companies and products. They devour advertising copy and descriptions to compare offering features with alternatives. They respond best to straightforward copy written to inform consumers of the offerings’ features and differentiators. Highlighting how the offering enhances convenience, overall value, and security concerns of the Baby Boomer consumer can be an excellent way to build trust. Additionally, organizations should be careful not to use generation-specific slang, such as “IMHO,” “TBH,” and “TL;DR.”
Develop all marketing content for mobile devices.
Mobile device use dominates Baby Boomer web browsing preferences. Baby Boomers spend an average of five hours a day on their smartphones, which is just under the average time Millennials spend each day. When planning marketing content, organizations should develop all content for mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets are Baby Boomers’ primary access points to the internet. Ensuring all online content published by the organization is mobile-friendly should be a high priority in all marketing content development strategies.
Consider Baby Boomers’ perspectives on aging.
Baby Boomers are pioneering a new approach to aging. They do not ascribe to aging norms observed in previous generations. Instead of resigning themselves to a retired life devoid of activity, Baby Boomers tend to view aging as a customizable journey that offers lots of individual freedom. How this impacts marketing is that organizations should avoid using terms like “elderly,” “old,” or “senior citizen” in advertising copy. While these terms might have been appropriate in advertising for older generations, Baby Boomers are embracing a new approach to enjoying this stage in their lives.
Prioritize Facebook when marketing to Baby Boomers.
Baby Boomers are very active on social media. They use social media for a variety of reasons, including personal communications, networking, brand discovery, and consumer purchasing research. While Millennials and Gen Zers tend to dominate marketing discussions on social media, Baby Boomers are the fastest-growing segment of Facebook users in the United States. As a result, organizations seeking a stronger connection with Baby Boomers should prioritize Facebook as they plan upcoming marketing initiatives.
Ensure social media content is accessible to people living with disabilities.
By 2020, all of the Baby Boomers in the United States will be over the age of 65. As the demographic ages, the generation will see an increase in people with disabilities, including visual and hearing impairments. Therefore, organizations should work to ensure all online communications, including social media, are accessible to people with disabilities.
While there are many ways to improve the accessibility of online communications, here are a few general guidelines:
Make sure the font is readable. Avoid custom and cursive fonts. Keep all font size 16 point font or larger for improved readability.
Consider content contrast when designing online content. Avoid excessively bright colors, along with background/text color combinations that fail to provide adequate contrast.
Marketers that include alt-text and/or image descriptions within their organization’s social media content can help improve the accessibility for individuals with visual impairments.
Utilize video captions to assist people with hearing impairments in interacting with video and streamed content online.
All social media hashtags should be written in CamelCase. Hashtags in all lowercase or all uppercase are frequently used online; however, this format is challenging to read, both for individuals and screen reading technology.
Learn more about effective generational marketing strategies:
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