What do Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, “internet founder” Al Gore and an inbound marketing strategy all have in common? If you say computers, I’ll have to tell you that’s not all. They are all Baby Boomers and almost every organization has one or other product or service they want to sell to baby boomers. Jobs and Gates were both born in 1955 and Gore was born in 1948. Do you see the start of a conversation on a Baby Boomer inbound marketing strategy? Baby Boomers are not only the largest market segment today, they are also the market segment with the most dispensable income – in other words, they have money to spend!
So, the question is: Are you using the information available about this group in developing your baby boomers inbound marketing strategy? Baby Boomers are the forty-something-to-sixty-something crowd that are the most likely to have a reasonable amount of spending power and the insight on how to spend it. Just what do you know about them?
Did you know that the over-50 segment has $2.3 trillion in annual spending power and controls 50% of all discretionary income? Even more staggering is an unfolding demographic truth: more than 30 percent of Americans were over 50 in 2010. You certainly want to take these facts in to consideration when developing your inbound marketing strategy.
Of course, social media phenomena like Facebook and Twitter do tend to skew young. A 2010 report by eMarketer, for instance, found that 77% of Millennials maintained a social media profile compared to 36% of “Matures” (people between 63 and 75 years old, which pits many of them squarely in Boomer territory). But younger Boomers aren’t far behind: 46% had a social media profile at the time.—Todd Wasserman Nov 2011. Do you want to include social media in your inbound marketing strategy? You bet.
In order for an inbound marketing strategy to be successful it requires mastery of nuance and meaning. Linkages between a brand and nostalgic meaning must make sense. Further, all formative life experiences of a generation, from early childhood through young adulthood, have potential for development. Boomers possess a rich repertoire of shared experiences beyond those that occurred between 1967 and 1973. Potential nostalgic motivational triggers go way beyond Woodstock. And, as we know by now, boomers are also one of the highest qualified generations – seems to me they may just have a lust for all the content in your inbound marketing strategy!
Here are more important facts to help you plan your Baby Boomer inbound marketing strategy:
Size of the Boomer and Senior Markets:
- 77 million people were born between 1946 and 1964, which is defined as the baby boomer era (U.S. Census).
- The first baby boomer turned 60 on January 1, 2006.
- An American turns 50 every 7 seconds—that's more than 12,500 people every day (U.S. Census).
- As of 2009, 48 is the largest age group in the United States (U.S. Census).
Wealth of Baby Boomers and Seniors:
- 78 million Americans who were 50 or older as of 2001 controlled 67% of the country's wealth, or $28 trillion (U.S. Census and Federal Reserve).
- Households headed by someone in the 55-64 age group had a median net worth of $112,048 in 2000—15 times the $7,240 reported for the under 35 age group (U.S. Census and Federal Reserve).
- The 50+ have $2.4 trillion in annual income, which accounts for 42% of all after-tax income (U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey).
- Adults 50 and older own 65% of the aggregate net worth of all U.S. households (U.S. Consumer Expenditure Survey).
Spending Habits of Adults 50+:
- Adults 50+ account for an estimated $2 trillion in total expenditures for 2005.
- This group has $2.3 trillion in disposable income.
- By 2010, adults 45-years-old and older will out-spend younger adults by $1 trillion annually.
- 50% of baby boomers plan to buy a new home after retirement (Del Webb Survey).
- As of January 2007, baby boomers are 27% more likely than any other generations to embark on a major home improvement or repair in the next 6 months (Consumer Intentions and Actions Study).
- 96 percent of baby boomers participate in word-of-mouth or viral marketing by passing product or service information on to friends (ThirdAge and JWT Boom).
Online Habits of Adults 50+:
- One-third of the 195.3 million Internet users in the U.S., adults aged 50+ represent the Web's largest constituency (Jupiter Research).
- Two-thirds of Americans age 50-64 use the Internet (SeniorNet).
- Email is the most popular online activity among 50+ users, followed by web browsing, research, and shopping (ThirdAge and JWT Boom).
- 72% of baby boomers have broadband Internet in their homes (ThirdAge and JWT Boom).
- Adults 50+ spend an average of $7 billion online annually (SeniorNet).
- The Internet is the most important source of information for baby boomers when they make a major marketing purchase, such as automobiles or appliances (Zoomerang).
- 42% of all travel industry purchases happen online, and adults 50+ account for 80% of all luxury travel spending (Pew Internet and American Life Project).
- 82% of adults aged 50+ who use the Internet research health and wellness information online (Pew Internet and American Life Project).
- It had been predicted that by the end of 2007, the number of mature social networkers was expected to top 20 million (Deloitte).
- According to Pew, 79% of those between 50 and 64 are online. That's about 50 million (Pew Internet and American Life Project)!
What we see is a large segment of the US population that possesses considerable wealth, enjoys spending that wealth and is very comfortable online.
What do you think would be some components of a successful Baby Boomer inbound marketing strategy?
For more information:
- Inbound Marketing Strategy—Aiming for Your Target Market (broadvisionmarketing.com)
- Inbound Marketing—Targeting the Right Segment (broadvisionmarketing.com)
- Inbound Marketing—Targeting your Market Segment (broadvisionmarketing.com)
Jaco Grobbelaar is the owner of BroadVision Marketing. BroadVision Marketing works with business owners to put in place inbound and outbound marketing strategies that consistently secure new clients. The BroadVision Marketing Training Center is located in Petaluma, CA and primarily serves companies in the San Francisco Bay area.
Jaco can be reached at jaco@broadvisionmarketing.com or 707.766.9778 or connect with Jaco on Facebook - www.facebook.com/broadvisionmarketing - and LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/JacoGrobbelaar.