Baby boomersMulti channel marketingNewsOver 55’sTechnology

It’s a demographic that’s often ignored but Baby Boomers are an untapped source which Australian brands can’t afford to disregard. Here’s how ClubQT helps clients to harness the silver dollar.

There’s no denying that the Australian population is ageing thanks to an increased life expectancy and lower fertility rates. Neither is this a trend that’s showing signs of changing any time soon.

So while there are greater numbers of older consumers, figures also show that Baby Boomers own more assets and tend to have fewer demands on their time and pull on financial resources. This all adds up to one thing: more purchasing power.

Underrepresented and undervalued

Over-55s form a crucial part of the consumer market and will continue to control a large portion of Australia’s economy going forward but despite this, and the fact that their average consumer spend is growing year on year, a recent study revealed that 89 per cent do not believe that brands are interested in them making this a sector that’s not only underrepresented, but undervalued too.

This is a demographic that’s after cars and clothes, is interested in home renovations, travelling, dining out and catching the latest movie. They’re spending on technology and are concerned about health and fitness. What’s more they have the relative financial freedom to do so.

Turn silver into gold

So how can brands turn silver into gold? ClubQT’s Founder and Director, Mandy Sigaloff, says it all comes down to establishing trust and close relationships.
“ClubQT clients , Cotton Traders and Charles Tyrwhitt, successfully engage this audience with relevant fashion and offers, providing customer service in a way that’s appreciated,” she says. “Results are loyal customers who give personal recommendations and positive product reviews, and who become brand ambassadors in this market.

“Our success with helping clients market to the over-55s can be distilled into these three key strategies.”

  1. Use multi-channel marketing

    While technology usage is increasing, there’s still a significant proportion of over-55s for whom life is lived offline. This means that this market needs to be targeted in multiple ways. Use online marketing alone and you’ll miss out.

  2. Give them something familiar

    People trust what they know. This particular generation grew up receiving physical marketing material delivered to them by the postman. It’s what they feel comfortable with so why not use a tangible marketing source that they can hold in their hands, such as a catalogue, as part of your strategy? It works for them and they like it so put the ‘old-fashioned’ ways to good use.

  3. Personalise the experience

    The over-55s are used to personal customer service where they get to speak to a real, live person instead of the unfamiliar and untrusted (to them) automated or self-service customer service that is more than likely to be their experience these days.
    Adding a personal touch means they’ll remember their experience, and crucially your brand, in a positive way for a long time to come. Incorporating this all-important personal interaction with your brand could be as simple as a real person responding to customer inquiries with a phone call.

Technology and the over-55s

  • 68% own a smartphone.
  • Baby Boomers are the fastest growing demographic on YouTube.
  • 65% use Facebook to find content to consume – more than any other generation.
  • Silver surfers are more likely to spend more than 20 hours a week consuming content, compared to Millennials or Gen X.
  • Over-55s are more likely to use Bing (the default search engine on most new computers) rather than Google.

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