Thought you all might be interested in this:

Booming Boomers

A new report by Nielsen, the “Most Valuable Generation,” in collaboration with BoomAgers, shows that in five years, 50% of the U.S. population will be 50+. These consumers spend close to 50% of all CPG dollars, yet less than 5% of advertising is geared towards them.

These high potential consumers have been largely unaddressed by marketers and advertisers since they started to age out of the popular 18-49 cohort.

In the next five years, Boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, are set to control 70% of the disposable income in the U.S., and they stand to inherit $15 trillion in the next 20 years. As they age out of the work force, 67% of Boomers plan to spend more time on their hobbies and interests, moving from a life of making money to one that is spending money.

Taking their loyalty for granted, or forsaking them for being too loyal or set in their ways, are both risky approaches for marketers, opines the report. Boomers represent:

• 33% of all online users
• 33% of all social media and Twitter users
• 33% are heavy Internet users
  

• 49% (nearly $230 billion) of total CPG sales
• 44% of the U.S. population
• 70% of U.S. disposable income
• 40% of customers paying for wireless service and
• 41% of those purchasing Apple computers.
  

This is great Trudy! I shared with the owner of my company. We mainly target our marketing to Military wives but I think we need to shift our focus more to the moms of the soldiers, they would have more disposable income.

this is  so  true….and  they have the   connections  to  younger and  older  groups  too….good info  trudy… @trudyd1474 they have always  been  huge for us…and  still are…they are  using  social media too….   even  tho its a little harder for  them..

Great informaton, thanks for this post!

… And Roll.

Thanks @trudyd1474, great article.

I totally agree, @trudyd1474!  In fact, one of my clients focuses strictly on Baby Boomers in her business.  Her target audience is Boomers who live in the Northeast who want to relocate to the Southeast when they retire, or who are purchasing a second or vacation home in the Southeast.  She did a huge amount of research into this market before she got started, and she’s had an enormous amount of success with it so far, based on exactly the kind of things you mention here.

I did some research recently for a piece I wrote for her on how Baby Boomers use social media, and there were some interesting findings very similar to some of the things you mention, so when I talk to 25 year olds who assume those 50+ don’t know how to use (and enjoy!) social media, I just have to laugh.  : )

Well Don, if any of you felt like retiring and letting in Gen X and Gen Y to good high paying jobs (instead of shipping those overseas to maximize your investment portfolio) we’d be happy to move out – until then, can I borrow $20 bucks for gas?

@trudyd1474- Yes Baby Boomers are a huge market. Many people don’t realize that this market is who you want to market to if your product or service makes sense to them. I like the informaiton you have provided and I am going to create a submarket for my business. I would suspect that a portion of the 100 million that are here, 20% own businesses? Wonder where their are stats on this.. I know I am not far behind this boom… or I mean explosion.. Thanks for allowing me re-think my strategy for my videos and my marketing for 2013 and beyond.

@trudyd1474 I’m proud to be a boomer! @jasonreilly Lol!

I did start my own business, but I’m avoiding loans and venture capital, so I work full time as well!

Actually I have a meeting with my partners coming up to figure out a way for all of us to expand. We’ve got a lot of pent up demand for another service we could be offering, but haven’t had the time to figure out how to exploit the opportunity properly. Now is that time! Carpe diem!

Actually, and to bring this back on target, baby boomers are an important demographic for spending, but I would seriously question that their disposable income or overall wealth metrics are going to translate directly (1:1) or even closely (1:2 – 1:5) in spending. As their population grows, so to does medical care and costs, which can usually consume the vast majority of a retirees income. Baby boomers aren’t stupid, they know what is coming as they get older and don’t live in denial. As a result, and with our current political environment, I’d expect very conservative spending habits to emerge.

At the same time, younger generations will be long term marketing investments. One of the biggest threats in the Credit Union space is the older age of our membership (averaging at 47 now). Older members do not take out loans, and usually don’t spend their money. They instead get money markets, CDs, and other such investment instruments through other firms. As a result their money is getting tied up as they seek to live off of interest instead of liquid cash.

Anyway, just some Thursday afternoon procrastination!

Jason

@jasonreilly good luck on  your  venture!!!   all i  can advise  is   dont  go  for  follow  your  dream…go  for  wheres the beef…as in   the  cold hard  facts…  what they want and what they will pay…we never had a safety net and i  think that  probably  helped…  but some  good  decisions and  serendipity helped   too….

i think as a group  lots of   bb  s  do have   money to spend… here anyway….more than a young mom with  kids and her  dh in  a non union  job…

@prestonodenbrett Thank you for the offer, but I’m not high enough on the food chain! I work in our marketing department, and our products/rates are controlled by a committee, and everything we do is usually in line with NCUA (National Credit Union Administration) regulations and requirements. We’re HEAVILY regulated. I can’t even run picture contests! But thank you – I appreciate the offer.

@annfurnivall Ann, thank you! We’re actually working on a new strategy and tactical playbook for the next six months. We’re networking heavily, building prospect lists, and starting to make some calls to potential distribution sites. Baby boomers do have money to spend, no doubt about it, but capturing brand loyalty in a younger generation does help as they get older.

@don-grandy Wow! It is a TOTAL coincidence that I put the rent check in the mail too. Hopefully neither one gets lost lol