Boomer Buyers Are Tightening Their Belts - You Can Help Them Loosen Up While Boosting Your Profits
Boosting Your Profits Despite the "Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy" With massive hits to retirement portfolios and postponed retirement plans, Baby Boomers are tightening their belts and increasing their savings.
A Business Week cover story last summer highlighted the "Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy.
" Many businesses were preparing for the effects of the retirement of 79 million Boomers, as a gradual decline in spending over an 18 year period.
The economic meltdown slammed hard and creative businesses have scrambled to rethink their business models.
Offer Style at a Steal to Win More Boomer Business Despite the economy, people still have needs, wants, passions and problems.
Savvy businesses are figuring out ways to offer reasonably priced products and services to Baby Boomers that help this proud generation still feel good about themselves.
How can you continue to attract Boomer buyers to your business? If you try to sell Boomers 'cheap' stuff that will make them feel bad about their situation, you are going to lose them.
However, if you downscale cleverly through design, i.
e.
"Cheap Chic" (think Target, IKEA and JetBlue), you'll help maintain Boomers' pride while boosting profits.
Even before the economy tanked, Boomers went to great lengths to find "style at a steal" and were happy to boast about their finds.
Don't forget, this is a generation that grew up trying to 'outsmart the system' and will continue wanting to do so.
Today, buying 'green' is considered both smart and chic.
Boomers flock to companies that help a cause-the environment, breast cancer, health concerns, etc.
So spend some time thinking about:
Consider the demographics.
There are 1/3 more Baby Boomers than the upcoming Generation X (born between 1964 and 1980).
Although Generation Y is 81 million strong, currently 14% are unemployed and will be digging out of debt for a long time.
The bottom line? Boomers are going to continue to be the lifeblood of many companies for years to come.
Create Marketing With Relevance While you are reaching out to the Baby Boomer market, don't forget to keep your marketing relevant.
Despite what you see on TV ads, Boomers do not want to be portrayed acting like 20 year olds.
Here are a couple of suggestions from the online version of Business Week's article: Use age appropriate models doing age appropriate things.
Healthy, active, engaged yes.
But hanging out with scantily clothed hotties on the beach raising beer glasses while showing off your 'Touch of Gray' nada! If consumers over 50 buy more than 50% of your inventory and you advertise your product as being for 'everyone', such as Honda's Prius, "the hybrid for everyone," be sure to include at least ONE or TWO people over 30 in your ads.
Think hard about the messages you send on your packaging.
Yes, incontinence is a delicate and embarrassing malady but is Depend winning any fans by offering cutesy pink for women and toddler blue for men...
? Avoid language that suggests Baby Boomers are all 'throw-backs' or has-beens.
This is an active, engaged and highly educated generation.
Clever companies (like yours!) are going to reap the benefits of adjusting to the current economic climate and helping meet those needs.
A Business Week cover story last summer highlighted the "Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy.
" Many businesses were preparing for the effects of the retirement of 79 million Boomers, as a gradual decline in spending over an 18 year period.
The economic meltdown slammed hard and creative businesses have scrambled to rethink their business models.
Offer Style at a Steal to Win More Boomer Business Despite the economy, people still have needs, wants, passions and problems.
Savvy businesses are figuring out ways to offer reasonably priced products and services to Baby Boomers that help this proud generation still feel good about themselves.
How can you continue to attract Boomer buyers to your business? If you try to sell Boomers 'cheap' stuff that will make them feel bad about their situation, you are going to lose them.
However, if you downscale cleverly through design, i.
e.
"Cheap Chic" (think Target, IKEA and JetBlue), you'll help maintain Boomers' pride while boosting profits.
Even before the economy tanked, Boomers went to great lengths to find "style at a steal" and were happy to boast about their finds.
Don't forget, this is a generation that grew up trying to 'outsmart the system' and will continue wanting to do so.
Today, buying 'green' is considered both smart and chic.
Boomers flock to companies that help a cause-the environment, breast cancer, health concerns, etc.
So spend some time thinking about:
- what causes your business can support
- what products you can create at a lower cost
- how you can offer services that allow Boomers to stay within a budget while still feeling pampered.
- Nordstrom's lower priced Rack Stores offer fashion at a discount offering their usual brand names at 35 - 70% off the main store prices.
- Outback Steakhouse has reduced prices and offers smaller cuts of beef.
- Starwood Hotels has created two "cheap chic" chains-'Aloft' to echo the 'urban cool' of loft apartments and 'Element' with a more suite like set up.
These lower priced options come without full service restaurants, room service or valets. - Vera Wang is creating high end dresses with fabrics that cost 50% less than their usual.
- BMW offers the Mini Cooper at a $15,000 savings over the fully loaded BMW 3 Series.
Consider the demographics.
There are 1/3 more Baby Boomers than the upcoming Generation X (born between 1964 and 1980).
Although Generation Y is 81 million strong, currently 14% are unemployed and will be digging out of debt for a long time.
The bottom line? Boomers are going to continue to be the lifeblood of many companies for years to come.
Create Marketing With Relevance While you are reaching out to the Baby Boomer market, don't forget to keep your marketing relevant.
Despite what you see on TV ads, Boomers do not want to be portrayed acting like 20 year olds.
Here are a couple of suggestions from the online version of Business Week's article: Use age appropriate models doing age appropriate things.
Healthy, active, engaged yes.
But hanging out with scantily clothed hotties on the beach raising beer glasses while showing off your 'Touch of Gray' nada! If consumers over 50 buy more than 50% of your inventory and you advertise your product as being for 'everyone', such as Honda's Prius, "the hybrid for everyone," be sure to include at least ONE or TWO people over 30 in your ads.
Think hard about the messages you send on your packaging.
Yes, incontinence is a delicate and embarrassing malady but is Depend winning any fans by offering cutesy pink for women and toddler blue for men...
? Avoid language that suggests Baby Boomers are all 'throw-backs' or has-beens.
This is an active, engaged and highly educated generation.
Clever companies (like yours!) are going to reap the benefits of adjusting to the current economic climate and helping meet those needs.
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