Demographics are only part of the segmentation picture for successful marketing. More important is understanding the key life-stages for your customer & prospect.
Put emphasis on life-stage & cohort marketing
Your customers often have life-stage issues in common that do not totally line up with traditional age-based demographics, since age-related life-stage events have evolved over the past couple of decades.
- One of the best examples of this is the “grandparent segment”. This is no longer the sole province of people in their 60s, 70s or 80s. It often includes both single and married people in their 40s and 50s.
- In contrast, another life-stage change is the large increase in the number of people delaying parenthood into their late 30s and 40s, adopting children into their 50s, or raising their grandchildren as their own.
- Each cohort brings its own unique, characteristic approach to purchasing & consuming.
Screenshot of an eBook published by and available at Grandparents.com
Pay attention to appropriate visuals
There is a common visual message that engages and interests life-stage connected consumers.
- Lifestyle photos beat product photos for all but the oldest, most highly educated cohort.
- A clearly defined, single image is more appealing to those over 60, whereas younger consumers are intrigued by cropped and collage images.
- “Older adults are more persuaded by emotional, and not rational, advertisements regardless of their product category” according to leading researcher at the Wharton School of Business, Patti Williams.
- Show multi-aged grandparents engaging in activities with their grandchildren.
- Make sure your images represent nearly every older cohort engaging in active, vibrant activities.
Stay on top of the Research (or trust us to do it for you)
What was true 10 years ago just isn’t true today. You need to stay on top of the research about this older demographic. One of the more current publications that makes use of solid data is The Grandparent Economy: A Study of the Population, Spending Habits and Economic Impact of Grandparents in the United States.
Source: Estimated spending by 2009 grandparent households on selected items calculated from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics annual Consumer Expenditure Surveys (2007).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau estimates & projections and 2004 Survey of Income & Program Participation.
What have YOU learned about your older audience segments lately? We’d love to open up this discussion — share your experiences in the Comments section below, or get in touch for coaching about the challenges you’re facing.
Bob and Amanda
