Boomers Bring Big Bucks to Table

Don’t forget about the Boomers. I guess I’ve always been one of them, but my recent ascent (do you like that word choice?) into the 50-plus crowd has me more aligned with those born in the 1946 to1964 time period.

Anyway, some numbers from Nielsen suggest that the consumers of my generation are being ignored — and they shouldn’t be.

The Baby Boomers are 80 million strong. Yet despite their significant size and spending power, these high potential consumers have been largely unaddressed by marketers since they started to age out of the popular 18-49 cohort. In five years, 50% of the U.S. population will be 50-plus. These consumers spend close to half of all consumer-packaged-goods dollars yet less than 5% of advertising is geared toward them.

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

Boomers are not afraid of technology, making them accessible through digital media. They comprise one-third of all online users and one-third of all social media users. While slower to adopt new technologies, once a technology goes mainstream, Boomers buy in.

It’s clear that taking Boomers’ loyalty for granted, or forsaking them for being too loyal or set in their ways, are both risky approaches for marketers.