Baby Boomer Insights

Who's reading publications for Geezers, Elders, and Grands? Supposedly Boomers... or are they?

This week's Business Week magazine asks the question, "Do Baby Boomers really want to be reminded of their age?" The story goes on to point out the recent proliferation of magazines and web sites targeted to Boomers and wonders if they'll last.

Yes and No. The sites and publications that focus on what Boomers care about will do just fine. Those that tie everything to aging will fold pretty quickly.  I've been surprised by some of the titles that have come out, such as ELDR, a magazine that debuted in July for 60-somethings. I don't know that I'd want to be seen buying a magazine by that name, nor would I leave it on the coffee table next to my current Newsweek, which features the fascinating Facebook founder.

Geezer Jock, on the other hand, makes me laugh,  so it doesn't come across as offensive... and it's not. Most of the stories in it are focused on mature athletes. In other words, Jocks, folks who still still exercise, compete and enjoy actively participating in various sports. (Did you know, by the way, that Boomers make up HALF the U.S. Tennis Association and more than half of the U.S. Rowing Association?).

Boomers don't suddenly change their reading habits when they pick up their new bi-focals. We don't wake up and decide to put down People, Newsweek, Fast Company just because someone decided to slap a bunch of targeted ads between glossy covers and call it a day. Flip though any of these new magazines and you'll find ads about investments, real estate, drugs, and at-home medical devices. Do we care? Sure, we care about those topics, but not necessarily more than we care to know about new beauty products, fashion, vacation getaways and tips on pet ownership.

And if I see one more magazine with a cover that screams "60 is the new 40!" or something similar, I'll rip it up right there in the bookstore. Why should 60 be anything other than 60? What's wrong with being whatever age you are? Age isn't the point anyway. Boomers read what's interesting to them. We don't need to have it censored, filtered, or dumbed down (though, admittedly, a bigger type font works nicely, thank you).

I predict greater success for online Boomer publications and social networking sites, in part because Boomers are increasingly spending time online doing research and sharing information. Being able to access information on demand, in private, is just more appealing all the way around than standing in line at the bookstore to buy a title that advertises our age group. Hopefully, these new publications will at least be on recyclable paper so when we toss them we can feel good about our pro-environmental efforts!

Boomers as volunteers: take advantage of our skills and need to connect outside of work

I had the good fortune last week to speak at an annual event for the National Arthritis Foundation (an Edelman client). Hundreds of staff from chapters around the country had come together to discuss ways to keep people interested in volunteering their time and efforts on behalf of the organization in the upcoming year and beyond.

One thing is for sure: targeting Boomers should certainly be a priority. After all, we are volunteering in droves these days. In fact, no other age group volunteers more, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Just over a third of Boomers volunteered for organizations in 2005 (that's four percentage points above the national average). We want to give back and we're looking for opportunities to do so. But here's the thing - Boomers have certain expectations when it comes to volunteering. We don't just show up and ask what we can do. We bring the same attitude, energy and skills to our volunteer efforts that we do/did to our jobs; consequently, we want to feel like we matter.

Want to recruit Boomers for your volunteer force? Keep these tips in mind:

1. Offer flexible opportunities. Since Boomers love to travel and like to be involved in many different activities, we're looking for organizations that let us work on projects with specific beginning and ending dates. Most of us aren't willing to be "on call."

2. Don't forget we don't have to be there. Since volunteerism is, well, voluntary, we expect our time to be used wisely. Don't just give us a list of things to do. Ask us how we'd like to contribute and consider our suggestions. Take advantage of our skills and organizational abilities in the workplace. They usually translate well in the nonprofit world too.

3. Tap into our passion. Most of us have been activists for some time now. We care about politics and as a rule we're pretty up on the social issues of the day. Don't hand us a list of donors to call or envelopes to stuff. Make the most of our interests. Never let us feel our time is being wasted.

4. Use us to help recruit others. Boomers are big on using word-of-mouth to let others know what they like and dislike. Need more recruits? Ask Boomers who are effective volunteers to suggest others who might help. If we support what you're doing, we'll tell our friends. To that end, consider creating opportunities for us to volunteer right alongside our friends.

5. Offer us training, but know what you're doing. Boomers, generally speaking, are skilled and well educated. If you want to offer training, make sure you use effective learning models that appeal to us. After all, most of us are used to participating in corporate training and conferences designed specifically for adult learning, so we're used to the best.

BONUS TIP:

6. Find opportunities for us to volunteer with our grandchildren.  We like to be with them, plus we enjoy teaching them our value system.

With school going back into session across the country, now is a good time to look for Boomer volunteers. After all, many of us are already looking for projects to do now that primary vacation time is over and the kids will soon be talking about fulfilling their community service requirements at school.

Selling clothes designed specifically for Boomer women: Will Ann Taylor come to our rescue?

I have never really liked to shop for myself. I usually end up frustrated and tired, so when I do shop, I tend to "power shop," visiting favorite stores and sticking with specific brands. I know that there are certain brands that I can wear without even trying them on, so I tend to gravitate to those first, bypassing everything else. More than half the time, I buy clothes without darkening the doors of the dressing room.

That's why I was thrilled to learn from my friend, Lisa Aldisert, a NY-based trend watcher and futurist/consultant, that Ann Taylor is going after the Boomer market. She sent me this link to a NY Times story that speculates that the Ann Taylor chain will bring to market in late 2008 a new line of stores that specialize in clothes for women over 35.

It's about time, isn't it? I have long been a huge fan of  the Jones New York brand because the quality is good, the clothes are conservative, but practical, and I can buy them off the rack without torturing myself in a dressing room.  If it's true that the new head of the Ann Taylor Boomer line is the former chief merchandising officer of Jones Apparel Group, I predict good times ahead.

It makes sense to go after Boomer women. After all, we have money and tend to like clothes that are fashionable, but not trendy and conservative without being boring. Boomer women have long been ignored by fashion designers, in my opinion. We're expected to adapt to the clothes that are designed for 20 and 30-somethings. Why is that everywhere else in business, the business adapts to the people with the money, rather than the other way around?

Frankly, I'm not interested in trying to look younger by balancing on 4-inch heels and squirming into an outfit that, regardless of its lovely look, is clearly not meant to be worn by someone with my body type. Who am I to give others laugh lines, anyway?

According to the Times, Boomers spend $43 billion a year on apparel. No wonder there appears to be room for a specialty store to serve our needs. I'd offer my friends at Ann Taylor a piece of advice, though: don't lump all Boomer women into the same pile. We vary as much as colors and whites or plaids and stripes. 60-year-old Boomer women and 45-year-old Boomer women don't necessary want the same styles, even though, demographically, we're in the same age group.

Expect to see retailers rush to serve Boomer women now, especially if Ann Taylor is successful. Already,  Gap,  Chicos and Talbots are seen as tough competitors in the casual wear category, but right now, I think it's anyone's game to win. I'll be following this development closely and will keep you posted. Don't look for me in a dressing room though. I'll be the one at the cash register tapping my pen in an effort to get the clerk to move a little quicker so I can get done and move on to the one thing I do like to shop for: ice cream!

Don't make assumptions about Boomers you see on a college campus

Saturday marked a real milestone in this Boomer's life. We moved our youngest daughter, Sydney, into her dorm at Georgia College & State University (exactly one week after moving our oldest daughter, Katy, into her new apartment, where she'll finish out her senior year at the University of Georgia). So, at 7 p.m., Ralph and I officially became "empty nesters."

After seven grueling hours of hard physical labor in 105 degree heat (which produced a heat index of 115), we were wiped out. The first thing we did was go to a bar, where we ordered a couple of cold drinks and toasted our new status. Then we had a nice dinner and headed straight to our lake house. With about 30 minutes of daylight left, we made  margaritas and went for a long sunset ride.

I don't usually like to be out on the water when it's dark. But this time it felt great. The air had cooled, I was in the bow (a rare occurrence, since that's where the girls always want to ride), and our white German Shepherd, Zoe, sat ride beside me with her head in my lap as if she knew I needed someone to mother in that moment. It was a perfect way to relax and reflect on the day.

Seeing the lake and surrounding houses at night gave me a whole different perspective  on Lake Sinclair and its shoreline. Everything looked different than it does in the light of day and yet I liked the newness and mystery of it all... much the way I feel about being an empty nester.

As I got to thinking about the day, it also  hit me that I had seen a true microcosm of Boomer-hood. Sydney's roommate's parents are also Boomers whose two sons have already graduated from college and their daughter was the last to leave home. They are already grandparents, in fact. Meanwhile, next door were young Boomers who were moving in their oldest child, accompanied by a middle school-aged girl in braces and a  son I guessed to be about 16, judging from his surliness and the conspicuous white ear buds. We also met a sixty-ish couple moving in their grandchild, whom they had raised.

In another environment, one could look at all these adults and see that we are demographically the same - Boomers, all born between 1946 and 1964. But each of us is at a different stage of our lives with perhaps entirely different obligations, desires and goals. See? It's hard - and unwise - to try and pin down a Boomer.  We defy age in the sense that, as I just noted, our age may just be the only thing  we have in common. Wise marketers create programs that appeal to a psychographic, not a demographic.

If you're thinking about targeting Boomers for a new product or service, seek the advice of  companies that specialize in reaching this category. Otherwise, you can spin a lot of wheels and spend a lot of money and get nowhere. You may just discover your target market is considerably smaller than you expected!

Finally! We've reached the midpoint of Boomer-hood!

Any idea what's so special about August, 2007? It's when we reach the midpoint of the 78 million Boomers reaching age 50. That's significant (at least to me, anyway, since I turned 50 this year). While much has been written about the fact that the first Boomers turned 60 in 2006, we haven't seen quite so much attention given to the younger Boomers.

The fact is, the first group of Boomers, born in 1946, are actually among the smallest batch of Boomers. The real boom came in 1957 and 1958, the biggest birth years for this generation. Why, then, do we continually see stories about retiring Boomers draining the workforce and Social Security benefits by retiring? Just wait til 2008 when the oldest Boomers turn 62! The headlines will grow in font size and the stories will become even more exaggerated!

Most Boomers won't even retire at age 62 - if they retire at all - so I'm not sure what all the excitement is about. Historically, there has been a correlation between when people retire and how long they live. Our parents could expect to live to be about 75; hence, they typically retired at 65. No so for Boomers. We expect to live well into our 80's,  so retirement doesn't seem quite so attractive right now. Besides, we aren't exactly known for our remarkable ability to save money, so many Boomers can't afford to stop working any time soon.

What's the point? Simply this: it's critical that marketers resist the urge to lump all Boomers into a single category. We're still very much the "Me Generation" that defies  generalization for the most part. We won't work - or retire - or consume - or grandparent - or vacation - or anything else - like the generations before us. Creating a marketing campaign aimed at "all Boomers" is a huge mistake that can be costly to your company and irritating to your targeted consumers.

The "leading edge Boomers " (who started celebrating their 60th birthdays last year) will back me up on this: we're a hard group to pin down. Don't look for a long line of Boomers at the Social Security office.

And as for us midpoint Boomers: bring it on. We'll be with you a while.  Just do the math: we'll turn 65 in 2022, a full 15 years from now. And even then we're as likely to be starting a new career as ending an old one.

So happy anniversary my fellow midpoint Boomers! Celebrate in moderation - we still have a lot of work to do!