Baby Boomer Insights

U.S. Census Bureau releases stats about boomers for the first time in 13 years

With a new census just around the corner, I found it interesting to see that the U.S. Census Bureau recently released some new statistics about baby boomers. On the surface, that may not seem like a big deal, but since it's the first time in 13 years we've seen their specific data, I thought it was worth sharing. (The numbers, btw, are current as of 2006. Keep in mind that means the boomers were between 42 and 60 at the time.)

I couldn't help but notice that the bureau still refers to 55+ as "the older population" and 65+ as "elderly." Let's hope when the new census is conducted, the feds will be a bit more enlightened in their view of what constitutes "older" and "elderly." For the record, Edelman's research shows boomers don't consider someone old until they've reached age 74. Anyway, here are some tidbits from the 2006 data:

> There are 77,980,296 boomers living in the U.S. Women are a slight majority - 50.9%. By 2030, however, that number will increase to 54.9%, or 57,793,135 female boomers.

> Can you guess which states had the highest number of boomers? California, Texas, New York, Florida and Pennsylvania. That's pure numbers, but when you look at which states had the highest percentage of the population in the 42-60 year-old group, up pops Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Montana and Connecticut.

> Some 74.1% of boomers were employed and 22.4% were not in the labor force. The remainder were in the miltary or unemployed.

> Two-thirds of boomers were homeowners, while 25% rented.

> Only 10.3% were Hispanic, leaving 89.7% non-Hispanc.

> We're an educated group, too. Almost a third (29.8%) were high school graduates and 28.9% had some college, while 28.8% had earned a bachelor's degree or higher. The number of boomers holding less than a high school diploma was a low 12.5%. 

It will be interesting to watch how these numbers change when the new census is taken in 2010. Without question we'll see affirmation again that the U.S. population is rapidly aging, as people live longer than any generation before them. Expect an uptick in the number of boomers who are employed, or who are re-entering the work force. I think we'll see home owership go down as well, given that so many boomers lost their homes to foreclosure over the past couple of years. What other changes do you predict?

Marketers need to pay close attention to the 2010 census data when it is released more than a year from now. Since 2010 also marks the year that Gen Y will surpass boomers in number and perhaps even spending power, we can expect a very different picture to be painted going forward.

You can get a sneak peek at the questions on the 2010 form here.  (Incredibly, you still can't fill out a form online, but you can blog and tweet about how inconvenient it is to not be able to fill it out online!)

The Volunteering In America report notes that boomers still give, even in tough times

The flood waters are starting to recede in Atlanta (thank goodness!) and now the real work begins. Volunteers are spilling forward, eagerly looking for ways to help neighbors. And leading the way are boomers, whose reputation for volunteering continues, despite the fact that many face their own issues brought on by this rising tide called a recession.

It's not just my observation that informs this opinion. According to the latest Volunteering In America report, boomers continue to give their time, energy and money to volunteerism.

The report even breaks down volunteers by age groups and includes some interesting statistics about boomers, such as:

>      In 2008, 29.4 percent of Baby Boomers volunteered, with 22.6 million volunteers giving 3 billion hours of service. 

> The volunteer rate for Baby Boomers remained relatively stable from 2007 to 2008 despite an increase in unemployment, a rise in home foreclosures and the largest decline in charitable giving in more than 40 years.

> Baby Boomers’ top volunteering activity was fundraising, with 29.4 percent of the volunteers contributing through that. 

> Of the states, Utah had the highest rate of Baby Boomers volunteering, with a volunteering rate of 48.4 percent for the group.  Of the large cities included in the report, Minneapolis-St. Paul had the highest rate, with 41.8 percent of Baby Boomer residents volunteering.

The report enables you to check the state of volunteerism in your own state and my review shows that in Georgia, a little more than 1 out of 4 adults volunteer. So, we have some work to do to push our ranking above #41 of the 50 states. Looks like the $250 million-plus damage left by rising waters may just give us a chance to show what we're made of!

The fact is boomers have always been quick to volunteer, but we also are particular about what we do. We want to apply the considerable skills we've acquired over the years to make a difference in our own communities. That's why organizations that want to tap us need to understand our thinking process about volunteering. One group that helps boomers find a good partnership is Volunteer Match, an online site that matches people with causes in a way that benefits both. (There are many similar groups - Google some in your area.)

The Serve America Act, which generated a lot of buzz when proposed by President Obama in the spring, will do doubt light a fire under many boomers. That's why I was glad to see 10% of AmeriCorps funds set aside for organizations that engage people over 55. Boomers are even being asked to consider new careers in the nonprofit world and some money is being set aside to fund the transitions.

Companies that want to attract or retain boomers would do well to consider how closely the company's civic involvement matches the desire of boomers to give back.

Boomer readers - how are your own expectations changing regardng volunteering? Do you feel welcomed and useful to your neighborhood organizations?

Social networking sites explode online: should boomers try to keep up?

I'm back after taking a few weeks off for vacations, business travel and just generally getting some down time. I certainly wasn't disconnected, though. I just didn't blog since late June. What I did do was spend a lot of time looking into the plethora of social networks that have been knocking at my door for a while.

At least weekly for the past couple of years I've received invitations to join all kinds of networks beyond the standard: Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn. People have tried to link to me through ecademy, Plaxo, MyYearbook, Classmates, Networking for Professionals, and on and on. I decided as an experiment to set up profiles and get to know  these sites personally so I could see what all the hub-bub is about.

If you spend any time at all online, you've probably noticed yourself the explosion in online networks that encourage people to connect, share information and search for - or post - available jobs. The media would have us believe everyone over 35 has a Twitter account now. (For the record, I have one and have several followers, but have not yet tweeted, even though I do follow some favorite tweeting journalists.)

So, what are all these "connected" people doing? According to new research by Anderson Analytics, revealed at emarketer.com, boomers largely use social networks to keep in touch with friends and family. Using the networks "for fun" drew only 38%, as opposed to 61% for Gen Y and 51% for Gen X. That suggests that boomers see social networks in much the same way we see the Internet in general - it's a tool to accomplish something in particular, not just a place to hang out to see what happens. Meanwhile, LinkedIn reigns supreme as "the" professional network (with 43 million current users).

I think it is particularly interesting to note that women over 55 are now reversing a trend they started earlier this year. After becoming the fastest-growing demographic on Facebook in the first quarter (to 1.6 million) , during April and May this same group DROPPED by 650,000, according to Inside Facebook. 

Having spent several hours a day on various networks for the summer, I think I know why many boomers are jumping ship. Many just aren't interested in the constant stream of "status updates" that amount to boring noise. Thankfully, after a flood of complaints, Facebook, the grandaddy of social networks, did alter its site so that users can "hide" friends who post too often. Other sites with similar functions aren't quite as invasive, but I found a lot of "junk" there too.

I use  the Facebook hide function a lot. I have some connections who post more than a dozen times day. Often, the updates are actually annoying, especially the ones designed to  share political views, "inspirational messages," and  brag about business deals. 

Frankly, it can be incredibly time consuming to try and keep it all straight and check in on the various networks regularly. I frequently read advice from the uber-connected who suggest that you should maintain a presence on every network you can. The theory is that the more places you  appear, the better known you'll become and the more branded you'll be.

Here's what I've concluded: most boomers who do well to just pick a lane and drive in it. In other words, select a couple of networks and master them, rather than trying to be everywhere. I've chosen Facebook and LinkedIn, but for entirely different purposes. For me, Facebook is a place to meet up with friends, goof around with stupid (but often entertaining) applications, declare I'm a "fan" of favorite brands, and stay in touch with my family, whereas LinkedIn is where I connect with professional colleagues and business contacts. Only a few people appear on both networks, since I think it's wise to keep your true "social" network separate from your business network.

What do you think? Do you make an effort to separate your personal and professional networks? Why or why not?

P.S. In case you haven't seen it, check out this article about the most annoying types of facebook posters.

Listen up: Energizer survey reveals boomers risk relationships because of vanity about their hearing

I think I've stumbled upon a good restaurant concept that will ensure boomers come there in droves: DON'T PLAY THE FRIGGIN MUSIC SO LOUD!!!

Last night, Ralph and I went out to dinner with friends to a restaurant we hadn't been to before in East Cobb, just north of Atlanta. It's called The Paper Mill Grill. The food was delicious and the service was outstanding. And who doesn't love those cute little shot glasses of tiny desserts. It would have been a perfect evening except that we spent so much of it yelling across the table at one another.

I'm quite hard of hearing, as is one of our boomer dinner companions, but at least we both wear hearing aids. Still, we couldn't hear one another very well above the noise.  I noticed several boomers around us leaning across tables to talk as well. Odds are, though, they were having a worse time hearing than we were because they refuse to wear hearing aids.

A new "All Ears" Hearing Survey by Energizer reveals that while a whopping 99 percent of boomers wear some kind of corrective eyewear at least for some tasks, only 11 percent wear a hearing aid to correct a hearing problem. And yet, 72 percent said they believe their hearing impairment negatively affects their relationships with their adult children.

One in three gave appearance, discomfort and the sense that hearing aids make them feel old as their excuse not to wear them.

This totally baffles me. Boomers have always been proud of the fact they have great relationships with their children, bragging that they're friends, they vacation together, they hang out, etc. And yet, vanity is keeping some from wearing a hearing aid. The survey asked boomers' adult children if their parents needed help with hearing and 44 percent said yes. Furthermore, almost half reported that a parent's lack of hearing affects their relationship with them.

So, what gives? Boomers are fine with wearing those stupid looking Bluetooth devices on their side of their head. Many think it's cool to walk around with ear buds stuck in their ears. Their vanity has driven some companies to offer hearing aids that actually look like bluetooth devices. Others even offer aids in fashionable colors.

Meanwhile, boomers flock to have our knees replaced, get nipped and tucked, change hair color and drive sports cars all in the name of looking younger. Do you suppose these same people really don't get it that saying, "Can you speak up?" or "I'm sorry. I didn't catch that" or "Excuse me?" is a clue that maybe it's time they wear an aid not for themselves, but for others?

May is Better Hearing and Speech Month. With family vacations coming up, and perhaps even with impending job interviews, perhaps now is the time for boomers to admit that a hearing impairment is no more an age giveaway than glasses are.

Like the Energizer bunny, hearing aids can help you keep going.... and going... and going. And best of all, for those times when you just get tired of listening, you can take them off for instant relief. So when the restaurant won't turn down the music, turn off the restaurant!

Swine flu has grandparents worried: advice on what to do

I was alerted by Grandparents.com today that they just completed a poll in which they asked readers how concerned they were about the effect of swine flu.

300,000 grandparents were surveyed and here's what they said:

8 % are terrified and staying indoors
15% are worried the virus is spreading and posing risk to their grandkids
46% are concerned but not alarmed
30% think it will blow over soon

The web site then offered some great advice through a Q&A. Find it here.

What a terrific use of technology and how wise of Grandparents.com to recognize how important it is to offer valuable insight and good advice online. It hasn't been that long ago that people would assume you couldn't reach boomers and mature grandparents through web sites, forums and social networks.

But things sure have changed. Facebook Data recently announced that one of every 50 new users is over 65. Meanwhile, Twitter, the microblogging site, just released its user numbers, showing that the largest group of users is 45-54. (The average age of a first-time grandparent, btw, is 47.)

The Boomer Insights Generation Group(tm) at Edelman knows from its research, which has been confirmed by other organizations, that boomer women 50+ are voracious researchers, especially when it comes to healthcare issues, and they love to share information. So, smart marketers look for ways to reach out to them across multiple online platforms.

As the swine flu situation worsens, look for grandparents - especially grandmothers - to be all over the Internet seeking information and sharing it. They'll swap stories, advice and tips on everything from caring for sick grandchildren to entertaining children who are staying home from daycare.

How relevant is your company to these web-savvy grannies?