Don't Overlook The Old Folks

As marketers scramble to re-calibrate their online marketing strategies to focus on the emergent social mobile consumer, many are ignoring the old folks. In fairness, when I think of the online consumer, images of a tablet-toting, Justin Bieber-esque Gen Y hipster come to mind.

As it turns out, this is only one element of an increasingly complex online landscape. In fact, a new report by analyst firm Forrester Research found that 60% of US seniors (aged 65 and up) are online. That’s 20 million people who are comfortable with online technology and reasonably tech savvy- at least savvy enough to figure out how to purchase something online, as 59% of this demographic have done in the last three months. By my calculations, that means roughly 12 million US seniors have purchased a good or service online during the last quarter.



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     It is no surprise the majority of people buying and networking on the Web are young people but that doesn't mean that seniors (65 and up)  are not a significant percentage of Web users and online shoppers. Seniors are far less likely to fall for the "hype" and the digital bedazzlement that appeals to young people but are more prone to be persuaded by "old school" honesty and transparency when it comes to spending their money online whether in shopping or home business opportunities. Don't overlook us "old folks" in your sales and networking agendas.