Friday, 16 August 2013 04:10

Baby Boomers Still Choosing Desktop Over Mobile

Recent studies reported by eMarketer show baby boomers are still favoring desktop internet interaction over mobile. But boomers tend to have large spending potential, and marketers need to react to this behavior when positioning a product towards this particular generation.

eMarketer claims they are still the "TV generation" and usually garner interest in a product from television commercials and more traditional marketing tactics. Other related studies show that boomers don't necessarily pay attention to online advertising such as Google and Facebook ads. A March 2013 survey by Ipsos OTX and Ipsos Global @dvisor showed only 11% of boomers in the 50-64 age group clicked on a banner or pop-up ad in the past month. This doesn't necessarily mean the boomer generation isn't shopping online. It appears they tend to do online research comparing prices before going into the store to purchase an item. Estimators believe this online research behavior will eventually turn into purchases from their online devices, and that three quarters of the US boomer internet users will be buying digitally by the end of the year.

The spending patterns for boomers is useful information to marketers because of the size of the demographic (over 79 million). These studies are important to remember when brainstorming a marketing campaign, particularly if your product is aimed at buyers between 50-70 years old. The boomers are adapting slower to the mobile/tablet trend, but the amount of purchases on those devices seem to be continually increasing over time.


 

If you're not sure the best way to reach your audience or how to market your product properly, let FiG help! We have experience hitting every type of demographic across all channels, so contact us today!