When you’re talking to a boomer, “KISS”

January 25, 2011  |  by Cindy Maude

I’m a Baby Boomer – a person born between 1946 and 1964. I won’t say where I fall in that spectrum, but suffice it to say I’m an “aging consumer and shopper.” Ouch, that was hard to write. But hey, research tells me that we’re the richest generation in history with the highest average disposable income. It also tells me that we control 77% of all financial assets in the United States. We use half of all credit cards and spend two-and- a-half times the per capita average on discretionary purchases.

Seems to me there’s a huge opportunity to better understand how to market to us Boomers. For example, I don’t enjoy going into big stores, especially when they’re cluttered. I’m overwhelmed and often leave without making a purchase, or at least I buy much less than I would in a smaller store or a store that makes shopping easy. Well, did you know there’s a reason for that? A research study conducted in 2005 by Dr. Adam Gazzaley, Director of the ICSF Brain Imaging Center and a NeuroFocus Scientific Advisory Board Member, actually shows that people’s ability to suppress distractions declines with age, and that our memory abilities are in turn influenced by our ability to suppress distractions.

So, the good news for me is that I’m not really as forgetful as I’ve feared. I’m just more overwhelmed by distractions. Let me tell you, that’s a huge relief, because I can actually walk into a store and just stand there thinking, “Now, what did I come in here for?” But even more relevant, this new piece of research has important implications for marketers who are interested in tapping into this huge population called Boomers.

As an example, I’ve noticed that when I shop for clothes there is one simple strategy that persuades me to buy more. When a store has displays that put an outfit together, from the clothes to the accessories, and organizes them in a way that makes it easy to see how they relate to each other, I’m drawn in; I’m clearly able to see how it all works together. And I’m likely to buy, but when I walk into a store and the clothes are jumbled and the racks are confusing to dig through, I walk out without a purchase. I don’t have time to sort it out – it’s too distracting, and it’s just not fun.

The implications are pretty clear. KISS, or “Keep it Simple Stupid,” as the old adage goes. Keep it simple, keep it clear, keep it uncluttered. The multi-layered, fast-paced, loud-music type of marketing that is so appealing to teenagers is not even going to reach the Boomers, because it is too distracting for a clear message to get through, let alone motivate a Boomer to make a purchase.

This is just one piece of valuable information regarding marketing to Baby Boomers. Look for more in future blogs. I also highly recommend a fascinating book I’m reading, “The Buying Brain” by Dr. A.K. Pradeep, in which the information regarding the research I mentioned was found.