When I was a marketer in my 20’s and 30’s, the thought never occurred to me (or to any of my similarly-aged clients, for that matter) to target “old” people. That was the 1970’s and 80’s, and there was no discussion by marketers or the media about people 40 plus as a market force. They were off the radar screen—powerless, invisible.
But times have changed. At 43-61, Boomers have been rediscovered by the mainstream marketplace—driven by numbers too big and active to be ignored as a potential consumer, regardless of the marketer’s age. Frankly, some marketers in Gen X and Y wish for the good old days—when older generations had the good manners to recede into the shadows. Recently and frequently, boomers are accused of clinging to power--the victims of a generational character flaw that inspires their self-centered orientation. The truth is more complex.
Consider that this is the first time that a generation has passed through their child-bearing years having raised adult children ready to take their place in society, while retaining enough of what society still needs to remain players, themselves. This is, in part, because of medical advances that have given older folks twenty or thirty extra years of genuine vitality, and partly because western civilization has become brain rather than brawn-driven. In fact, facing a demographic dip in the generation that follows the boomers, companies in countries like the US, Canada and Japan—just to name a few—are retaining experts to convince boomers to stay on the job as long as possible…or, at least until the equally large echo boomer generation gains enough experience and knowledge to fill the need.
The fact that boomers are hitting 60 and not fading away is a phenomenon to which all the generations need to adjust. To put this into broader perspective, we begin by taking note of adult development pioneer Erik Erikson’s eighth and highest stage of the life cycle. You may recall that Erikson posited the highest stage of adult development to be one in which the elder steps aside and generously passes the baton to the next generation. He called this “generativity.” What most people don’t know is that late in life, Erikson revised his eight stages to add a ninth. In his eighties, still skipping forward rather than stepping aside, he came to realize that adult development is not something that screeches to a halt a midlife, but is a life-long affair.
In tomorrow’s blog, we will continue the rebuttal to the argument that boomer’s presence as a market force is the result of a character flaw—and seek for redemptive meaning in this not just for boomers, but for all the generations to come.
Carol Orsborn
Comments (3)
Actually, elders were much more valued prior to the industrial revolution (hence the white wigs worn by men in positions of power). If boomers can move into a place where they realize that their mental powers have changed and leverage a new way of looking at things, they can have a powerful influence on the world that is good.
The book, From Age-ing to Sage-ing has a great deal of insight on the point you are making.
Posted by Casey Dawes | January 31, 2007 12:17 PM
Posted on January 31, 2007 12:17
This is very interesting and I'm looking forward to the series.
For all the discussion about the scientific nature of today’s marketers, I find shockingly shoddy methodology in today’s generation studies. Depending on where you place the dates, Generation X is actually larger than the Baby Boom.
I was researching a pitch when I noticed that the Census supplied entirely different numbers to the populations marketers and sociologists usually use. We come out with an Gen X population of around 82 million using the 1961 to 1981 dates employed by generational theorists such as Howe and Strauss.
(Their number is 45 million, I believe.)
This would mean that Generation X – the Baby Bust – numbers more than the 60-million Boomer generation.
So the issue would then become less a matter of critical mass and more an issue of cultural collateral. Why do the markets favor Boomers, even when there are fewer of them? Even when they are nearing the end of their peak earning years? And why has the media perpetuated a myth that Boomers outnumber Generation Xers?
(Note: When using the 1965 to 1981 dates Generation X comes out to 67 million, more than 20 million more than is reported.)
Randy Moser
vanishedmessenger.com
PS: These numbers came from the 2000 Census.
Posted by Randy Moser | January 31, 2007 8:01 PM
Posted on January 31, 2007 20:01
Actually, boomers number around 78 million.
That's around the 82 million that you quote first (although some of those years go in both Gen X and Boomer buckets, so there's probably some descrepancy there) and larger than the 67 million you quote second.
But let's not make this a generational disagreement. We're all important. The issue is that the boomer buzz is predominantly a marketing buzz (Marketers have finally figured out we have money and we are still willing to spend it). But it's also a major transition point for boomers. Our children (you folks) are crafting lives of their own, for which we are profoundly grateful. Yet it leaves us at a loss. Now that we're not telling you what to do -- what do we do???
We're never going to be a generation that keeps our angst quiet. That's the bad news. The good news is that we will probably get a little smarter and maybe give pass along some wisdom about how to get through this transition.
Posted by Casey Dawes | February 2, 2007 1:24 PM
Posted on February 2, 2007 13:24