Category: Digital Marketing

If you thought marketing to baby boomers was a difficult proposition, you are not really far from reality. People who were born between 1946 and 1964 fall into this category and have certain traits that make them unique, when it comes to marketing to them online. They are not digital natives like the millennial generation, who were born between 1982 and 2001. They have been slower to adapt to the changes that have taken place in the world of digital media and the Internet, but that does not mean a company can afford to overlook this vibrant demographic. Who Are the Baby Boomers? Baby boomers can be described as those who are in their middle age at the moment or about to retire. In fact, the oldest baby boomers have crossed retirement age, giving them more time to get acquainted with digital media. Most baby boomers have remained conservative and skeptical when it comes to social networking. If 77% of the millennial generation has a presence on social networking sites, only half of that percentage can be found on social networking sites if we consider baby boomers. However, younger boomers are increasingly using networking sites and browsing the Internet and this seems to be a growing trend. Baby boomers rejected their parental authority, conservativism of that time and were influenced by the 60s and 70s cultures. At the moment, they are the most influential, affluent and powerful members of the community. They also happen to be the ones with the highest spending powers. With a stable income and wise investment plans, baby boomers when targeted efficiently, can be a great demographic to tap. How Baby Boomers Use Digital Media Todd Wasserman notes that younger boomers (aged between 47 and 55) spent 39.3 hours browsing the Internet every month where as the older boomers between the ages of 56 and 65 spent 36.5 hours. Much of this time was spent in purchasing goods and services. On the other hand, though the millennial generation uses the internet for several hours every day, they spend very little as compared to the boomers. Targeting baby boomers in ad campaigns is a very important strategy and is something that should not be ignored. Baby boomers also tend to use LinkedIn the most, as they find it more reliable and credible than other social networks. An increasing number of baby boomers have begun to use Facebook as well, but LinkedIn remains their preferred social network. Companies and business that want to target boomers must create groups and discussions on LinkedIn and rely upon seriously worded copy, instead of using trendy copy which would appeal to millennial generation members. Moreover, boomers tend to trust traditional news sources like CNN, Fox, Christian Science Monitor and the like. It is difficult to purchase ad spaces on these websites as ad budgets can sky rocket. Instead, digital marketing must adopt a very serious, reliable yet personal role without being too intrusive. Importance of Referrals, Trust and Reliability Talking about reliability and trust, we cannot ignore the importance of referral marketing when it comes to baby boomers. In fact, referrals are the single most valuable way to get boomers interested in what you are trying to sell. If you can get influential members of boomer communities to act as referrals to your products, they will most certainly be able to influence other boomers, because that is how this generation’s psyche works. No matter what you have been told all this while about referral marketing, it is the single most important way to market to baby boomers. You might want to try and be associated with trustworthy companies like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google, Apple or Wells Fargo, if you want to attract the interest of boomers. How then, as a small company, will you be able to get your company’s name associated with reliable and trustworthy companies? One of the ways is to get insiders from those companies to guest blog for you. If this strategy does not work for you, you can try and get baby boomers who are prominent in their communities to do the talking for your company or product. Crux of the Matter No matter which strategy you adopt, it is important to note that making sweeping generalizations can be detrimental to your marketing strategy online and offline. You will have to be as authentic and trustworthy as possible and also have a strong conviction in your own products, services and ethics.

Just a few weeks ago, Twitter completely redesigned the way its users’ profiles look. The redesign places more emphasis on photographs and personalization. In fact, it reminds users of a possibility that twitter is trying to look like Facebook in a subtle way, yet emphasizing the niche it has already carved out for itself. The redesign is great and it supports digital marketing in a positive manner. In fact, redesigned Twitter gives companies and individuals more space to reveal more about what they do, who they are and what they look like. What is in Store in the Twitter Redesign The new Twitter design was announced on the 18th of September, in a blog post titled “Because You Have More to Show“. This certainly suggests that twitter is trying to help companies and businesses to customize their Twitter profiles more efficiently than ever. The single-most striking feature is the all new header photo for iPad, iPhone, Android Twitter apps and also for its browser version. The image that is set as the all-new header photo will appear each time someone views your company’s profile on the apps or the browser. The new header photo can easily be uploaded from any app or even from a computer. It gives more real estate to twitter users. User information can be read by swiping the touchscreen or tap a thumbnail to view images in full screen. An additional ‘background photo’ complements your header and profile photos. Twitter claims that this redesign will make users presence on twitter more meaningful. How Companies Can Adapt to Changes Earlier, most companies has just one profile picture to display and they used the rest of the screen to personalize their profiles. The area outside the profile box can still be used to highlight information about your company, products and services. However, the updated Twitter profile also allows you to upload a header photo, which can be optimized to suit your business. In fact, it is good practice to keep your profile picture consistent and change your header photo often. Your profile picture is the picture that appears next to each of your tweets and the header photo appears on your profile page, similar to the banner photo on Facebook. Reveal your Human Side By changing header photo often, a company can give hint to news, updates, events and achievements. In fact, by changing a picture when there was a team outing or an office party, a company can display its more humane side. There is nothing more exciting than giving a closer look to what is happening behind the scenes. Twitter followers can instantly surmise that your company is not all about the products and services that you offer, but that you also have a unique lifestyle that matches the quality of products and services you offer. Feature New Products and Services Sometimes, it may be a good idea to change the header photo to reveal a product or service, if it has been launched newly. The header photo can reveal information about a new product to your followers that looks exciting. By changing the header photo each time you have a new product or service, you can utilize this screen real estate to prominently promote your product and services. Communicate with Followers and Visitors to your Twitter Profile Another way of using the header photo is to ask questions, communicate directly with who visits your profile. If you have upgrades for a software program or if you are offering a discount for a certain service, you can display that in an image after playing with fonts. There is nothing more promotional than having a text image that loudly tells visitors what they should be doing. The best part about the header photo is that your twitter practices and habits do not have to change. It is an added feature that can be optimized to suit your business’ needs. Depending on how creative you are and how imaginatively you can utilize this space, you will be able to optimize and promote your products and services on Twitter better than ever before. Probably it is time to get your designers to start working on images and header photos that can be rotated occasionally or if you would like to change them randomly and surprise your followers, that is a good idea too.