Technology has always been seen as a young person’s field, with the latest devices and applications all being primarily created and invented by a younger generation and the target audience has always been that of a younger crowd, leaving seniors out of the loop as far as new technology. The image in marketing has always been one that has seniors having little, if any, interest in new technology, so they have always been given little consideration as far as using the latest in devices. That trend is beginning to change, however, as companies see a rising interest in seniors to use more and more technology each day. This has changed the marketing approach of many companies to where they are now marketing technology more to seniors than ever before.
What Prompted the Change in Approach?
There are a couple of factors that seemed to have played a role in this change in marketing strategy. First, the population of seniors now is greater than it has ever been, with the baby boomer generation reaching the senior age. This provides a much larger target audience than companies have seen for seniors and seniors have a great deal of buying power today. With this change, companies have realized that they need to create and market technology for this group in order to stay ahead of the competition. Also, seniors today have taken much more of an interest in learning the new technology available today than they have ever before. More seniors are taking classes and buying the latest in technology, such as tablets, smartphones, fitness devices and the like, making them a growing segment of the purchasers for companies, thus causing them to take notice and market to this group.
Different Approaches to Reach Seniors
Companies take a different tack when it comes to reaching seniors about technology. Several companies offer special classes regarding their technology for seniors so that they can learn to use smartphones, tablets and the like easily and safely. Since many fraud attempts and scams target seniors and technology, companies are going out of their way to provide information and instruction on the safe practices of using technology every day. Studies have shown that once seniors learn the benefits of the technology they are faced with most can be eager and accepting of it, so new marketing approaches make sure to outline how efficient and easy these devices can be to use.
With seniors having much more influence on purchasing trends today, companies seriously look at what they desire most in technology so they can try to cater to this growing market. Many companies even make use of focus groups and advisors of seniors as a way of introducing new technology to see how user-friendly and effective the device can be for this group. As businesses and technology continue to move forward in their efforts it is likely to see more devices directed specifically at the senior market to provide them with the technology they want and will use the most.