DON’T UNDERESTIMATE YOUR GRANNY WHEN IT COMES TO GOOGLE

This glimpse of the future was crafted by: Rowland Burke

For children who’ve been unlocking iPads before riding
tricycles, technology is Reality 101. But for many grandparents, the thought of
overlaying furry kitten ears onto our Whatsapp profiles would be impossible,
much less moronic. Thus, they are easily detached and disconnected from these
trends, as technology furiously gallops on. And somewhere between the gap of
tech savvy and technophobe is a market that demands attention, if we want to
keep cornering our capital advantage.

Traditional marketing says that you need to keep
catering for the masses if you want to stay ahead in this business world. And
the perception is that one of the older generations is standing perplexed on
the sidelines, lost among the hashtags, the trending,
the likes, or the filters, that are happening online
all at once.

This is only half the truth. The other half is
that Baby Boomers alone (born between 1946-1964) represent the #1
consumer-age demographic in the United States ‒ and their investments
in everything from travel to health care to e-commerce are only growing. Couple
their collective consumer power with their longevity, and suddenly the need to
integrate our silver economy into today’s digital retail experience goes from a
good idea to a downright imperative. Clearly, it’s a no brainer:
the digital economy is not only for the generations who will take the
future, but for the generations who got us this far.

Currently, the 50+ demographic is batting at 111
million strong in the USA, while 25% of the EU population is comprised of older
citizens. So vast is the US silver spending power that their total $3.2
trillion a year outweighs the GDP of nations such as Italy, Russia, the United Kingdom,
Brazil and France. The population is a formidable economic force to be reckoned
with. But here’s the clincher ‒ this global group is only growing. Retirement
plans are extending, as people are expected to live longer than projected. In
fact, by 2025, the 50+ will outnumber their American youth 3:1 (a 2:1 ratio in
Europe by 2060), and there will be more very elderly people in the EU than
children under five.

This is an almighty pill for our pension plans to
swallow; but for businesses willing to rethink their brand and delivery, it’s a
recipe for market opportunity. The need to address our needs doesn’t stop when we hit our
50s or 60s. In fact, to some extent, that’s when we need it the most. Older and
frailer populations bring a new set of physical, emotional and health needs to
the table, which (with the right offerings to match their technological
competencies) can open big business doors.

Boomers find themselves tight pressed in the sandwich
generation ‒ meeting the needs of their elderly parents while delaying shoving
their Gen X/Millennial kids out of the door. In other words,
they have everything from arthritis medication to IOS upgrades on their plate
to tend to. Business would do well to consider the ‘everything in between’ and
offer ease in providing it. After all, technology or innovation (when done
for the right reasons) is for everyone‒no ifs, no buts, or age limitations.

Contrary to public perception, many of our silver
citizens are not tech adverse. Considered the first ‘digital immigrants’, a
swelling proportion of the 50+ demographic is cosying up to Siri and learning
to order those groceries online. In fact, a Pew Research Centre report found
that 59% of seniors (ages 65 and older) use the Internet regularly, and 47% say
they have a high-speed broadband connection at home.

And when it comes to shopping on mobile, one in four people aged 55 and older prefer to shop
from the couch, according to a report by BI Intelligence. Cyberspace provides
socialising, shopping and learning opportunities for people who are
increasingly isolated and physically frail (so much so that 90% of affluent
households can be found surfing on a daily basis). The stats seem to suggest
that Granny might just surprise you these days.

The key, however, is to meet Granny where she’s at.
This not only translates into the kind of products and offerings we need to
consider; it refers to the way we understand their lifestyles, and how we can
offer a more relevant retail experience to a conventional demographic. For
example, as older adults ‘age up’ and join the digital revolution, Evelo, an electric bicycle
start-up company, is also ‘reaching down’ to meet their targeted senior market,
by providing ‘Ambassadors’ who visit your home and help with a test drive.

Aside from this, companies also need to consider the
distraction of flashy ads, cookies and pop ups for a 50+ clientele, and simply
‘get to the point’, with a convenient click to a real live person who can walk
you through the process. Online chats where consumers can connect over honest,
real time conversation is more effective than all the trendy hashtags that
operate as Millennial magnets. We need to blend the physical and digital into
one seamlessly integrated showroom, stocked with inventory, rewards and
promotion, like the sense of one-to-one engagement and customer care that
an omni-channel experience offers. It’s as close to
‘walking the department floors’ as can be from a thousand miles away.

Let’s face it. The silver economy is a goldmine. It is
a market that has existed ‘ever since’, buried under the sand, and is now
waiting to be dug up and tapped. There are many needs to be addressed, and
difficulties that we can ease. The opportunities for technological solutions
are endless! The key though, to extracting the silver economy’s precious value,
is in adapting our digital landscapes accordingly to bridge the generational
divide. Some of that comes with education; some of it with innovation. (And
yes, that means it would do us well here to bring our high tech a little lower.)
But the more we can approach this journey by integrating the past, the better
future we’ll forge.

By the time Millennials reach their 50s, 60s, or even
their 70s, smartphones, Virtual Reality goggles and drones may no longer be
their thing, but they will still use technology for the same effect it has on
their lives now: easier, efficient, and more comfortable. Now, that sounds like
something Granny might find on Google and click on.