What Are Seniors Doing Online?

An important part of marketing success is simply “knowing your market.” What do your targeted customers do when they shop, look for entertainment or recreation, make a buying decision or use the internet?

Because of our customer base and location (Axiom is based in Florida’s east coast), we have a special interest in marketing to seniors and “boomers.” The central part of Florida’s east coast is home to one of the highest concentrations of seniors in the United States. It is a vital concern to us to know what our seniors are doing, both on and off line.

Pew Research Center provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It also conducts public opinion polling, demographic research and media content analysis. Pew is a resource for accurate information about social trends of all kinds, and we have cited their findings several times. If you, or your marketing people,think that seniors are not on line, Pew Research says that you are wrong! In a recent survey, they found 87% of adults aged 50 to 64 are online.

The misimpression that seniors and boomers are not active in social media and the internet may stem from the attitude of the very oldest of the senior group. People aged 80 or more are, in fact, very small users of internet technology. However, if you want to reach the 80+ prospects, don’t forget to target their adult children; they are online and reachable.

Pew Research Center says that 82% of those aged 65 to 69 and three quarters of 70to 74-year-olds are online; about three-quarters of internet-using seniors say they go online daily. Seniors and boomers may be acting more like teenagers than you, your marketing and branding strategies give them credit for. In fact, Google research has indicated that search engines are the number one way in which boomers and seniors gather information. If they are looking for your business, it must be online and have a senior-friendly SEO strategy.

Your branding strategies need to include strong SEO techniques aimed at seniors and search engine optimization services that ensure you’re being seen by your prospects. Do not think that video content and social media are effective only when targeting adolescents or young adults. However, research has shown that mature viewers are more skeptical and analytical about what they see on social media. Your social media branding strategies should aim to inspire and educate seniors, not just to sell them.

Whenever possible, award them special offers and or invitations. Axiom helps one of its clients, Ourseniors.net, do this often. The OurSeniors.net organization is dedicated to serving the needs of seniors and “boomers” in all ways possible. One of the ways OurSeniors.net accomplishes this is through its frequent “Brunch and Learn” programs. These programs provide east coast seniors with an opportunity to meet and socialize with their contemporaries and to be educated at the same time.

These programs have addressed senior-interest subjects like estate and tax planning,choosing an adult community and picking the best Medicare supplement plan. The education and service function is an important part of the OurSeniors.net branding strategy. It is combined with video presentations on social media sites like YouTube (see the OurSeniors.net YouTube Channel) and Facebook (OurSeniors.net on Facebook).

Axiom Administrative Services knows that seniors and boomers use search engines, the internet and social media in ever increasing numbers. Axiom has channeled that use into productive digital marketing solutions for OurSeniors.net. Let us do the same for you! Axiom is more than an internet marketing agency. Axiom Administrative Services has the professional skill and small business SEO skills needed to get your web presence the ranking it deserves. We can combine traditional marketing tools like direct mail advertising with local SEO services to build your branding strategy. Please visit Axiom’s small business services page or call Axiom at 800-888-6348.