I found on The Campaign website, there is a website called High50 which is a devoted website for over 50′s who believe old is good, an online community of 20000 online active members which was founded over 4 years ago. It has articles, links to culture, shopping, money, news etc. So maybe the market is beginning to pick up?
Surely it would be better for the older generation than seeing the same predictable adverts for the over 50’s, below is a good example of one..
Below is a lynx advert purely focused for the younger male market, lynx only target that audience, but are lynx big enough as a brand to try a campaign for the older generation, they are successful, maybe they could afford to take the risk? Or are they just better off as a brand for the younger market. The risk could be that the younger market may be put off by the brand if its targeted for the older category.
M&S seems to want to target a new younger market but also keep the loyal older generation of customers too, but could it be too much of a risk?
M&S have included Twiggy as part of their ads, an iconic 60’s model, which appeals to both the older and younger generation. M&S seems to be trying to appeal to both the older generation and the younger, some may critise it doesn’t work and the loyal customers may feel like they are almost pushed out.
The over 50′s have more than £200billion of disposable income and account for 80 percent of private wealth. They make up a third of people online and are the fastest growing demographic using social networking sites. A survey of a million 50 year olds found they believe 86percent of advertising is of little or no relevance to them. Companies have turned a blind eye to the older market, while the ‘seniors’ are more active and spend driven than ever before. A report published in the economist magazine in 2002, companies still spend over 95percent of their marketing and advertising budget on the under 50′s age groups.
‘We are in a society where there is strong preference for young people’ writes Jean Paul Treguer, founder of senior agency, for advertising consultancy for seniors, on his website..
‘ Large worldwide corporations like Coca Cola, Walt Disney, Sony and Nike were born in the 20th century, and they contributed to define the core target for advertising as 15 – 35 year olds. Today people in marketing, advertising and television still address the youngest consumer possible to build up loyalty, while continuing following this formula , the marketing people, agencies & tv channels go to who they see as the easiest target & ignore the rapidly aging population.’
So the statistics show they may have been forgotten, but why? Jean Treguer made a valid point of targeting early to gain loyalty through out the years. This brings me to M&S, more of the older generation are now loyal customers and have been for years, but M&S have changed the way they advertise, and it looks to be like they are targeting more and more to a younger generation, is M&S in danger of alienating core customers by forgetting those of the older generation?
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