Mature Market Experts Gem of The Day: AARP Names Barry Rand As Next CEO

Barry Rand, the next CEO of AARP

 Mature Market Experts: more mature market news and stats more often – AARP Names Addison Barry Rand as Next CEO – The largest membership organization in the United States (over 40 million people age 50 and older) has announced that Barry Rand will become the next CEO of AARP.  Mr. Rand, who will be succeeding current CEO Bill Novelli in April, will be the first African-American to lead the organization.

According to AARP’s press release, “Rand, who serves as the volunteer Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Howard University, is most recognized for his 30 year career at Xerox, where he rose from a sales representative to Executive Vice President for Worldwide Operations. More importantly, Rand’s tenure at Xerox is highlighted by his work to ensure minorities and women had every opportunity for advancement at the company. Under Rand’s leadership, Xerox became the most diverse company in the Fortune 500. Further, when Rand left Xerox in 1999 to become Chairman and CEO of Avis, he became one of the first African-Americans to achieve such a position in the Fortune 500.”

To read Mr. Rand’s full bio click here.

Mature Market Experts Stat of The Day: Median Age of Grandparents is 53 to 57

Mature Market Experts: more mature market news and stats more often – Median Age of Grandparents is 53 to 57 – “In a time past views of the elderly and views of grandparents were synonymous. Grandparents were seen as physically frail, out of touch with current life styles, and old fashioned. The profile of the average grandparent today is quite different from that former stereotype. Because individuals are becoming grandparents at an earlier age and are living longer, they are likely to be healthy, relatively well off, and have a living spouse (Aldous, 19951. The average grandparent is white, female, and healthy (Roe & Minkler, 1998/991). Most grandparents are married, and if they are single they are more likely to be females (Jones & Kennedy, 1996; Landry, 1999). About 50% are working (Heywood, 1999; Woodworth, 1996).

In 1995 at least 75% of older Americans were grandparents (Giarrusso & Silverstein, 1996) and almost 50 percent of them were great-grandparents, many of whom were raising their great-grandchildren (Woodworth, 1996). However, in 1995 one-half of all U.S. grandparents were less than 60 years of age and one-half of the under 60 group was less that 55 years old (Simon-Rusinowitz & Krach, 1996). These figures tell us that most grandparents are not members of the elderly population. In fact, the estimated grandparent age ranges from 30 to 110, with the median age between 53-57 (Giarrusso & Silverstein, 1996; Heywood, 1999; Jones & Kennedy, 1996). Factors that are often cited in the literature for the growing numbers of grandparents are; the aging of post World War II baby boomers, longer life expectancy, early age of becoming a grandparent, and changes in the family life cycle (Dressel, 1996; Giarrusso & Silverstein, 1996; Longino & Earle, 1996). We can conclude that the number of grandparents will increase as the younger grandparents age and additional young people become grandparents.”

Source: Goliath

As I have blogged before, Grandparents are a major consumer market. There were 69 million U.S. grandparents in 2000, a number expected to grow to 80 million by 2010, and they spend a median of $489 per year on their grandchildren, about $30 billion annually. Source: AARP Special Study, 2002

U.S grandparents and the mature market:

– Over 75% of the 50+ market are grandparents

– Average age of the first-time grandparent is 47

– Over 70 million grandparents in the U.S. (More than the entire population in the U.K.)

– 4,000 Baby Boomers become grandparents every day

– The 50+ population is projected to grow to 23% in the next ten years while growth in the 18-49 segment will be flat

Source: GRAND Magazine

PS  GRAND Magazine, one of TR Mann Consultings’ clients, offers an exceptional opportunity for marketers to capture an audience at a highly defined stage, at an exceptional cost per thousand. Grandparents will continue to spoil and spend money on their grandchildren even in the worst economy.

 

Mature Market Experts Stat of The Day: On-line Social Media and Facebook

Mature Market Experts: more mature market news and stats more often: On-line Social Media and Facebook – I’m amazed at how quickly on-line social media and technology is being adopted by the mature market. They are quickly being pulled along by their children and grandchildren who are using on-line social media as a way of staying in touch and sharing.

To give you an idea of how quickly these tools are being adopted, according to O’Reilly Media in the last twelve weeks (from December 4, 2008) the ranks of mature market Facebook users is jumping:

45 to 54 year olds — up by 70 percent

55 to 59 year olds — up by 73 percent

60 to 65 year olds — up by 53 percent

65+ — up 37%

I believe the reason Facebook continues to see such healthy numbers is that it is inclusive . . . there are no gates around the community . . . which means children and grandchildren can share photos, notes, etc. The mature market is looking to stay in touch with their entire family and circle of friends, no matter what age they may be (my daughters frequently communicate with their grandparents online).

Sites like AARP, Eons, Boomj, Vibrant Nation, National Association of Baby Boomer Women, and GRANDMagazine.com need to be thoughtful of this as they develop their strategies.

Mature Market Experts Stat of The Day: Exercise

Is the mature market exercising enough? Sadly, the answer is no.

“Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta show that only 28 percent of seniors ages 65-74 engage in the recommended amount of physical activity, while 34 percent are totally inactive. Only 24 percent of seniors over 75 exercise at recommended levels, while 46 percent remain completely inactive.”

Source: seattlepi.com

I recently attended the International Council on Active Aging (ICAA) and presented some ideas on how retirement communities and fitness centers could engage the mature market through relational marketing. Regardless of your product or service, many of the techniques I discuss in this PowerPoint are effective ways to cost-efficiently market while building strong, lasting relationships. To see the presentation, click here on: TR Mann Consulting – Relational Marketing.

By the way, several years ago the AARP in conjunction with the ICAA did a study on terminology . . . the mature market reacted very negatively towards the term “exercise” while the term “active” tested very positively.

Addressing Employment and Active Engagement Beyond 50

Reinventing Retirement Conference Examines the

Needs of an Older Workforce in the Asian Context

 

(Mature Market Press Release) Singapore – A longer lifespan is one of the great successes of the 21st century. But along with that success come challenges. Living longer means having to work for longer in order to have saved enough for retirement, since right now, someone retiring at age 62 can expect to live for another 20 years or more. The recent problems in the international finance system and stock markets also demonstrate the importance of long-term planning in work, savings, and investment to insure a long and prosperous life.

 

Longer life spans also mean that employers have to be prepared for the challenges of an ageing workforce. The issue is global – the United Nation’s Population Division indicates that the number of people aged 60 and above in the world is expected to triple by 2050. In Singapore, the urgency is especially imminent, since UN projections indicate that by2050, the median age in Singapore will rise to 54 years, making it the 4th oldest population in the world.

 

To address those concerns, the Council for Third Age (C3A), which promotes active ageing here, together with AARP, the US-based organization representing the 50+population, will organize and co-host the Reinventing Retirement Asia Conference in Singapore on January 8 and 9. This is the first time that the conference, which was last held in Japan in March 2007, will be held in Singapore.

 

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will deliver the keynote speech for the conference, which will provide a global platform for policy makers, entrepreneurs, business leaders and academics to come together to exchange ideas, innovations and solutions to these emerging issues.

 

The objective, ultimately, is to be able to define a new set of age-friendly employment policies that will benefit the economy, society and older individuals, and to promote long-term financial planning for all as we age.

 

“Singapore is ageing. By 2030, one in five Singaporeans will be aged 65 or above. This poses the challenge of developing appropriate policies and programs to accommodate this changing age structure and its impact on the labor force. The retention and engagement of older workers is an important issue, especially when a high percentage of economically-active Singaporeans expect to work beyond the current retirement age of 62,” said C3A Chairman Gerard Ee, citing a recent study on the future of retirement.

 

“From AARP, a leading authority in ageing policies and issues, we can learn ideas and best practices that can put Singapore at the forefront of ageing issues,” he added. AARP is by far the largest membership organization for people 50-plus in the world, with more than 40 million members.

 

Bill Novelli, AARP’s CEO, emphasized the importance of sharing best practices and lessons from countries around the world. “AARP has explored ideas from around the world in an effort to share our experience and learn from other countries in an effort to ensure financial security for all. There is no magic formula, but one thing AARP has learned, especially in a shaky, global economy, is that economic growth is clearly linked to the employment of older workers. That is why we are so pleased to be working with C3A in January to further explore these critical issues for the future well-being of older people.”

 

Highlights of the conference will include the Singapore Roundtable, which will bring together Mr. Gan Kim Yong, Acting Minister for the Ministry of Manpower, Mr. Heng Chee How, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, and Mr. Stephen Lee, President of the Singapore National Employers Federation, to share their insights on the nation’s experience in dealing with senior workers. An Asia-Pacific Roundtable will similarly bring together regional leaders from Australia, Japan, and South Korea.

 

Notable speakers who will present at the inaugural conference include Mr. Kenneth Apfel, former Commissioner of Social Security in the United States; Dr. Sarah Harper, director of the Oxford University’s Oxford Institute of Ageing, Dr Flore-Anne Messy, Administrator of the OECD’s Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs, as well as corporate age management expert Mr. Mirko Sporket and Vice-President of International Consortium for Intergenerational Programs Dr Thang Leng Leng. The conference will cover the following areas:

 

· Financial Education & Literacy

· HR Strategies for Engaging/Retaining Older Workers

· Lifelong Learning & Training of Older Workers

· Workplace Design for the Ageing Workforce

· Opportunities of an Ageing Population

· Cultural Change and Intergenerational Cooperation

· Media & Messaging: Changing Attitudes & Perceptions

 

The recent winners of the inaugural AARP International Innovative Employer Award – Alexandra Hospital and Singapore Health Services Pte Ltd (SingHealth) – will also share some of their innovative HR practices which have helped them engage senior workers meaningfully.

 

The Reinventing Retirement Asia Conference is particularly relevant given that it comes ahead of Singapore’s enactment of re-employment legislation by 2012, to enable more people to continue working beyond the current statutory retirement age of 62.

 

“This Conference with AARP will help both employers and employees to prepare themselves for the 2012 legislature. Beyond financial security, continued employment beyond retirement will contribute to the vocational wellness of seniors, which is in line with the six dimensions of wellness that C3A promotes,” said C3A Chief Executive Officer Henry Quake.

 

Reinventing Retirement Asia 2009 will be held on 8 & 9 January 2009 at the Pan Pacific Singapore Hotel. For more information, visit www.c3a.org.sg/conference

 

About Council for Third Age (C3A)

Set up in May 2007, Council for Third Age is an independent body that promotes active ageing, so that seniors can achieve a better quality of life in all the six dimensions of wellness – social, intellectual, physical, vocational, emotional and spiritual. The Council plays a leadership role in driving the thrust towards creating an active ageing culture in Singapore, and partners businesses and community organizations to develop products and services that fulfill the aspirations and interests of seniors.

 

About AARP

AARP is a non-profit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world’s largest circulation magazine with over 33 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP’s 40 million members and Americans 50+; AARP Segunda Juventud, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Can Google make you smarter? Is the more you Yahoo, the better?

A new study suggests that searching online could be beneficial for the mature brain. A study  conducted by  Dr. Gary Small has been in all the news this week.  

 

Join us Wednesday evening  as Gary  discuss how your brain changes  using today’s  technology.

 

iBrain:  Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind

 

Date:               Wednesday Evening, Oct 22, 2008

 

Moderator:      Jeff Zimman – CEO, Posit Science

 

Speaker:         Gary Small, MD, Director of the Aging and Memory Research Center, Semel Institute

 

Location:        Wilson Sonsini – 950 Page Mill Road, Palo Alto  

 

Time:               6:00PM Registration, Hors d’oeuvres and Networking

 

                        7:00PM Presentation and Panel Discussion

 

Registration:

$20.00 in advance on the website

 

$25.00 Walk-ins at the door (cash or check please, no credit cards accepted at door)

 

Here is the  buzz …   If you think our constant use of the internet, blackberry’s, iPods, text-messaging and video games have changed our lives and our children’s lives, here’s some breaking news:  Our frequent use of technology has not only altered our lives, it’s altered our brains.

 

Gary Small, M.D., one of America’s leading neuroscientists and one of the leading medical experts on memory and brain fitness, discusses the remarkable brain evolution caused by the constant presence of technology today, separating the digital natives – those born in the computer age – from the digital immigrants, those who discovered computer technology asadults.   Join us as Gary discusses:

 

·         Techno-Brain Burnout -psychological and brain stress from too much technological exposure

 

·         I Can Quit Any Time I Want — how we can, indeed, be addicted to, the internet, games, social networking ,our e-mail and more – Find out what happens in our brain when we see messages that we like.

 

·         Brain Gap – Technology Dividing Generations – gap between young digital natives and older adults.

 

Gary Small, M.D – Director of the Aging and Memory Research Center at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior Dr. Gary Small is a professor of psychiatry at the UCLA Semel Institute and directs the Memory and Aging Research Center and the UCLA Center on Aging. He is one of the world’s leading experts on brain science and has published numerous books and articles. Scientific American magazine named him one of the world’s top innovators in science and technology, and he frequently appears on The Today Show, Good Morning America, 20/20 and CNN. Dr. Small has invented the first brain scan that allows doctors to see the physical evidence of brain aging and Alzheimer’s disease in living people. Among his numerous breakthrough research studies, he now leads a team of neuroscientists who are demonstrating that exposure to computer technology causes rapid and profound changes in brain neural circuitry.

 

Jeff Zimman is the co-founder and Chairman of Posit Science. From 2003 to 2008 he served as President and CEO of the company. He now chairs the Board of Directors and focuses his full-time efforts at the company on strategic relationships and corporate development. For the past two decades, Jeff has been involved with healthcare, information technology, and consumer products companies in implementing strategies leading to successful funding, high growth, and liquidity. Jeff is a former Venture Partner of VSP Capital, a former Managing Director of Lazard, where he founded and ran the investment bank’s early stage advisory business, and a former partner of Cooley Godward, where he headed the corporate and securities practice in the law firm’s San Francisco office. In addition to running these high-growth service businesses, he has served on the boards of several start-up companies. Earlier in his career, Jeff was an award-winning newspaper reporter, covering business and technology. He earned his AB degree at Bowdoin College and his JD and MBA degrees at Stanford University.

 

Release by:

Susan Ayers Walker, Technology Journalist

www.aarp.org/learntech/computers/

Managing Director, SmartSilvers

www.smartsilvers.com/

(office)    650-854-1146

(fax)         650-854-1889

(cell)        415-265-1045

(skype)   wra7562

Mature Market Experts Stat of The Day: Music

Not only are groups like The Eagles playing longer, their mature market fans are still buying.

FACT: The mature market loves their music AND they have the disposable income to buy it (as opposed to pirating it).

“More than 70 percent of the 76 million baby boomers in the U.S. report buying music in the past year, making it the most important buying segment for CDs and an increasingly important market for digital downloads, according to a new study. Consumer surveys focusing on music purchasing habits of baby boomers were conducted by The NPD Group for the “Boometrics” study, on behalf of National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) and AARP.”

Source: “Boometrics” Study Sees Billion Dollar Market Potential for Music Sellers

Regardless of what you are selling, don’t belief the myths that are often attached to the mature market (for example, seniors are not interested in new music . . . seniors are not buyers). They have more money than anyone else and should be highly respected. The last time you were in a music store, did it feel like it was designed for the mature market or someone way younger? I think you know the answer.

McCain and Obama Speak Out

As many of you know, I recently attended the AARP Life@50+ National Event in Washington, DC. One of the highlights was the two presidential candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, talking about what they would do for the mature market. The video links are above in case you missed it.

Mature Market Experts Stat of The Day: Medical Websites

Medical/health information web sites drew 69 million unique visitors in July, up 21% from a year ago. The biggest gainer? Steve Case’s Revolution Health Networks, up 182% to 11.3 million unique visitors . . . and quickly catching up with WebMD’s 17 million unique visitors. You think that Boomers/Seniors/the Mature Market had something to do with this? To see more interesting stats (particularly on online health care website ad display rates and click-through rates that can help your marketing to the mature market) click here.

Source: comScore

Mature Market Stat of The Day: Advertising

Boomer / Senior / Mature Market Stat of the Day – I recently attended AARP’s Life @50, National Event and Expo in Washington, DC (Sept. 4-6). As I toured the expo, I was struck by how few marketers actually understand the audience they are trying to reach. Perhaps the funniest example of this was the AARP’s expo brochure and map. The map, which was supposed to identify where the different company booth locations were, was printed so small that not even Superman with his superhuman powers could have read it. Unbelievable. I can’t tell you how many people asked me if I could read it (I couldn’t and I have better than 20/20 vision).

 

“People over the age of 50 account for half of all the discretionary spending in the U.S., and they are voracious cultural consumers. They watch more television, go to more movies, and buy more CDs than young people do. Yet, Americans over 50 are the focus of less than 10% of the advertising. In short, the romanticization of youth persists.”

 

Source: Glenn Ruffenach, Why Gerontologists Should Join Forces with the Business Community, 2005

I suspect most of these errors happen not because people/companies/ad agencies are lazy or stupid, but rather they don’t know what they should be looking for. Also, the larger the company, the more likely it is that implementation is developed further down the line (usually by a 25-year old designer who can’t be expected to think like a 50-year old).

 

People, do your company a favor and make sure that a 50+ year-old is reviewing your marketing materials (or hire an outside consultant who specializes in the mature market to act as your eyes and ears).