Oh, the marketing experts are scrambling.  It is almost funny to watch them.  It must have been a hard switch – moving from attracting the disposable income of teenagers to going after the deeper pockets of Baby Boomers.  But with Boomers turning 60 this year, and one turning 60 every seven seconds, businesses want the spare change in their pockets.  Marketing is an exciting place to be right now!

The products we will be seeing range from the fun to the serious.  There are a variety of needs in the Boomer community; some are to assist with medical issues and others are for entertainment.  But all will cost the consumer and marketing experts know that and are eager to help.

One product is a game.  Called the “Ginko Memory Game,” it is, “about stimulating and activating vital memory centers in the brain. It connects to these particular questions like — tell a story about one of your favorite secret places.”  Another is aimed at correcting a problem that causes blindness in people over 50.  Novelios Pharmaceuticals is hoping to eliminate glaucoma.  “Our product is a glaucoma drug therapy that will have to go through the FDA approval process, but the technology is very encouraging in that it focuses on the root cause of glaucoma,” said Joseph Berryhill of the company.

Are these needs or wants?  Many are just things we want – things that will part us from the money in our wallets pretty quickly.  A cure for glaucoma?  That sounds like a wonderful idea.  But the others?  As always, the best advice for Boomers, and any other shopper is, “Buyer Beware!”

Meeting the Needs of Baby Boomers