The mysterious case of the marketer and the pot of silver

BY Tim Burrowes

March 4, 2024 10:44

The mysterious case of the marketer and the pot of silver

Welcome to a Tuesday update from Unmade. Today: Why brands struggle to change boomer habits. And Seven West Media drags down the Unmade Index after being kicked off the ASX300.

Today’s full post is for Unmade’s paying members only. Beneath the paywall is a coupon code for members-only pricing for HumAIn, Unmade’s exploration of how AI is changing the world of marketing, which takes place in May.

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Silver economy

Last night, I went to a great little restaurant in Sydney. I say little – there must have been fewer than 20 seats. It was one of those sort of places you had to hunt for up an alley.

The menu, lots of tasty, tiny dishes was complicated. And in the gloom of the room, almost impossible to read. As someone who regularly creates a debacle when I inevitably forget my reading glasses before moderating panels on stage, I was already instinctively reaching for my phone light.

Fortunately I’m about four years too young to technically be part of that most reviled of generations, the boomers, but at font-challenged moments like that, I feel like an honorary member.

However, the restaurant had thought ahead. Rather than the (some would say practical) solution of providing lighting of adequate wattage, they had distributed discreet, lipstick-sized torches to each table. And magnifying glasses.

I felt a little like Sherlock Holmes investigating the case of the emulsified amuse-bouche as I peered at the degustation menu.

It added to the experience almost as much as the comical moment of trying to turn off the torch and accidentally triggering some sort of emergency distress mode which flickered across the room at maximum brightness.

But at least they’d thought about it.

A provocative press release dropped yesterday from RMIT University. Brands, it claimed, are missing out by failing to market to and cater to older Australians with the same vigour they do for the young.

Baby boomers – those roughly over the age of 57, depending on your chosen definition – account for 21.5% of the population, but half of the nation’s wealth, point out the RMIT academics.

According to Foula Kopanidis, associate professor of marketing at RMIT: “If brands want to bring in big business as younger generations tighten their purse strings, they must pay attention to the Baby Boomer market and truly understand what their purchasing habits and goals are – not assume.

“They should also look at their whole customer experience and whether its inclusive of this demographic – such as website design, font size and customer service options.”

Font size. Amen.

But the main thrust of the RMIT release is to suggest that marketers are failing to properly understand an attractive demographic. Stereotyping and ageing lies behind this apparent oversight, the press release suggested. But is that really the case?

Argues Kopanakis: “Brands reduce this consumer group down to a specific stereotype, one that does not want to engage in the eclectic mix of lifestyles and hobbies that would otherwise be attributed to the younger generations.

“In fact, Baby Boomers show diversity not only in attitudes but also in lifestyle choices and they don’t always stick to the same path with their brand preferences.

“They also often engage in online shopping, with at least 70% making one purchase from Amazon monthly and engaging with TikTok, Snapchat, Reddit, YouTube, and Facebook.”

I’m not sure.

While the cost of living crisis has undoubtedly moved price consideration up for many consumers – including those with high disposable wealth – habit is still stronger. And a half century of consumption creates habits even harder to break.

Most marketers I’ve come across are data driven, and would change targeting strategy in a heartbeat if it generated a long term brand uplift or even a short term sales boost.

For all the regular complaints from media serving older demographics that they are under-invested in, there is still no convincing evidence that marketers who shift their media budgets to older audiences see a better return on their investment.

I’d love to see the data if a brand tried it.

SWM sheds nearly 5% after being booted off the ASX 300

The Unmade Index slumped to its lowest point in three months on Monday, losing 0.99% to land at 573.6 points.

Among the stocks dragging down our tracker of listed Australian media and marketing companies was Seven West Media which lost 4.55% after Friday night’s notification that it was being removed from the ASX300. The move means that exchange traded funds tracking the ASX300 – which lists Australia’s 300 biggest listed companies – are likely to shed their stocks in SWM within the next fortnight.

Meanwhile, Enero, which was removed from the All Ordinaries index of the top 500 stocks, lost 0.95%.

Ooh Media also had a poor day, losing 3.55%.