Anderson Marketing Blog

Millennials, by definition, are those born between 1982 and 2000. They came of age in the new millennium and are more diverse than any other generation, growing larger as young immigrants continue to come to the United States. As of a census completed in 2015, millennials surpassed the baby boomers as the largest living generation. Want to know what they think about healthcare? Read on.

Generational marketing continues to be a relevant topic for many marketers today—specifically the differences between generations and the impact on marketing strategies. Generations exhibit similar characteristics such as communication, shopping, and motivation preferences because they experienced comparable things at approximately the same life stage and through similar channels. Different experiences equate to different marketing messages.

Delivering the right offer to the right person at the right time has been a formula for DM success since its inception. But gauging that timing hasn’t always been simple. Considering an individual's life stage is crucial in marketing across the board, but is even more imperative in any insurance marketing.

Women make 85% of all purchasing decisions, yet 91% of women say advertisers don’t understand them. Wow. And with Gen X controlling 31% of the total US income, there is a huge opportunity for marketers to connect with and focus on Gen X women specifically.

While the baby boomer and millennial generations have been an endless source of media fascination from past to present, there is an important “middle child”, so to speak, generation sandwiched in there, and its name is Generation X. Gen Xers are unique, and so are their buying habits. Specifically, we'll talk about Gen X home buying attitudes and what they mean for financial services marketers.

Along with having a new car or two in the driveway, a job for life, two kids and perhaps an adorable dog, owning a home has always been a central part of the American dream.  Things like a reasonable housing market; a stable, robust domestic economy and wide, post-war use of the G.I. Bill, made that dream much more achievable for the Silent Generation (born from the late 40s to the early 60s) and Baby Boomers (born in the years following World War II). 

At 75 million strong, Millennials have officially surpassed Baby Boomers as the nation’s largest consumer group.  But this younger generation faces many financial challenges which at the same age their elders did not, notably an uncertain world economy, comparatively large student debt, reduced upward mobility, plus a big erosion in middle-class spending power. 

As we all know, no business can grow and thrive by remaining static and ignoring changing demographics. Each generation has characteristics that must be understood to effectively communicate and provide experiences that engage patrons to become loyal customers. The gaming industry is keenly aware of this and has been urgently focused on steps to modify their marketing strategies and their casino environment to appeal to the younger generation without interfering with the experience of their core players. The casino industry mainstay demographic, Baby Boomers (ages 52-70), will eventually “age-out”, and growth for the gaming industry will rely on their ability to adjust to generational preferences, especially the Millennials.

My name is Leah, and I’m a Generation Xer.

The financial industry is changing—and so is the marketplace. Combined, these trends have created a “perfect storm” of opportunities and challenges, which many companies are not prepared to weather. Those that can navigate these new waters by tailoring their business tactics, products and services are destined to reap the rewards.