We’re Older And Cooler. The Optimal Market.
By Karen and Erica
The simple truth is that as a woman in the fifty-plus age group you rarely get marketed to. Products you might want to buy–and an anti-ageing cream is a good standard example–are marketed to you using models in their thirties–reminding you not of who you could be but of who you were twenty years ago. On the few occasions you do see a woman of your actual age group in an advertisement she’s either Helen Mirren (the only older woman still allowed to exist) or–she’s selling you meals on wheels. She’s telling you not to worry because someone’s made a pad to keep your pants dry if you find you start to pee involuntarily. She doesn’t represent your real life. Your actual concerns. You know I don’t mind telling you all that I am fifty-five years old and I’m not thinking about how big my coffin needs to be. Not just yet.
This is part of a soliloquy in a play we saw a while ago, the reflections of a female character of 55+ years on the prejudices against older women. It resonated with us.
Those of us who are lucky enough to be alive and well have plans. Our plans may include purposeful work, or caregiving, or learning a new skill. And we likely are doing our best to stay healthy while we get older. But our plans also include enjoying our new free time. We are seeing people, doing things, going places. We spend on things that give us pleasure—travel to distant places, clothes that make us look as grand as we feel, chic restaurants where we are right at home, and jewels and cars and crazy hats.
We have a lot of money, too. Our cohort is wealthy. We have been making most of our families’ spending decisions for a long time, of course, but now we are spending on ourselves—having come to the realization we can’t take it with us.
So—why on earth wouldn’t the people who want to sell travel, and clothes, and food, and jewels and cars and crazy hats, not be marketing to us? Why don’t they show us looking glamorous at the wheel of a fast car in a floaty scarf and big sunglasses on Route 66? But they don’t. Instead, they portray us as the target markets only for bladder control products, and shingles vaccines, and Medicare advice. And that’s all.
These products are surely necessary. But showing older women as consumers exclusively of palliative products, rather than showing us enjoying an entertaining lifestyle, perpetuates an image that is demeaning, false, and outdated. A frail and needy image that creates barriers for us, because people who see us as frail and needy will not think of us as productive members of society. That makes us mad. And deprives us of all kinds of opportunities.
So retailers, wise up. Make us look good, and get rich in the process. We have long runways, we have plenty to spend, and we want to enjoy life. Don’t worry about the millennials. They would love to be able to afford what we can buy.
Wait, you forgot retirement ads where the guy (silver-haired, faced aged with gravitas) is paired with a woman who…looks like she stepped out of the marketing department’s fantasy camp.
On point.
Well said!
So agree with all this! I overheard the Millennial daughter of a dear friend talking to one of her friends in a surprised tone about me as a 66 year old…"She drinks martinis, drives a Volvo SUV, wears makeup….and actually does stuff!!". Good grief!
Exactly. These are facts!
Truth!
All true. So instead of wishing for this kind of marketing, who is into starting it? This is a really good opportunity to develop a marketing partnership/collaboration/company specifically for this target audience. I’m there, I’m this audience and I do marketing and design. Anyone out there who wants to explore this with me?
I am interested in exploring this with you! I am based in Arizona. Email me deniseatwoodpllc@gmail.com
All so true! and frustrating!
Cindy and Denise—Great idea. Thanks for taking the lead. Please keep us posted on your ideas.
Cindy Blackman, I’m a teacher, designer and recovering investigative journalist, also interested in working on this with you. For sure it should be done.
Well said! Thank you.
The marketing world is still stuck in the era where "over 50" = feeble senior citizens. And over 60? Forget it. Brings to mind the scene in "Pretty Woman" where Julia Roberts returns to the fancy store that shunned her to tell them "Big mistake…huge."
So sadly true. Watching any cable TV (not often) is disgusting after 8 pm.. and almost funny with the"elderly products" in every commercial
So love this! If one more person asks me if I am going to "retire" because my daughter is almost out of college and I am getting ready to hit 54, I will for sure scream. I feel like I have so much time, energy and desire yet, and folks want to minimize it – put me out in a golfing community somewhere (no shame if that’s where you are, but I guess you do way more than golfing!). This is why I love Lustre and the message shared here. You would hope that there are folks out there, somewhere getting this message, and recognize the opportunity.
This article is spot on. Women over 50 seem to be one of the last groups in today’s society where advertisers can make fun of them, dress them in ridiculous outfits (usually with huge eyeglasses) and there are no repercussions. I plan on retiring in about 18 months and would love to become an advocate to stop the institutional practices and policies that perpetuate stereotypes about mature people.
Thanks, everyone. Please keep your ideas coming. Maybe we can gather some of you with experience to form a task force.
So true! We are rarely shown as being vibrant, active, and technology savvy. Instead, we are stereotyped into antiquated ideas of aging. I’m 70, retired from my “day job” at 62 and remain active doing the things I now choose to do. And I am not technology challenged nor are most people I know as the ads would have you believe. People make assumptions about us based on those ads; frustrating!
It’s not just in the marketing and fashion world that we are ignore – we’re invisible in the car design (we are smaller and don’t survive crashes very well because of poor design), medical drug testing (we experience heart attacks differently physiologically) , new product creation , even financial product development worlds as well. We are 54% of the WORLD population after age 50 and we aren’t anything but an after thought. I know that 48% (in Canada) of women have wills to protect their futures, the average age of a widow (Cdn) is 56, we will be living a long solo life and housing options aren’t being developed or constructed. We will likely need medical care later in life and we don’t have options for health care insurance as we age. Also we have several Trillion dollars of wealth! It’s crazy.
It’s time for us to show up in the runways! And it’s beginning- 60’s 70’s 80’s represented in this years show. We have beautiful natural hair that shines silver golden and white. When are designer going to start designing clothes for us? We can’t all afford designer clothes) no we’re not all wealthy) but the mainstream market needs to sell attractive youthful sexy looking clothes to us! I have been waiting a long time!
Thank you for your exciting work. Noting some of us don’t have a lot of money! Worked in nonprofits and gov jobs, fighting the good fight while suffering from pay equity issues.