The final Article: Transpromo and Aging Baby Boomer

The Final Article

Baby Boomers are a growing population, to the tune of 800,000 people per month. According to US Census Reports, in twenty years numbers will have risen from 37 million to 71 million. Current advances in medicine and technology enable the average customer an expanded lifetime. It is time for businesses to ask if they are prepared to reach this significant portion of the consumer market. What does the average 65 year-old value right now? What do they want? What do they need? Whom do they listen to?  How would they respond to personalized information delivered by a company they trust?

There has been a scramble among marketers to find out what exactly this expanding group wants to buy. They are hounded with T.V. commercials and Direct Mailings trying to sell them everything from motorized wheel chairs to insurance.  The news has been packed with stories about elderly people getting cheated out of their money. Recently there has been heat on businesses that use high-pressure marketing tactics and detailed scripts to sell to older Americans intimidating or even deceiving the elderly into buying. It is no wonder that some seniors are beginning to distrust advertisers.  Most promotional campaigns are driven by the fact that the business needs to make the sale. While it is true that the business will profit from the up-sale, the long term profit is in the service to the customer. Brand loyalty through quality, personalized contact has to be the focus.

Research has shown that elderly messaging has a different packaging. In 2003 a study performed at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, found that 60 percent of their survey group, with an average age of 71, reported that they would stop buying products that were advertised in an offensive manner. 67 percent believed that their age group was negatively portrayed in advertising. One of their chief concerns was that young people view such marketing would have a lesser view of their elders. That is why it is so important to prove to be a company that is in it for the customer.

The baby boomer generation is in need of information. They are on the edge of technology but have not been able to embrace most things that could be useful to link them to information, such as the internet. Though some gadgets have been made senior friendly for those more adventurous, but for the most part, seniors remain out of the loop. It is this information gap that distances low income seniors from the information that they need. It would be nice if all of the federal and state agencies put together a list of available programs for people who do not have access to the internet, but so far there is no such thing.

The U.S. Census Bureau’s 2006 American Community Survey reported that although 7.5 million Americans over the age of 64 were at or below the poverty level, only 1.5 percent took advantage of cash grants and food assistance. In fact, for many Baby Boomers, Social Security and Pensions make up the majority of their income. With the average income for households receiving Social Security Benefits of only $1,400 a month, it is easy to understand why 540,000 elderly Americans are without telephone service. In addition, over the last year the cost of food has increased by almost 9 percent, utilities by 11 percent and gas prices by almost 20 percent. This has a distinct impact on the elderly as a significant portion of their household income is to survive.

Financial stress can take toll on persons of any age. Anxiety over money problems can lead to negative coping behaviors such as frustration, a sense of hopelessness; a loss of sleep, weakened immune function, the list can go on. With less money to work with, many skimp on things like healthcare and home maintenance, allowing problems to go unchecked until they are critical and sometimes hard to reverse.

Many senior citizens are not informed about the programs available to help ease their financial burdens. How do we communicate with the elderly and can we do this better? They need access to some services and programs that they may not know exist. What do senior citizens do when they live alone or in a nursing home and have no idea that they qualify for help? Out of the 37 million, 40% live at home alone and 13% live in Nursing homes or residential assisted living environments.  The only true answer is educational and promotional messages designed to help them meet their needs and achieve their goals.

From the truly poor to those just trying to scrape together enough for some time away, they need educational information. Studies indicate that most seniors will take the time to review critical documents such as bills, bank statements and medical statements.  So, it seems logical to target promotional as well as educational programs to this senior demographic, especially if it helps alleviate some financial burdens.

Transpromo can be the answer. Transpromo can help businesses establish trust (loyalty), and build brand awareness by bringing customers helpful, relevant, and timely information. You must reach customers on an emotional level- that produces brand loyalty. This generation fondly remembers the local druggist, hardware store owner, and Diner. They grew up in a time where trust and loyalty were the backbone of a business. They come from the generation of the handshake and have placed a great deal of trust in those companies that they have been dealing with for years and years. Who better to offer them tips to get the things they need and want?  Keeping the customers needs and goals in mind should be the number one priority of the business utilizing Transpromo.

TransPromo combines relevant, personalized, marketing or education messages into must-read statements.  By tying together both educational and promotional messaging, Transpromo becomes a powerful tool.  By understanding senior citizens past buying behaviors, customer demographics, and income levels, we could target the must reads like utility, phone, or tax statements; further, promoting Federal programs that will assist them with the cost of their homes, food and healthcare plans. Let’s look at some possible ways Transpromo can address this.

For the 18 million who own their own homes, they need to know there are several programs that help with housing issues. Although statistics are not available for every program, it has become apparent that they are underused by eligible persons. The elderly and their caregivers would benefit by knowing where they could find Federal and local programs or even money saving products and ideas. The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) are two federally funded programs available to the low income. The former is even available to non-homeowners. The electric company could share this information. Each state also has it’s own tax break programs. And the phone company could educate about Link-Up, which helps cover the cost of phone service set-up costs and Life-Line which gives a monthly discount on phone service to qualified persons.

According to the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging, health related services are the biggest concern among those 65 years and older.  The report stated that access to affordable and understandable information on healthcare services decreases with age. While health care is a great financial worry for those with limited means, elderly patients are also having trouble understanding their options. This is where insurance coverage and benefits, medical conditions and treatments, and prescription drug documentation come in.

The selection of messages placed on medical statements could be based on past medical conditions, unused insurance benefits, and prescriptions. These communications would improve the understanding of treatment options, drug interactions, and unused insurance benefits, based on the patient’s past medical conditions, treatments and prescription interactions.  Improved information should assist in making decisions that will essentially improve their life.

Transpromo can and should face the social issues of today’s customer. I think that providing the elderly with information (in a larger font of course) about the benefits, services, and other relevant information should be a priority. The heart of TransPromo technology and services combine personalized marketing or education messages with must-read statements. Using Transpromo is not always about the “promotion”.  Making use of clear composition techniques, intelligent information gathering, the right format, and the right timing will improve business to senior communications and differentiate a company from the competition. The end result should be an improved customer experience, enhancing your brand, awareness, and customer satisfaction.