Cedric Gomez
Marketing 304
Case Study Analysis
April 16, 2015

The baby boomers are the wealthiest and largest group of Americans, totaling over 78 million people. Yet, only 10 percent of advertising funds is allocated to this generation. The baby boomers have transformed every age and market they have been a part of. They have reshaped industries such as diapers, music, and healthcare, allowing these markets to boom immediately. Appealing to this group is every marketer’s and businesses’ dream, the difficult part is finding products and services that appeal to this generation. In order to figure out what type of products or services would be popular and appealing to this large spending group, we must first understand the consumer behavior. There is a five stage purchase decision process that every consumer goes through before making a purchase. As a marketer for this generation, it is very important to understand the problems this group of people have, how accessible the product information is to this group, assessing the value of the product and making it known to the consumer, the value the consumer gets from the product or service if they purchase, and how it is valued after they purchase the product/service (post purchase behavior). After doing careful research, I concluded most baby boomers seek to feel a sense of community, connections, continuity, contribution, and creativity (A marketing Boom: how to attract the baby boomer market). These 5 characteristics are also known as the 5 C’s of baby boomers real needs. I concluded that products that share all 5 of these qualities or a combination of 2 or more can be considered products or services that can be attention to the baby boomers. Some products that might be popular amongst the baby boomer generation are: 1) Apple iPad 2) Facebook 3) Mobile Banking.
The apple iPad allows people from this generation to be creative, to have continuity, make connections, and be a part of a growing technological community. Boomers grew up with a narrow minded mentality, a “don’t tell me what to do mentality” in the sixties. Because of this, Boomers respond well to options, they enjoy customizing their own products/services to meet their needs. In this case the iPad is the perfect product for them since they can choose from different sizes (regular iPad or the iPad mini), customize their iPad by selecting a background, downloading different apps that relate to them, and using modern technology for finding new ways to solve old problems. This generation is also lured in by the idea of continuous learning and growing, they still seek the desire to continue changing and better themselves. By having Gadgets like the Apple iPad they are learning how to use new programs and how to interact through social media apps like Facebook that can easily be downloaded onto the iPad.
Facebook has gained a large amount of popularity among all generations, it has become a form of communication that is accessible to nearly everyone in the world, free of cost. Like I stated earlier, baby boomers seek to find products or services such as Facebook that allow them to make connections, such as, connecting with the younger generations and keeping up/learning/ using their concepts, words, phrases, and lingo. For example, many baby boomers are fascinated and have begun to use hashtags when writing comments or uploading posts on Facebook or other social media. Another reason why Facebook is an appealing service for baby boomers is because it provides them with a sense of community. People of the baby boomer generation don’t want to feel as if they are losing an identity in certain parts of their lives, and often want to feel as if they are a part of a definable group. Facebook allows them to reconnect with friends, keep in touch with family, and meet new people from around their area. They are becoming a part of a social group, this can offer them the opportunity to regain a sense of belonging and