Two types of marketer will find the book…
“No BS Marketing To Leading Edge Boomers And Seniors”
…very useful.
Those who already market to Leading Edge Boomers And Seniors (“LEB/S”)…
…and everybody else.
That because…
…the LEB/S group is WHERE THE MONEY IS!
Consider these points…
1. Combined Boomer and Senior consumer population tops 117 million in USA (with an annual spending power of $2 TRILLION)
2. Over half of the USA’s wealth and a larger proportion of discretionary spending power is in the hands of leading-edge boomers and seniors
The picture is probably similar in most developed western countries.
So, this group has the money and they are not afraid to spend it…
…if you know how to successfully market to them.
You see, this group has very distinct characteristics and behaviours. They think and act very differently from younger age groups.
So, if you don’t understand these people, even worse if you communicate with them in a way that’s patronising…
…you’re going to miss out on a potentially huge market opportunity.
In contrast to many of the “No BS” series books, this one is less of a specific “How-to” map, although there are plenty of concrete examples and suggestions that can be adapted to you business.
Rather, the book takes a good look at who makes up the LEB/S group, their characteristics and the principles of successfully communicating and marketing to this group.
Experienced direct response marketers will have no problem fitting these specific ideas into the standard model of direct response marketing.
There are four sections to the book.
The first “Who Are These People” takes an in-depth look at the group, the numbers and the scope of the business opportunity here.
Part 2 covers strategies to properly understand and communicate with the group.
In “Businesses Built For LEB/S” there are case studies of companies that cater very specifically for this group.
The final, brief, section lists some useful resources.
The greater part of the book is written by Dan Kennedy himself (14 out of 22 chapters plus the Preface). The guest chapters are solid contributions from people like Chip Kessler who has collaborated with Dan before. One thing that I have found annoying with some of Dan’s books is the amount of padding from “guest chapters”. That’s not the case here.
Overall, a solid book that provides solid insights into how to approach this potentially lucrative market.
“It is a manual about getting money from those who have it and are, given reason and their interests met, very willing to spend it – on just about everything, and more of it, at higher average prices than any other consumers.”
Even if you think that LEB/S is not your primary market, you might want to consider…
1. If it might be more profitable to re-orient your business to make LEB/S the main focus; or
2. Within your existing business if it makes sense to segment your customers and provide a specialised offer for this group.