In response to the poor housing market, job losses and an aging baby boomer population there has been a steady rise in multigenerational households. There are 16.1 million households that have two adult generations* and 4.3 million households that have three generations** totaling 20 million households representing 14.22% of all U.S. households. This dynamic presents a marketing challenge. In order to reach more consumers within multigenerational households there is an opportunity for our clients to focus deeper into each household. The head of the household is typically chosen as the contact for direct marketing unless the segment is defined specifically by gender or age. Multigenerational households create three additional opportunities: 1) reach younger generations returning home, 2) older generations moving in with children, and 3) indirect marketing to the head of the house. These three opportunities fall within both the prospect and consumer populations. In fact the added dimension of generations within cross sell/up sell campaigns creates great cohesion for your brand within the household.

The head of household that inevitably takes on additional decision making, creates opportunity to market to them on behalf of other generations. For example, marketers normally wouldn’t solicit 40 year-old consumers for Medicare, but in the instance of a multigenerational household that was recently formed by the addition of their 65 year old parent, it is worth considering. This represents opportunity for managers of banking, investments, and senior focused products.  Also, with the potential for pooling resources, financial services marketing to the multigenerational household will change.

Marketing to generations above and below the head of household opens up additional possibilities. The younger generation will be establishing financial relationships, preparing to become independent, and searching for permanent residence. The older generation may be helping pay down debt, adding on to the house or finishing the basement, and revisiting healthcare and financial needs.

A representative sample is seen below.  Contact me for the full chart.

*2 adult generations – within a household unit there are adults greater than 20 years apart in age. This household could be college graduates returning home or parents moving in with empty nest adults. A household is defined as the same address and same last name.

**3 generations – within a household unit there are adults greater than 20 years apart in age as well as school age children.

Advertisers continue to covet the 18 – 54 demographic in both the online and offline world.  On what data are these targets based?  Of course, the old school thought-process was get to the younger crowd and develop brand loyalty early on.  And that certainly worked 30 years ago.  Was your dad a Ford, GM or Chrysler guy?  Did your family use Crest or Colgate?  Scope or Listerine?  Miller or Bud?

I vividly recall my marketing professor’s teaching the importance of the younger generation back in my marketing classes back in the 80′s.  Hasn’t the access to mountains of data and sophisticated customer intelligence analysis identified new strategies and segments over the past 25 years??  Brand loyalties are seemingly shifting with the next Groupon or coupon coming down the pike.  And brand’s are so fragmented and cannibalized, how much brand loyalty is left?  Dare I say, our toothpaste drawer consists of at least 3 different brands of toothpaste.  Does it still make sense to market to the fickle 18- 34 age group?

Not if you believe an article in the 11/15/2010 edition of USAToday (www.usatoday.com).  In an article titled “Big-spending Boomers Bend Rules of Marketing” (see link here: http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/2010-11-15-babyboomers-spending_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip), baby boomers are correctly identified as a “new” market with much greater spending power than the under 50 crowd.  I’m not sure if the 50+ crowd is more compelling because they have more quantity (77 million members and growing), they have more loyalty, or they have more money.  The combination of all three is attractive.

As you are planning your upcoming marketing strategies, don’t underestimate the 50+ crowd.  In fact, make them a key part of your strategy and you may be looking at your competition in the rearview mirror.