Rise of the Silver Shopper

July 13, 2018 Jesse Bickerton

Rise of the Silver Shopper : Are you ready?

You might be asking yourself, who are or what are silver shoppers? They are people now over 55 years old. The baby boomers have grown up and continue to be a force in retail. Did you know that 76 million Americans were born between 1946 and 1964? That means that 50% of the US population is currently over 50. Silver shoppers are too big of a segment for marketers and advertisers to ignore! Are you ready for the rise of the silver shopper?

What influenced this group? Beatlemania. Woodstock. The Vietnam War. Walking on the Moon. Live Aid.

Forget about retirement, silver shoppers are still working! 43% are delaying retirement, with 25% of them saying they will never retire, meaning by 2020, 25% of the US workforce will be 55+.

Shopping Habits of Silver Shoppers

Spending-wise, silver shoppers account for 50% of all dollars spent, but currently are only targeted for 5-10% of advertising budgets. While silver shoppers will increase their spending by 58% over the next 20 years, millennials will only increase spending by 24%. Silver shoppers will spend $400 billion over the next year alone, with $7 billion accounting for online sales. Are you targeting this lucrative, under-serviced segment?

Silver shoppers account for 80% of all luxury travel spending and also represent the peak vehicle buyers, compared to 34-44 in 2011. 86% belong to a brand loyalty program to earn rewards, while 71% have one for deals. Are you meeting the needs of this segment?

Tell Me More…

At home, silver shoppers spend on average a whopping 174 hours per month watching television. 51% say they spend 15 hours or more a week online, compared to only 44% of millennials.

These silver shoppers are trying to balance:

Caring for aging parents
Caring for adult children
Caring about careers
Caring about themselves

What do they want from retailers? Smaller local stores that are easy to navigate. Quality products in simple packaging. More choice, especially in apparel.

Where are they concentrated? We’ve got that information and more in our Rise of the Silver Shopper Case Study. Click to download.

Aliases: Golden Boomers, generation Jones, alpha boomers, hippies, yippies, yuppies, zoomers, cuspers.

This group has been known throughout history as different things, and are still driving change. Contrary to popular belief, this group is keen on technology. 78% enjoy using some form of technology. Email marketing, mobile offers and online stores are all appealing to silver shoppers.

In Conclusion

Simply put, this is a segment that cannot be ignored. Silver shoppers have more disposable income than other groups, and continue to spend as they age. Silver shoppers are more likely to connect to a brand and be loyal for years. The bottom line is that these these shoppers cannot be missed, either in person or online. The sheer size of the group, combined with their spending habits, represent a huge market that is traditionally underserved by advertisers.

Wondering how to get silver shoppers into your business? Consider these Consumer Promotion Tactics to help drive traffic or here are some reason Why Digital Coupons Work over traditional coupons.

RAVEN5 works with clients solving their primary business challenge, finding new prospects and new customers. We provide services in creative, design, branding, digital, strategy and communications. We work with our clients to find new customers, build online engagement and in-store sales.

Jesse Bickerton, RAVEN5, July 2018