Suddenly Seventy

Intro

In today’s fragmented media landscape, businesses must walk a fine line when targeting different age cohorts—especially when Boomers and Millennials are on the opposite ends of the spectrum. One wrong tone, one careless meme, and you’ve alienated half your audience. This white paper explores how to market to both groups without feeding into stereotypes, pitting them against each other, or tanking your brand’s credibility.

Section 1: Understanding the Divide

• Boomers (born 1946–1964): Grew up post-war, value loyalty, privacy, face-to-face service, and traditional marketing cues.

• Millennials (born 1981–1996): Digital natives, value authenticity, speed, inclusion, and peer reviews.

🔎 The Trap: Marketers often reduce each to a caricature—Boomers as tech-inept curmudgeons, Millennials as avocado-toast-eating job-hoppers.

Section 2: Shared Values That Transcend Age

• Trust: Both generations value brands that show consistency and transparency.

• Connection: Both respond to storytelling—but different types. Boomers like a narrative arc; Millennials prefer punchy, relatable micro-stories.

• Belonging: Inclusion matters to both, but how it's communicated should be tailored.

Section 3: What Not to Do

• ❌ Don’t use slang or pop culture references to “sound young”—it’s alienating and dated by next week.

• ❌ Don’t call Boomers “out of touch” or Millennials “entitled.” Even jokingly.

• ❌ Don’t assume everyone over 60 wants a cruise and everyone under 40 wants a kombucha ad.

Section 4: Marketing That Works

• ✅ For Boomers:

  • Use clean design, larger fonts, real faces.

  • Prioritize customer service and trustworthiness.

  • Value testimonials from relatable peers.

• ✅ For Millennials:

  • Prioritize mobile-first and short-form video.

  • Use humor, transparency, and bold values.

  • Highlight sustainability, ethics, and community.

Section 5: Finding the Middle

Smart marketers are already tailoring campaigns by values, not birth year.

• Use storytelling as a bridge.

• Segment campaigns not by age, but by behavior.

• Create multigenerational campaigns—include parents and adult children making decisions together (think: financial planning, health, housing).

Conclusion

It’s time to stop the generational blame game. The smartest brands recognize that while Boomers and Millennials are different, they’re not at war. They’re just shopping for meaning on different frequencies. Learn to tune in.

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