Male Boomer Priorities, Unmet Needs Identify Industry Opportunities

Male Boomer Priorities, Unmet Needs Identify Industry Opportunities
by Steve French

On Jan. 1,2006, the oldest Boomer turned 60 years old, a milestone for one of the mostinfluential generations in American history. Boomers are defined as being bornbetween 1946 and 1964, and number 76 millionalmost a third of the U.S. adultpopulation.

The Boomers formative years were quite varied, depending on which end ofthe generation they were born. From the birth of Barbie in 1959, to the assassination of President Kennedy, to Woodstock,and the moon landing in 1969, Boomers were in the thick of it. President Bush,former President Clinton, Bill Gates, Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Steve Jobs, Madonna,Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Oprah and Michael Jordan are all Boomers.

Due to the sheer size of this generation, Boomers have been responsible forthe growth of many industries that catered to them throughout their life. Infact, the health and wellness surge over the past decade can, in large part, beattributed to the economically strong and health-committed Boomers. An explosionof products and services targeted to a generation now beginning to hit their 60sis filling the market, from cosmetic surgery to anti-aging creams to retirementplanning, in order to address this phase of their life.

Boomer men, in particular, are exhibiting behaviors that previous generationsof men rarely did. They are populating gyms and plastic surgery offices to fendoff the markers of their advancing years. Men can also be found in many storessearching for anti-aging supplements and in cosmetic aisles reaching for creams and lotions.

So how exactly are Boomer men viewing their life situation?

Boomer Priorities: Shift & Gaps

Research conducted by The Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) in January 2006among more than 1,500 U.S. Boomers sheds some light on male Boomerspriorities and how these priorities have shifted over the last 20 years. Thisannual NMI study, entitled the Healthy Aging/Boomer Database, revealssome unmet needs, explores underlying male Boomer attitudes, and identifies manymarketplace opportunities.

Longitudinal changes in healthy aging drivers identify several shiftsoccurring over the past 20 years for male Boomers. Lifestyle factors such ashaving a rewarding job and leisure time rose to the top of the list 20 yearsago, but have since been replaced by financial concerns, health issues anddisease prevention. For example, 30 percent of male Boomers indicated havingenough money to retire 20 years ago was very important; however, 65 percentindicated it is very important today, showing a growth gap increase of 35percent.

While these shifts mark growth in priorities for the male Boomer, they alsocreate dissonance between what they desire and their satisfaction withfulfilling those desires. The gaps, then, between the importance of thesepriorities and satisfaction creates unmet need states and highlight keyopportunities to market to the male Boomer.

Financial Health & Retirement

Financial concerns show the largest gaps between importance and satisfactionamong male Boomers. Its not surprising, considering Boomers are financiallyunprepared for retirement. Only two out of five (44 percent) indicate they havea secure financially sound plan for retirement, and a similar amount (43percent) feel they are on target with their financial retirement plan. Andthree-quarters of male Boomers feel little to no control over having enoughmoney for retirement, with 13 percent admit to having no investmentsat all. Its understandable, then, that their primary fear of aging is runningout of money (49 percent).

Their fears may be fueled by a lack of knowledge or uncertainty about futureneeds. Almost two-thirds of Boomers (62 percent) feel that financial decisionsare becoming too complex, and almost half (47 percent) do not know the amount ofmoney they will need to meet all their financial obligations after retirement.These financial observations have great impact on many industries, includingmany health and wellness consumer packaged goods.

This lack of knowledge about the ability to meet financial obligations may bebreeding feelings of reliance. Male Boomers show high reliance on otherinstitutions such as family, government and friends as they age. Threequartersof male Boomers (74 percent) feel they will need to rely on their family andabout half (55 percent) feel they will need to rely on the government in orderto retain control of their life as they age.

It is also evident that the work force will continue to contain a fair amountof Boomers, as almost three-quarters (72 percent) feel they will be workingeither part-time or full-time after retirement. The average age male Boomersfeel they will retire is 67. However, they expect to live until theage of 82although, they want to live until the age of 91 again showingopportunities for many anti-aging products.

What Will They Think of Next?

Nine out of 10 male Boomers state that brain fitness is one of the mostimportant parts of healthy aging and realize that an individual can make changesin his daily life that will improve brain fitness. It may be surprising, then,that the biggest disease fear about aging is losing mental capacity (48percent). Taking a closer look, a third feel their memory is worse today than 10years ago. In fact, two out of five male Boomers feel that their brain fitnesshas declined compared to 10 years ago.

Stress may be a contributing factor to this decline. Two out of five maleBoomers (39 percent) admit that they are so stressed out sometimes that itaffects their ability to think clearly.

While it seems obvious that men say they understand that they can makechanges in their daily life to improve their brain health, they may not be awareof what these changes should be. These contrary attitudes highlight thepossibility that messaging concerning maintenance of mental functioning is nothitting this primary target, thus representing an opportunity for manymarketers.

You Snooze,You Lose

While stress could be a contributing factor to the decline in brain healthand mental functioning, stress may also contribute to feelings of fatigue andlack of energy. Most male Boomers are trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle inorder to have the levels of energy they desire, but they are falling short.While over half (58 percent) say it is very important to have enoughenergy to do what they want to do, only 17 percent are very satisfied with theirenergy level. One out of five male Boomers admits he is currently managingfatigue.

The desire for increased energy and lessened fatigue creates opportunities inthe energy category across various industries including food and beverage, supplementsand alternative therapy, to name a few.The energy drink category alone has seenincredible growth over the past several years, and shows no signs of stopping. Shifting the focus from youth to Boomers may help broaden this category.

You Are What You Eat

Most male Boomers realize the connection between nutrition and healthy aging,but it appears that conflicting messages are creating confusion. Two out of fivemale Boomers (38 percent) are confused about what they should be doing when itcomes to healthy eating. And although they know a healthy lifestyle is much moreimportant as they get older, over two-thirds (68 percent) feel it is much moredifficult as they age.

One way they are trying to be healthier is through both addition andelimination of certain foods. Male Boomers admit they are more concerned todaythan 20 years ago about getting more vitamins/minerals, whole grains,antioxidants, calcium, and protein in their diets. On the other hand, maleBoomers are also trying to limit various types of food and foodingredients, primarily fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, trans fats andsugar. Their attempts, however, may not be gaining the results they are lookingfor, as almost half of male Boomers feel their physical health is worse than 10years ago, highlighting a clear opportunity to assist this generation of menwith their nutrition goals.

Talkin Bout My Generation

Boomers are the first generation of youth seekers. Their desire to never bedefined or limited by their age has compelled them to take an un-charteredcourse. Industries helping to direct them on their journey should prove mostsuccessful.

While male Boomers seek a long life, they appear to lack the financialpreparedness, nutritional knowledge and energy levels that that life willdemand. And with much marketing focus given to women, are men underserved as aviable consumer target?

The famous lyrics of The Who, a band planted squarely in the BoomergenerationI hope I die before I get old ... talkin bout mygenerationmay be the appropriate mantra of this generation. Opportunities abound, so go get your share today.

Steve French is managing partner at The Natural Marketing Institute (NMI), aleading consultancy and research firm specializing in health and wellness. With25 years of experience across many disciplines, French has pioneered a range ofconsumer databases, is a frequent speaker at many industry events, and is apublished author and contributor to many U.S. and international media sources. The data sources in this article are from NMIs Health & WellnessTrends Database (HWTD), an annual research study of 2,000+ U.S. generalpopulation consumers with seven years of trends, and NMIs Dietary SupplementConsumer Insight Database (DSCID). Both studies are nationally projectable and have a margin of error of +/-2percent.