It seems you can't pick up a newspaper or magazine without every expert article therein warning that the future of your business is at risk unless you attract and connect with Generation Y, aka the millennials, Sheldon Marks says in his article posted on www.nationaljewelernetwork.com.
No arguing with that hypothesis, but let me assure you that the future is now and boomer women are a crucial part of it.
"So, what else is new? I've been targeting them all along," is the response most jewelers would give.
Bet you have, but the key to savvy target marketing is not just identifying your primary customer, but actually connecting with that target. Remember: That female boomer you chased after in her 30s and 40s is now in her 50s and 60s, and no longer responds to the same buying prompts.
At her new life stage, weird as it may sound, boomer women may have more in common than you would think with those Gen-Y 20-somethings. Firstly, they have new sources of discretionary income since they no longer have children to support and, best of all, they are still working and will continue to work. Women over 55 will play an increasingly important role in our workforce-growing at 4.1 percent, four times the overall rate. These are no retirement community ladies: They are earning money and-best of all-spending it on themselves.
So, how do you use a relevant message to connect to female boomers?
For starters, know that your target is a very serious social networker with a personal network of 40 to 50 "friends," who are her biggest influences, so understand that you are looking at a Facebook- and Twitter-influenced shopper.
Despite being heavy TV watchers and newspaper readers, fewer than 40 percent of female boomers say that television advertising influences them. Still, as Marti Barletta, chief executive officer of the TrendSight Group, puts it, "Boomer women are the largest in size, the fastest growing and with the most money-the perfect storm for marketers." Got it.
Who else gets it? Retailers such as Nordstrom, Chico's, J. Jill, Coldwater Creek and the fitness chain Curves are among the businesses that have successfully reaped the benefits of connecting with this huge, virtually untapped market.
Next year, the first boomers will turn 65, yet 8 out of 10 are online, and a woman in her 60s using an iPhone no longer turns heads. Since boomer women consider themselves to be middle age, they will follow their children's leads and continue to adapt new technology. With a median age of 54, female boomers still have many years of spending power.
As Bob Deutsch, chief executive officer of Brain Sells, reports: "Boomers still see the glass as half-full and they continue to seek and assume growth. Personal in style and individualistic in nature, they cannot be conned or thought of as one of the masses.'' Isn't it inspiring to see how the original characteristics of the boomers still impact their approach to life decades later?
Given these insights, here are some creative ways to connect with this rich market:
Visit the Web sites and, if possible, the locations of Nordstrom, Chico's, Curves, etc. for great communication clues. Nordstrom, in particular, is considered a model of successful new retail marketing through its Web and social media activities, including The Thread, the company's new weekly online fashion magazine. With 67,500 Facebook friends and 26,100 Twitter followers and counting, Nordstrom, founded in 1901, has created an entire new community of customers and proven that retailers must keep reinventing themselves.
Reach out to the local Chico's (or J. Jill, etc.) and suggest a joint program that can help you both pull in new clients. Have a showcase of coordinating fashion jewelry in a Chico's (or a local clothing boutique). Simultaneously, place one or two outfitted mannequins next to your fashion jewelry case. Your customer will get the picture. You can also simply display the clothing store's catalog and offer a $50 gift card for every purchase over $250. Ask the boutique to return the favor. In a trying economy, mutually beneficial partnerships are winning strategies.
Take a page from the way department stores flow fashion merchandise: They keep their ready-to-wear offerings constantly fresh, with shoppers trained to look for new ideas every few weeks. That strategy will work in fashion jewelry to attract the self-purchasing consumer. It will also give you reasons to connect with your most loyal customers more frequently and with less reliance on "sale" messages. Newness is the staff of life in retail.
Finally, re-examine your social media offerings. Now that you know how connected and reliant female boomers are on personal referrals, make sure each name on your customer list is "friended" on your Facebook page. And keep Tweeting away. If you're too busy to do so, assign the task to a younger associate or even your daughter.
As one boomer quoted in a recent study said: "Maybe now is an opportunity ... to re-evaluate who you are and where you are going."
If that is not your call to action, nothing is.
