Last week, we covered a number of different risk management strategies for advisors serving the boomer population. This week, we’ll look at how to develop the right marketing approach for this influential – and growing – group.
“At over 76 million people, baby boomers represent the largest single population growth in US history and have had an enormous impact on every institution in the country, as well as lived through some of the most interesting times in American history,” begins a recent report by AARP “Approaching 65: A Survey of Baby Boomers Turning 65 Years Old.”
Boomers are “generally satisfied with their lives and optimistic about the next third of life.” Seven out of 10 “say they have achieved all or most of what they wanted out of life.”
Not surprisingly, they’re concerned about health and economic issues, and most see themselves as working beyond the traditional age of retirement, at least part of the time – not necessarily because they have to but because they want to. They’re motivated to manage their financial risk by two reasons:
- NEED: They feel a need for protection. Boomers have already had a lifetime of experience, they have been married, divorced, had a job, lost a job, raised children, lived through rough financial times and been blessed with rewards of hard work.
- WANT: They want to transfer risk from themselves to an insurance company. They have insured their home, car, income, life, and now they want to “insure” this new phase of their life. Boomers understand the importance of transferring risk and look to highly trained licensed professionals to determine how best to do this.
Marketing to boomers