Meet 'The Young Old'

The article points out this has an effect on the insurance industry.

Retirees were expected to leave work and start sitting in a rocking chair, gazing at sunsets. They wanted a defined benefit pension check or a monthly annuity payment. No longer. The YOLDs want to actively manage their retirement assets!

The YOLDs are pretty rich. They are getting richer. This makes sense. If Baby Boomers are wealthy as a demographic segment, this “segment within a segment” should be doing pretty well too. They have the money to travel and enjoy hobbies. They want to do things. This might mean working longer, taking on another job after formally retiring and maybe even starting a business.

Here’s the bottom line from a financial professional’s point of view. If your clients are Baby Boomers and are thinking, “We aren’t the biggest demographic anymore,” they are likely entering into the YOLD stage.

Businesses will cater to the YOLD clients.

Less demographically savvy financial professionals might ask, “How we crack the Millennial market?” while forgetting that those YOLD clients are part of a new, desirable demographic that’s active and rich.

— Read How to Order Wine Like a Boss (Without Paying Like One), on ThinkAdvisor.

Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc. He provides high-net-worth client acquisition training for the financial services industry. His book, “Captivating the Wealthy Investor,” can be found on Amazon.