A new report by ‘The Future of Foodservice’ shows that the hospitality sector should be targeting the over 50’s age group. Accounting for over one third of the UK’s population, the over 50’s ‘Baby Boomers’ are a lucrative market, holding a high proportion of the country’s disposable income.
Baby Boomers are currently wealthier and therefore more active in terms of eating out than other generations, with restaurant visits expected to increase by around 4% by 2022. According to ‘The Future of Foodservice’, these figures are in stark contrast to that of Millennials, whose dining-out visits are expected to decrease by roughly 2%. These figures highlight the pressures of higher living costs in housing and childcare. As a result, Millennials are having to cut back on dining out.
The report predicts that ‘Baby Boomer’ dining-out visits will increase three times faster than that of the total market over the next four years. Their current average spend when dining out is higher than any other age group at £13.31, so it makes sense to get this group familiar with your brand.
Targeting This Market
The Baby Boomer generation want to look and feel young and live a more active and challenging lifestyle. It is important not to alienate this market by grouping them into a demographic determined purely by age.
The over 50’s non-digital natives are currently the fastest growing adopters of digital media with 64% accessing the internet more than once a day. Therefore, your online marketing should adopt a more holistic approach to cross-platform engagement and encourage custom from this lucrative audience. A few tips to grab their attention – avoid abbreviations and tech-terms to ensure your audience fully understands. Focus on creating content for Facebook as Baby Boomers prefer this platform to other social media networks. Don’t be condescending and over-explain, but most importantly, don’t make them feel old!
By Charlotte Anderson
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