Audience Profiles
Boomers
Shifting From Big Spending to Value
The Des Moines Register
DesMoinesRegister.com
They’re Baby Boomers. And they’re more than 79 million strong.
Boomers control more than $2 trillion in annual spending and have expanded where they are consuming media and spending their money.
Although traditional media sources are firmly ensconced in their daily media use, Boomers are spending more time online per month than any other generation: 39.3 hours per month. They aren't just spending time online, but also purchasing online. Boomers spent an average of about $650 online over a three-month period in 2010, compared with $582 by Generation X and $429 by Millennials.
Boomers use media differently than other generations in that they usually are looking for information. Boomers generally use the internet with a specific purpose in mind, such as finding news, shopping, checking email, and occasionally visiting social sites.
179,580 local Boomers.
That’s 76% of local Boomers (adults ages 45–64) an average of 4.1 times each week.
Local boomers are more likely to:
• Have installed a pool, hot tub, or spa in the past 12 months
• Visit casinos and watch a stage show
• Use a travel agent in the past 12 months
• Enjoy antiquing and attending home & garden shows
Media Habits
- Nearly two-thirds of Boomers say they follow the news most or all of the time
- 59% of Boomers have used a newspaper for shopping planning and purchase decisions in the past week
- 52% of Boomers have used a newspaper pre-print to plan shopping in the past week
- 85% of all Boomers own a mobile phone
- 47% of Boomers read about local news online every month
- Among online ads, Boomers find email ads the most enticing
- 96% of Boomers use email to share content
- 65% of Boomers use Facebook
