A Short Take on the Longevity Economy

We live in The Age of Aging and it39s reshaping our economic context in staggering waysamp160 Oxford Economics coined the phrase Longevity Economy defined as the total annual economic activity associated with people over the age of fiftyamp160 In the US alone it consists of 106 millionamp160people 50amp160generating over seven trillion dollars of economic value per yearamp160 Seen as GDP the US Longevity Economy is larger than the economies of Brazil Russia and India combined 63 trillion and larger than any other country39s total economy with the exception of ChinaAging is an economic stimulus packageamp160 As people live longer and continue to contribute to the economy as wage earners taxpayers and spenders they are extending and expanding their national economies in proportion to their incremental years livedamp160 When the Baby Boomers were born we were a oneeconomy worldamp160 The economic value of being 50amp160and older was negligible at the time but now it is an entirely new and incremental economyTwo fundamental things are driving this value creation changing demographics and changing behavior within the new demographicsamp160 Since our goal is to understand the implications of these behavioral changes here are a few to considerSustained Employment amp160Whether out of financial necessity or personal preference more aging Americans are choosing to work longer than ever beforeamp160 According to a survey conducted by Merrill Lynch 71 of preretirees are planning to continue some type of work as they pass retirement age 65 over half of the respondents indicated that they plan to start a new career in a paying positionWith more aging people working longer they are behaving like younger people longer ie they have a reliable source of income that fuels spending and the continuation of middle age consumption patternsamp160 The economic implications are massiveamp160 These aging workers represent almost twothirds of all employment and wages paid in the US and nearly fifty percent of federal tax revenueamp160 There39s a reason we call them Marketing39s Most Valuable GenerationIf you39re marketing to people 1849 remember that more 50amp160people are acting like they are 1849amp160 Age can be a misleading guide for target marketing if you market only by the numbers of age you will be missing out on a number of dollarsSimplification andamp160Streamlining amp160These are the next major implications of the 50amp160economyamp160 People are aging at the same time that the world39s getting more complexamp160 They39re compensating by oversimplifying so they can focus more of their energy on what really matters quality time and quality of lifeamp160 This is triggering a shift from the ownership of material things to the enjoyment of experiencesamp160 Things that seemed important to own along the way are getting the heaveho as owning less is starting to become the new moreamp160 The new joy in life is to lighten your load to eschew quantity of material things in favor of more quality experiencesamp160 Why tow the boat all the way to the lake again when I can fly to Paris and float the Seineamp160 Unlike material things experiences bring joy without maintenanceAging in Placeamp160amp160If you39re in the business of aging Aging in Place is the place to beamp160 This is the term used to describe this generation39s desire to spend their final years in the comfort of their own home enabled by advances in housing amenities and the onpremise administration of health servicesamp160 The burgeoning field of telemedicine has enabled people who are aging in place to transmit essential medical data to healthcare professionals who can remotely monitor their conditionamp160 It is also being used to track movement and other behavior within the home to assure family members that all is well and if not to provide the opportunity for timely interventionAt the same time progressive care providers and retailers are taking their products and services directly to the home rather than waiting for the customer to come to themamp160 This type of innovation is helping aging consumers enjoy uncompromised quality of life while alleviating the burden on local care facilitiesWhile we39ve learned about the Longevity Economy marketers39 focus needs to be on the Longevity Effect understanding the consequences of more wealthy people living longer more active livesamp160 The numbers don39t lieamp160 Most of the world of modern marketing lives in the broader ecosystem of the Age of Agingamp160 Growth can be hard to find these days but this is one big opportunity hiding right in plain sightPhoto credit BoomAgersClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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A Short Take on the Longevity Economy

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Peter Hubbell

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A Short Take on the Longevity Economy

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