• by Aaron Baar , December 9, 2013

Here's a sobering thought: Next year, the last of the Baby Boomers will turn 50. Rather than shy away from that milestone, AARP is celebrating the event with a year-long campaign, “Boomers@50+,” with Consumer Cellular as the effort's exclusive sponsor. 

“This celebration fit really well with our message to get our products and services into the hands of all Boomers,” Consumer Cellular CEO John Marick tells Marketing Daily. 

Although already heavily targeting Baby Boomers as its core customer, the company is hoping to capture some of the younger boomers by offering the iPhone, and the Boomers@50+ campaign was a perfect way to reach them, Marick says. 

“As we look to talk to a younger boomer crowd, we expect that to appeal to them,” he says. 

As the exclusive sponsor, Consumer Cellular will be prominently positioned on the “Boomers@50+” content in the AARP's print, digital and event elements, which will include a six-part series in AARP The Magazine, a dedicated digital destination and at events in Boston and San Diego, Calif. 

“The idea is to celebrate [Boomers’] accomplishments,” says Patricia Lippe Davis, vice president of marketing for AARP Media Sales, about the program. “We are also confident this initiative will position Consumer Cellular as a leading brand among Boomers during this historic milestone year.”

Already a significant advertiser with AARP, Consumer Cellular was attracted by the celebratory nature of the campaign as a way to reach a generation that's getting older, even if they want to deny it. “[We were drawn to] the fact that they were putting an effort around this project ... and the different way they were approaching it,” Marick says.