• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, November 22, 2002

No Surprise. Seniors Are Bigger Drug Users Than Average Online Population

In studying the relationship of various age groups and demographics with regard to their Online activities, Nielsen//Netratings provided some interesting data. Here's an excerpt for your database. Except for those household incomes under $50,000, seniors are much closer to the Online population averages than the 18 to 34 age segment. And, while debit and corporate cards elude the seniors, they hold a better than average hand in others.

Online Consumers

Segment:	No. in Segment (e) (mil)	% Online
18-34	43.9	32.6
55+	25.4	18.8

Income Level Breakout of Various Age Groups... 8.2% of all age 55+ online have a household income of $150K+ where as only 5.3% of all 18 - 34 year olds online have a household income in the same bracket. 8.5% of the entire online population has a household income level of $150K+ Note that the 55+ age group is closer to the average than the 18 - 34 age group.

HH Income	Online Population % Composition	18-34 Online % Comp.	18-34 Online to Total Online Index	55+ Online	% Comp. 55+ Online to Total Online Index
<$25K	9%	15%	167	8.2%	91
$25,000 - $49,999	28.4	33.4	118	31.4	110
$50K - $74,999	23.8	22.2	93	23.7	99
$75K - $99,999	16.9	14.4	85	16.1	95
$100K - $149,999	13.4	9.7	72	12.5	93
$150K+	8.5	5.3	62	8.2	96

Online Shopping Habits of Seniors Age 55+ 8.1% of all age 55+ online consumers have purchased a prescription drug in the last 6 months. This age group is 116% more likely to purchase prescriptions drugs in the last 6 months than the average Web user, where only 3.7% of all Web users have purchased a prescription drug.

Group	Category	Online Population % Composition	55: Online % Comp.	55+ Online to Total Online Index
Purchased/Transacted Online (Last 6 months)	Drugs/Remedies - Non-Prescription	2.3	2.7	117
	Drugs/Remedies - Prescription	3.7	8.1	216
	Drugs/Remedies - Any	5.5	10	180
	Gardening Tools/Supplies	2.4	2.9	121
	Mutual Funds - Stock	2.2	2.6	119
	Stocks	5.2	6.3	122
	Vitamins/Nutritional Supplements	2.9	3.7	128
Credit Card Ownership	Any Debit Card	29.1	21.7	75
	Any Gold Card	19.5	25.2	130
	Any Platinum Card	27.6	36.4	132
	Any Corporate Card	8.5	7.6	89
	Any Charge/Credit Card	78.8	89.3	113

Data is based on US Adult active Online population (18+). 134,600,000
Source: Nielsen//NetRatings @plan, Fall 2002 Release