Of course you want to reach the group that holds 70% of all income in the U.S. and spends $2.9 trillion a year. But with more products and services on the market than ever before, the competition for Boomer dollars is fierce. Only the savviest salespeople survive. How do they succeed with today's mature consumer where others fail? It's simple: They know how to build trust, and that starts with listening.

One terrifying day in 2008, I got a Facebook friend request -- from my mom. I sat on it for a couple of weeks before I shook off the disbelief, and braced myself for the questions I knew would come over the years. (Highlights have included the Farmville fad, explaining retargeting, and every UI update.) Still, my illusion was shattered -- the one that said my mom and her Baby Boomer generation had a technology IQ that rested somewhere between NES and PC solitaire.

There's no doubt Baby Boomers have changed how endemic categories (e.g., health and finance) view and speak to older consumers, which has resulted in more authentic and youthful ad campaigns that resonate on a deeper level. And, it's also true that Boomers' unrivaled spending power has caused mainstream brands to at least question the wisdom of ignoring consumers once they turn 50. Despite this progress, however, the question of how to convince more mainstream brands to target consumers 50+ with any regularity persists.

TheNextWeb recently published an opinion piece by writer Curtis Silver called "Baby boomers aren't tech novices. They just want you to think they are."

So, you created a website, an online marketing plan and executed it. You're routinely watching your online marketing activity, wondering if you could be doing better in Baby Boomer markets (50 to 68 years of age) because you believe you have an attractive product or service for them, and you know that's where the money is.

How can marketers reach more Boomer shoppers this season? For answers, let's turn to the blizzard of holiday shopping surveys out there.

Not quite a household term, yet, the Internet of Things among the consumer electronics industry continues to elicit breathless economic predictions and promises of life-altering technologies. Estimates put IoT at 50 billion connected devices to the tune of over $7 trillion in revenue by 2020. Phones and cars already talk back, wristwatches monitor and record our activity, and the recently released Amazon Echo speaker is bringing the helpful home robot one step closer to reality.

We've now had a week to review the mid-term elections and study exit polling and the results. The size and scope of the Republican victory was impressive. From state legislatures and governorships to Congress, the victory was wide spread and found in some surprising places like Illinois, Maryland and here in deep blue Massachusetts. A closer look at the exit polling shows, as expected, midterm elections bring out an older electorate compared to the Presidential years.

For almost a quarter of a century we've advocated the wisdom of David B. Wolfe author of "Serving the Ageless Market, Ageless Marketing, Firms of Endearment and Brave New Worldview." In June, I published the first of a series of articles reflecting David's thinking and on Aug. 4, the second. This is the third and last article.

What's the biggest life change for Boomers? For many, it isn't turning 65. It's retiring-at whatever age that happens.