Commentary

Lessons In E-tail: Amazon Adds 50+ To Wish List

Although people tend to reduce their use of health, beauty and personal care products with age, thank the Boomers for taking a proactive approach and bucking that trend. As a result, manufacturers and retailers are aggressively targeting them with a barrage of vitamins and dietary aids, exercise equipment, anti-aging skincare and hair care products entering the market. And where are they increasingly buying these and other age-specific products? Online, of course.

Hoping to ride this wave and capture the attention of aging consumers, giant e-tailer Amazon recently got into the game with the launch of an online store specifically targeted to the Boomer and senior crowds. Dubbed with a somewhat awkward name, “The 50+ Active and Healthy Living Store,” the site provides a destination for thousands of “healthy living” products, with easy-to-navigate categories focused on personal care, beauty, nutrition, travel, entertainment, fitness and wellness, along with some rather clinical (healthcare, incontinence) offerings. 

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The site also utilizes Amazon’s “Subscribe & Save” subscription-based ordering program, allowing customers to schedule automatic deliveries. Targeting this market’s interest in clipping coupons, a “Coupons” area is prominently featured on the store’s homepage.

But it’s not all about e-commerce. There’s also a “Resource Center” (with content courtesy of GrandParents.com) that offers tips on beauty, healthy eating, fitness, caregiving, boosting brain power and other topics. Visitors can receive customized recommendations and access video resources designed to help with product discovery. 

The idea? Generally, good. While not coming right out and saying it, Amazon is recognizing the purchasing power of a growing population that’s become increasingly tech-savvy – not to mention increasingly preoccupied with physical mobility issues, whether they’ll admit to that or not. The online experience makes for easy shopping, and allows users to keep abreast of the latest trends from the comfort of home. 

It makes perfect sense: According to recent Forrester Research figures, Boomers spend an average of $650 online per year versus the $581 dropped by Gen Xers. And with more people aging in place, home delivery from an online store seems like the way to go – not only in terms of convenience, but also when it comes to ordering home medical equipment or more personal items that could be construed as embarrassing

The execution? Mixed. We’ll give it an A for navigation and product variety, and a grudging C-minus for look and feel. For one, “Mature Consumer” would probably have been a better branding tag, as most people hardly consider age 50 to be “senior.” And despite the noble attempt to take a “stage not age” approach toward Boomer marketing, visitors being greeted mid-screen by smiling, gray-haired people and those darned incontinence products makes it seem unlikely that the site was actually created by developers and marketers from that demographic. For better examples, see AARP, firstStreet or Next Avenue, to name a few. 

But, clearly, online retailers have the upper hand when it comes to reaching Boomer consumers, and the Internet and growth of mobile technology will only continue to increase in importance in the lives of these Web shoppers. Nearly half of Boomers report online shopping as a preferred leisure activity, citing the fact that it saves time, offers more competitive pricing, and provides access to hard-to-find products. Special offers such as free shipping, user friendliness, and customizable features will make this experience even more attractive.

Other retailers would be wise to follow suit with age-specific sites, product lines, targeted advertising and mobile content – as long as they’re properly branded and executed.

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