Although the travel industry was hit hard by the downturn from 2009 to 2011, signs of recovery from the airline and hotel sectors may signal a turnaround for the entire market. Despite the economic cloud, however, Boomers - never content to sit around - have found new resources (or perhaps, excuses) for travel. As this is the first official week of summer, we thought we'd take a break from the heavy issues and spotlight some emerging Boomer travel trends.

Politicians and the media's attention will be on consumers ages 47-67 (Baby Boomers) this year for the Presidential election. Occasionally, I still have to educate young media buyers on this significant demographic -- not sure what marketing classes are teaching in colleges these days. How does a marketing or media curriculum overlook the significance of 78 million individuals holding 70% of the U.S. wealth?

In my last blog post, I wrote that medical science and lifestyle changes have made it possible for Boomers to expect to live active, healthy, productive lives well into their 80s and beyond.

I have to admit that I never thought I'd be writing a blog about bras - but I never thought that bra-selling would offer some of the most interesting innovations in retail - and in selling to Boomer women in particular.

According to AIGA, the professional association for design, considerably younger people prepare much of the information intended for older eyes. Typically, younger people base their creative decisions upon how the world looks to them through their younger eyes. The following summary outlines some basic suggestions to improve online communications readability for older populations.

I have not-so-fond memories of visiting elderly relatives in a "home" as a child. Most places were healthcare-oriented, and looked, functioned (and smelled) like hospitals. But something happened sometime in the late 1970s: these facilities became true communities, attracting recent retirees with appealing independent living options and the comfort of knowing that they would have a continuum of care, if and when needed.

I was in Phoenix recently for meetings with advertising agencies and had lunch with my father and his friends. The conversation turned to travel -- from adventure, to cruises to golf. Now is a good time to mention the majority of people at lunch were in their 60's and 70's -- one dynamic couple had gone sky diving on multiple occasions! Many had enjoyed cruising to the Mediterranean, Panama Canal, Greece and Italy.

With all due respect to the readers of this blog, those of us who toil in the marketing-to-Boomer space all recognize from time to time that we're preaching to the choir - that is, when we aren't tearing off those choir robes for the occasional spat.

In August 2011, Nielsen conducted a survey of more than 28,000 online respondents from 56 countries around the world. The survey provided insights to help marketers better understand the right audience for cause-marketing activities, which programs resonate most strongly with this audience, and what marketing methods may be most effective in reaching these consumers. You can find the full report here (you'll have to provide some information to access the total report).

Take a look at the grandparent market. The nature of grandparenting is evolving. For the first time in human history, there are three distinct generations of grandparents in the United States. This continuum of the grandparenting lifestage is based on dimensions such as the age of grandchildren, affluence, and household structure. In this economy, grandparents are contributing to their children and grandchildren's lifestyles in unprecedented ways.