5 characteristics of American boomers every marketer should know

5 characteristics of American boomers every marketer should know

Kineree Shah - July 10th, 2024

Here are some insights from YouGov Profiles on how American boomers live, work, and play.

  1. 37% of boomers own a home without a mortgage
    This means two in five boomers have paid off their homes entirely, while 32% own a home with a mortgage. A quarter of boomers live in rented accommodation (25%).

2. 30% of boomers don’t care about sustainability
Boomers are more likely to be ‘green rejectors,’ holding negative views toward environmental sustainability compared to the general population (30% vs. 24% of all US adults). Additionally, 21% of boomers are ‘on the green fence,’ supporting sustainability only if it aligns with their lifestyle, compared to 19% of the general population.

3. TV ads are most likely to grab a boomer’s attention
When asked which advertising channels are most likely to grab their attention, 32% of boomers selected TV, compared to 23% of the general population. This could be attributed to the fact that 48% of boomers watch more than 11 hours of live TV per week, compared to 36% of the general population.

4. Boomers prefer contacting businesses by phone 

Half of boomers (52%) say their preferred way to contact a business is by calling, compared to 37% of the general population. They are less likely to send emails compared to all US adults (17% of boomers vs. 23% of all U.S. adults).

5. Boomers are not overly into AI or tech
Only 19% of boomers have used AI for personal or professional reasons in the past 30 days, compared to 49% of all Americans. A quarter of boomers are not very interested in buying tech products (26% vs. 20% of all U.S. adults). Additionally, 55% of boomers typically wait until others have tried tech products before buying them, compared to 46% of all U.S. adults.

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Methodology: YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data for the US is nationally representative and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race.