I've grown up with tech and I like to think that I'm pretty digitally savvy (although I will confess certain teen platforms have passed me by!). Now I would argue that at 57, I'm not considered an oldie but in the greater scheme of generational marketing, I fall on the boundary between Baby Boomer (1946-64) and GenX (1965-80). 

And as a result of my age, it might be acceptable for me so say that quite a few of my non-PR (those not working in the tech PR field) friends display symptoms of digital naivety. But what do I base that assumption on? Is it my own generational bias? 

This study by Google squarely debunks the myth of the befuddled oldie struggling with tech and the digital world. And reading it made me appreciate the importance of a number of key principles that we as marketers/communicators must abide by:

1. Don't stereotype by age or succumb to sub-conscious generational bias-  use insights to validate opinions when forming strategy and creative 
2. Speak to the generation you are targeting, better still have members of that generation on your team (this is accepted wisdom but with the age profile of so many agencies how often is it applied when creating campaigns targeting Baby Boomers/Seniors?)
3. Accept that media consumption habits are changing - the over 55's do watch YouTube and do shop online! 
4. Remember the 'silver pound' - that much used phrase seems to have fallen out of favour but the over-55's (both Boomers and Seniors) are still possessing of disposable income and, as this report shows, are moving to online buying in ever increasing numbers. (in a U.K. study, 36% of shoppers aged 55 and over said they expect to be shopping online for clothes in six months’ time, up from 19% before the pandemic.)

So the next time your team of Millennials and GenZ account handlers, strategists, planners and creatives gather to answer a client's brief to target the Seniors and Baby Boomers, remember that all is not what they might believe. We Oldies are as digitally savvy as you young lot!