Old Is Gold, Fashionable, And The New Young
76-year-old Sang Xiuzhu exquisitely garbed in a traditional cheongsam dress.
She is one of an unlikely vanguard of elderly influencers storming ⛈ the Chinese social media with videos of glamour in the golden 🏅 years. Two years ago she joined the "Fashion Grandmas 👵", whose one-minute clips and livestreams of them turning Beijing's streets into a catwalk 🐈 are devoured by millions of fans.
They mix elegance with epithets of wisdom - on marriage 💍, love, and life - from a generation who are now increasingly integral to both the economy 💵 and online culture of China. China is getting old fast, and Beijing is faced with the monumental challenge of how to provide for tens of millions of retirees. However, this has also opened opportunities for those who are financially comfortable in their dotage and are able to harness the commercial possibilities of technology.
It is an economy worth hundreds of billions of dollars, craving longevity, entertainment and consumer goods, and hooked 🪝 like everybody else to their smartphones 📱. The "Fashion Grandmas" collective has 23 main members, with dozens more fringe contributors across the country, all aged between their late 50s and their mid-70s.
They make money from pop-up ads in their videos 📹 and livestreaming product sales. Their videos also carry messages of inspiration, namely "beauty is not only for the young" or "even the elderly can live a wonderful life!" as well as serious messages, such as call-outs of domestic violence. Check out their videos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tMjYtOGeWI.
The value of China's "grey-haired" economy is estimated to reach 5.7 tril yuan 💰(nearly RM3.7 tril) this year. Bian Changyong, chief executive of the Beijing Dama Technology Company, said the Covid-19 pandemic had pushed the elderly deeper online to hunt for shopping 🛍 and entertainment. Bian's company also provides online courses for senior citizens to learn singing, dancing, or kung fu 🥋 through live streaming channels to reach this vast untapped pool of older consumers.
What motivates elderly people to use social media?
There are three main motivators for the older consumers to use social media: defining enjoyment 😌, engagement in social contact, and providing and receiving online social support. A large percentage of this target group finds solutions to loneliness and lack of fun in communities that can be easily found within the different types of social media. The online support 💪 communities have the possibility of bringing older adults into the use of social media. However, special attention, addressing all their needs and preferences, needs to be paid in order to facilitate their web 🌐 integration.
Here are 3 reasons why your company should care about older adults’ use of social media:
1️⃣ Purchasing 💳 power of older adults
A report predicted that the adult population of 50+ years of age will have ownership of 70% of the U.S.A.'s disposable income by now. Additionally, the report clears up the confusion 🤔 stating that this demographic group is ready to spend as much money as the millennials.
2️⃣ Brand loyalty of older adults can be won 🏆
Unlike the previous generations, boomers have very similar understanding of brand loyalty compared to the younger age groups. A report focused on the fact that boomers are keen to experiment 🧪 by discovering new products and services, which should now encourage marketers thinking that this target group only follows the ideology of old habits that do not die easily.
3️⃣ Retirement of older adults seen as a plus 👍
Moreover, remember that elderly people will have a lot of free time ⏰ to focus on social media consumption and online purchases after retiring. In addition, another report from the U.S. claimed that this group of retirees is perceived as being the financially healthiest in history which would influence their purchasing behaviour in an extremely positive 😊 way.
Who said being old is terrible? Embrace yourself and your age like the fantastic grandmothers in “Fashion Grandmas” 🤩😎!
References:
Slavov, S. 2018, December 27. Older Adults and Social Media Marketing. Duffy.
The Star. 2021, May 13. Meet China's Elderly Influencers Cashing In On The Internet.
