Older Demographic Will Soon Be Majority Online
As American monthly Internet usage rises to 71% of the population in 2010, marketers have become excited and curious about the medium’s future potential. However, are they taking full advantage and targeting the right groups? One of the largest misconceptions is that the younger generation will continue to dominate Internet life. However, through surveys and predictions, trends show that this may not be the case.
The article, “US Web Usage Landscape Is Shifting” (http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007519) predicts that monthly Internet users in the US will rise to 250.7 million by 2014 and more than half of the new users will be ages 45 and up.
“Currently, 12- to 24-year-olds represent a major bloc of users at 51.7 million, or 23.4% of the total. By 2014, though, their share will wane to 21.3%, even as their numbers increase to 53.5 million. Meanwhile, those ages 45 and older will grow from 35% to 38.3% of total users to more closely align with their relative share in the overall population.”
In the article “Who’s Online and What Are They Doing There?” (http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/whos_online_and_what_are_they_doing_there.php) author Sarah Perez notes that Generation Y (ages 18-32) does not dominate all aspects of Internet use.
“The web is still largely populated by younger generations as over half of those online are between the ages of 18 and 44 years old. But these days, larger percentages of older generations are going online and they are doing more activities while there,” Perez said.
Although Generation Y already has — and will continue to have — a heavy presence on the Internet, future potential lies with the generations that are still growing online. In an article written by Jack Loechner, “Seismic Shift in Internet Age Mass” (http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=99950), Loechner discusses a growth in a generation that may seem surprising.
“The biggest increase in Internet use since 2005 is the 70-75 year-old age group. While just over one-fourth (26%) of 70-75 year olds were online in 2005, 45% of that age group is currently online, and doing more activities online,” Loechner said.
The Internet is no longer a “younger” phenomenon, all age groups are jumping on board, offering huge potential for online marketers. How will your company address these emerging, underrepresented markets?
The JLS Agency is a digital marketing agency based out of State College, PA. Learn more about the services they offer by visiting www.TheJLSAgency.com/
