Silver Surfers: Successful Online Marketing to Seniors

If you are marketing to an older audience, don't discount the value of a website. People over 50 account for more than 50% of discretionary spending in the United States, and they are going online to buy. And, they have money to spend.

According to recent Pew surveys, the number of online seniors jumped by 47% between 2000 and 2004. There are about 8 million "silver surfers" (22% of Americans) who are age 65 or older using the Internet. About 58% of Americans ages 50 to 64 say they surf the Net.

Of wired seniors, 69% go online on a typical day, compared with only 56% of all Internet users. Silver surfers report using the Internet to stay in touch with family and friends, using e-mail or sending online greeting cards. Seniors report several other key reasons for using the Internet, including:

· To stay current with news and events

· To look up health or medical information

· To research products or services to purchase offline

· To make online shopping purchases

· To research and/or check on stocks or investments

"Wired seniors are often as enthusiastic as younger users in the major activities that define online life such as email and the use of search engines to answer a specific question," says Susannah Fox, director of research for Pew/Internet. "They are as likely as younger users to go online on a typical day. Communication and information searches attract wired seniors and there has been sharp growth in the number doing key Internet activities such as health searches, e-shopping and online banking."

As people age, they are more likely to have usability issues. For example, more seniors have myopia, cataracts, fine motor disabilities, and short-term memory decreases. Therefore, if your company is targeting this demographic, it is important to take specific steps to modify your website appropriately. Don't make it difficult for your senior visitors to find what they need on your website. Here are few guidelines to make your website more older-user friendly:

1. Use larger type, less content: Changes in vision can make is more difficult to read a computer screen. Reduce the amount of text on each webpage and use a medium-sized default font. Provide a way for older viewers to increase the text size. This will make it easier to read for individuals who do not see as well.

2. Make it easy to read: Use a sans-serif font that is not condensed. Avoid novelty and cursive typeface. Double space body text.

3. Design with high contrast. Avoid reversed type and patterned backgrounds. Use dark text on light backgrounds.

4. Keep terminology simple: According to recent studies by Fidelity and AARP, many senior Internet users are not familiar with commonly used Web terms. Things younger Internet users know well are a new language to older users. Avoid web jargon. Examples include: "URL," "link," "message board," "emoticon," and "IM."

5. Be very clear: Use action-word links. Because senior users tend to be more cautious in what they do on the Internet, use link terminology that clearly explains what happens when a user clicks on the link. Explain things concisely, but thoroughly.

6. Make links straightforward: Use an obvious method of displaying links such as blue, underlined words. Make these consistent throughout your website. Give users a larger target area to click on to accommodate for users who may have fine motor coordination difficulties such as tremors.

7. Keep your site design simple and stable: If your site caters to seniors and you want to change your site, make changes slowly over time. The more success seniors have with your site and the easier it is for them to use, the more confidence and loyalty they will develop. Keep your navigation toolbar in the same place throughout your website.

8. Test your site: Before launching your site, have older adults try out your website to evaluate its accessibility, readability, and ease of use.

More and more seniors are surfing the online world. The spending habits and income of this demographic makes them a desirable target. If your company wants to catch this wave, offer a website that makes it easy for your users. Create a comfortable online environment for your online senior visitors, and your business will reap the rewards.

Wendy Maynard, your friendly marketing maven, is the owner of Kinesis. Kinesis specializes in marketing, graphic and website design, and business writing. Visit http://www.kinesisinc.com for more articles and free marketing wisdom.

Want to harness the power of kinetic marketing? Sign up for Kinesis Quickies, a free bi-monthly marketing e-newsletter: http://www.news.kinesisinc.com

---

7 Simple Steps To Web Wealth

A lot of people and companies have websites. They also... Read More

Keywords are the Key

Niche marketing is focusing your business efforts to a target... Read More

Creative Offline Website Marketing Techniques

Although the vast majority of website traffic is the direct... Read More

The Best Kept Secret on the Internet

What is the Best Kept Secret on the Internet?This is... Read More

How To Master Internet Marketing

What is the secret of being the best at Internet... Read More

How to Make Money Online...Driving your Car.

Here's an alluring income generating strategy, that's widely adopted by... Read More

PPC and SEO - Inhouse Vs. Outsource

Any small business owner in a B2B or B2C market... Read More

Are You Willing To Pay The Price?

Do you believe that there is a price to pay... Read More

10 Psychological Desires To Insert Into Your Ad

1. Most people like surprises because it's a change of... Read More

Golf Pros Jet to be Sold early 2006 -- Market NOW to Make Large Deposit

Marketing gurus travel all over...Malaysia, London, San Francisco ..so make... Read More

Candy Jar Marketing

What is one of the main keys to a successful... Read More

Hispanic Web Marketing - An Emerging Strategy

Major marketers in the United States have recognized the importance... Read More

Seven Sure Steps In Building Your Reputation Online

If you have to part with your hard-earned money for... Read More

How to Use Tracking to Keep Income Incoming

The use of tracking links in the following scenario puts... Read More

Internet Marketing ? A Maze In A Haze?

Internet marketing, website marketing, call it what you will, can... Read More

Google Sitemaps ? A New Free Google Tool

Google has released another valuable. The tool, "Sitemaps", allows you... Read More

Quick Guide to Internet Marketing: 9 Tips for Success on the Net

To market successfully you must incorporate the Internet into your... Read More

The Rats Are Winning the Rat Race

There was this great entrepreneur who came up with a... Read More

Marketing and the Hired Guerrilla

It's a jungle out there, so know and use your... Read More

Discover How To Find The Gold Online

Finding the GOLD!!!G'Day from the kitchen table of Scott WilsonTime... Read More

Now, Even A Monkey Could Easily Accept Online Payments

I just came across this web site called PayDotCom.comAfter reviewing... Read More

Know The Fundamentals To Success

Internet Marketing is right for everyone. Unfortunately, not everyone is... Read More

What The Internet Owes Me

What does the internet owe me for all my hard... Read More

El Marketing, Das Marketing, Le Marketing

While reviewing site stats, I noticed 18 foreign countries as... Read More

How You Can Use Free Public Domain Content to Drive Hoards of Targeted Traffic to Your Websites

There is an interesting phenomenon on the Internet and that... Read More

Twenty Ways To Profits Online

1. Offer to write exclusive articles (that means you only... Read More

Why You Should Use Turnkey Websites To Jumpstart Your Ecommerce Activity

Most people looking to do business online have heard of... Read More

How to Turn Freebies in to Sales

You can increase sales and profits by offering freebies to... Read More

The Unsung Heroes Of Internet Marketing

One of the reasons that people fail to earn anything... Read More

So What If You Dont Have A Website?

Gasp! Choke! Gag! That's how people react when you tell... Read More

Targeted Traffic is More Important than Ever!

In the early days of web development, business owners had... Read More

Researching For Niche Markets

When it comes to researching for niche markets, many people... Read More

Website Marketing: 10 Proven Uncommon Tactics Ways To Accelerate Your Profits

Would you like to accelerate profits at your website?Here are... Read More