Marketing to Generation Baby Boomers

A friend in Florida recently emailed me to ask my opinion about how his church can better attract baby boomers to a new Saturday evening service designed specifically for them. My thoughts were:

The better that you understand your community, the easier it will be for you to identify what it is that your church needs to do to reach them. To determine what might be the best ways to reach them, try these 3 things:

1. Observe
   Go to several locations where baby boomers in your community like to visit. It could be a Harley dealership or home & garden show. It really depends on the community. Once there, observe. Do not observe for only just a moment but truly take the time to study how they interact within the setting as well as what makes it popular and why.
2. Ask Marketing Professors
   If there are any local universities in your area, ask their marketing professors for advice and recommendations about how they would reach local baby boomers. Often marketing professors have good connections with local business owners and know a little bit about the big success stories in town. In particular, try to ask seasoned professors who have been locally teaching for a decade or two. They have a wider spectrum of history and knowledge to reflect upon and are more likely identify what is solid change versus a passing fad within your community.
3. Ask the People
   Of course, one of the best ways to determine where and how people spend most of their time is to simply ask them. Be sure to analyze their answers to determine which moments would be able to best gain their attention and communicate without being a nuisance.

In this particular case, try to better understand how boomers like to spend their Saturday evenings. Effectively attracting boomers is first about creating a service that best appeals to them and meets their needs. Second, identify what are the best communication channels to use to reach them. And then communicate the news of your new service in a way that is relevant to (1) the branding of your service, (2) the communication channel you use, and (3) the people you want to reach.