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Gen X is the generation born in 1965-1980, between Baby Boomers and Millennials.
Relative to generations above and below it, Gen X is smaller. Growing up during times of economic uncertainty and witnessing the changes in traditional family structure, they can be characterized as quite independent. Since many of them grew up in single-parent families and spent a lot of time on their own, Gen Xers are referred to as “latchkey kids”.
They are not as active on social media as Millenials and Gen Z, but they are still more progressive than Baby Boomers, as they were the first generation to grow up with computers. So, they tend to consume all forms of media, from traditional newspapers to Instagram and other social media.
Although many marketing professionals tend to focus on Gen Z, Millennials, and Baby Boomers, advertising to Gen X can bring various benefits to your business. Here are some of the reasons you should consider including this age group in your marketing strategy.
Unlike younger generations, people of Generation X have already achieved financial stability. Being between 44 and 59 years old as of now, they have enough working experience. This generation has probably already achieved some corporate success and holds senior job titles or leadership positions, which gives them high purchasing power.
According to a 2022 survey, Generation X spends the most among all age groups in the US. There can be several reasons for that such as established careers, high income levels, generational wealth, and spending habits. Considering this fact, you should definitely include this age group in your next marketing strategy.
Another thing about Gen X, they are loyal to their favorite brands and prefer high-quality purchases. So, if you manage to prove your brand’s value and offer them authentic products and services, they are most likely to stick with you for a long time.
If you don’t belong to this demographic category, it might be challenging to understand the way Gen X thinks and makes decisions. However, we’ve got some tips for you to learn more about them and create relevant marketing strategies.
Here, we’ve gathered some of the best practices for you to excel in advertising to Gen X. Keep reading to make the best out of your campaigns.
Nostalgia is a powerful marketing tool that can create strong emotional engagement. Adding a little nostalgia can bring back strong positive emotions that your Gen X customers felt once, and nostalgic elements in your campaigns can make them associate these feelings with your brand now. These strong positive feelings can also increase their loyalty which is crucial while working with Gen X.
To get the nostalgic boost, you can add elements of pop culture that were trending during Gen Xers’ youth in your marketing campaign. Some of them are music icons such as Nirvana, Tupac Shakur, Michael Jackson, or movie hits like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, or Jurassic Park.
Pepsi is a perfect example of successfully incorporating nostalgia into its marketing campaigns. In the Pepsi Generations campaign, the company presented different generations of Pepsi cans and focused on the brand’s involvement in the pop and music cultures making its audience reminisce about the “good old times”.
Since Gen X customers consume various forms of media, advertising to them, you should use a multi-channel approach. Every post you make on your social media accounts has the potential to engage your subscribers and advertise your product or service, so make sure to regularly update all your socials. It is also important to keep all your accounts united and make them showcase the same values and mission.
L’Oréal has decided to target the Generation X audience by collaborating with 10 influencers of that age group on Instagram. The campaign had a total of 2.6% engagement rate and gathered 3.8M impressions and 1.4M reel plays while being targeted at the Nordic market.
Email marketing is also one of the key channels in modern digital marketing. According to a survey, 32% of Gen X consumers were likely or very likely to make a purchase influenced by a brand’s newsletter. So, don’t forget about creating a compelling email marketing campaign.
Another crucial point that you can focus on in your marketing strategy is work-life balance. Gen Xers are known for their strong work ethic since they had to work long hours to achieve corporate success and adapt to the fast-changing technological environment. They often struggle to maintain a healthy work-life balance, so you can offer them something to help them with it.
Heineken has launched a campaign focusing on a healthy work-life balance. The company’s stunt showed an office working late at night with a slogan next to it. This simple yet creative approach can resonate with people in different industries, with job titles, and even in different countries, as many office workers around the world experience the same problems with maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Community engagement has become an essential part of any business. Сonsumers prefer to make purchases from responsible brands that are making efforts to give back to the community and benefit society.
While community engagement refers to many activities such as partnerships with local nonprofit organizations or corporate social responsibility, we recommend you focus on sustainability practices. 73% of Gen X customers, along with other generations, prefer purchasing from sustainable brands. So, if your company is socially responsible, make sure to let your Gen X audience know about it. Is your packaging made from recycled materials? Or are you using renewable energy sources and sustainable technology? If you put effort into any sustainable practices, you can focus your marketing campaigns on that.
In this email by Sauna House, the brand shares its sustainability report with its audience. Although the email is information heavy, it helps build trusting relationships with the customers, as they get to learn more about the company and its positive influence.
We’ve also analyzed some of the future marketing trends in advertising to Gen X. Here are a couple of our insights:
Born between Baby Boomers and Millennials, Generation X is a significant part of the modern market that has strong purchasing power. Here’s what you should focus on if you want to include this demographic group in your next marketing campaign:
These elements will help you with advertising to Generation X customers and enhance your strategy.
