A Gallup poll found that the number working Americans expecting to retire at 65 or older has risen from 44% to 61% over the last 15 years, while the number predicting retirement before 65 has fallen from 50% to 29%. The reasons may be related to shifting views on the rewards of working, as well as on the shrinking value of investments.
Expected Retirement Age
The Harvard Business Review’s Daily Stat republished information from the McKinsey Quarterly about how people over age 55 will drive two thirds of all growth in consumer spending in France over the next 20 years. These findings can offer implications for other developed countries.
French Consumers
Consumers do respond differently to different types of media. While most of us still prefer direct mail, older consumers prefer it even more.
The graphic from the previous post about Word of Mouth showed that advertising, including direct mail, is the most important factor of consumer purchasing decisions during the “initial consideration” phase of the purchase decision making process.
Consumers “pull” information to them later in the purchase decision process.
How can we help you use direct mail to help you build your brand or stimulate demand?
Word of mouth is the primary factor behind 20 to 50 percent of all purchasing decisions.
The power of word of mouth is greatest when consumers are buying a product for the first time or when products are relatively expensive, these factors tend to make people conduct more research, seek more trusted opinions, and take longer to think about purchases.
The Harvard Business Review summarized research from the McKinsey Quarterly that indicates that in developed markets, word of mouth has its biggest impact when consumers decide which products to consider and when they’re actively evaluating products.
The Harvard Business Review featured some results from a McKinsey & Company study that found that the “most destructive” failures of business-to-business sales reps are too much contact with customers (35%). Customers want to be contacted, not bombarded. The upside of getting things right is significant: A primary supplier perceived as having a high-performing sales force can boost its share of a customer’s business by 8 to 15 percentage points.
The methods of “bombardment” are in person, by phone or via email. Postal mail is not listed. Use direct mail to stay in touch with business customers without making them feel inundated.