Afleveringen
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Ageism is so baked into our culture, it often doesn’t register until you start paying attention to what you and others casually say about growing older and older people.
But at some point, you’re likely to feel its effects. And often that will be at work (or while looking for work) past age 50.
The data shows that once you’re over 50, odds are the decision to leave your job won’t be yours. Although age discrimination is illegal, companies use layoffs and coerced “early retirement” to shed themselves of older employees.
This must change, given the perpetual labor shortage employers are facing. Plus, older people want to keep working due to longer, healthier lives and the changing reality of retirement.
But in certain industries, it gets late for you much earlier. We’ve explored how a fascination with young people hurts the world of advertising, and the same is true for the technology sector.
How early? Try 40. And that’s just ridiculous given that successful advertising and product development will require input from older people in order to succeed.
For the tech world, that’s where Maureen Clough comes in. She’s an “elder Millennial” who is bringing awareness and insight to both technology companies and the general population about the folly of ageism in a time when our society (and the majority of wealth) is shifting older.
Tune in to hear:
* Maureen’s background – from journalism to tech, and how her experiences in both led to the work she’s doing now.
* Why ageism continues to be the one -ism that our society seems okay with, and why the lack of maliciousness may actually be worse.
* Maureen’s motivation for launching It Gets Late Early – her podcast that seeks to bring awareness (and ultimately solutions) to ageism in tech.
* Examples of the terms used in tech job descriptions that betray the industry’s bias towards younger workers.
* Why it will be economic imperatives, not altruistic ideals, that actually change things.
* Examples of tools being built for removing bias from the hiring process.
* The potential benefits of rethinking how older workers and younger workers are blended together inside companies – especially when it comes to mentorship.
* The natural effects of having so many younger employees at advertising and tech companies, and why so many of those effects are negative for older adults.
* The economic value of having real empathy for older adults.
* The reality behind the stats regarding most successful tech entrepreneurial endeavors being started by people age 45 and up.
* The misconceptions surrounding older workers’ productivity, especially in the age of AI.
Links:
* Website
* Podcast
* LinkedIn
* Instagram
* YouTube
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We’ve explored the idea of the intersection between marketing, entrepreneurship, and activism in a previous episode of the show. It seems like a good time to take it a step further.
That’s why I reached out to Ashton Applewhite, a fiery and funny anti-ageism activist who I know from her book, frequent articles, and informative LinkedIn feed.
Ashton is the author of This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism and a leading spokesperson for the emerging movement to raise awareness of ageism and to dismantle it.
She’s also the co-founder of the Old School Anti-Ageism Clearinghouse, and has been recognized by The New York Times, The New Yorker, National Public Radio, and the American Society on Aging as an expert on ageism.
Ashton also speaks widely at venues that have included the TED talks mainstage and the United Nations, has written for Harper's, The Guardian, and The New York Times, and is the voice of "Yo, Is This Ageist?"
Marketers and activists will never agree 100%. It’s the nature of things. But when it comes to the longevity economy, we’re more aligned with our activist friends than you might think.
Tune in to here:
* What makes Ashton’s book The Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism so informative and entertaining to read
* Why a clear-eyed, 360-degree view of aging – the good and the bad – is so important
* Many examples of subtle changes in word choice and phrasing that provide more accurate and less-ageist descriptions of what aging is like
* Ashton’s pragmatic view from the trenches on whether things are actually changing/improving … or not
* Why “aging well” can mean different things to different people (and the danger of assuming or only telling one type of story)
* Does Ashton agree with Brian’s premise that marketing and advertising got us into this ageism mess and need to be a huge part of changing it for the better?
* How marketers and activists are aligned in trying to change attitudes related to ageism
* Ashton’s frustration with what Brian has referred to as inadequacy marketing to older consumers
* Why some groups of aging adults are actually the most ageist of all
* Why GenX’ers and Boomers – some who have amassed great wealth and others who are facing increasing levels of poverty – are the best and most essential solution to the perpetual labor shortage
* Why the ultimate goal is a mixed-age workplace (along with diversity in other ways)
* The impact (and potential) of ageism being the first instance of discrimination that many white, heterosexual men face
* What Ashton makes of the latest developments in anti-aging science and technology
Links:
* This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism
* Oldschool.info
* Thischairrocks.com
* This Chair Rocks on Instagram
* Yo, is this ageist?
* Ashton Applewhite on LinkedIn
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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We see a lot of nostalgia in marketing and advertising, because it turns out it’s less “bittersweet” than most people think. It makes most people feel positive emotions.
And the same is true with consumers over the age of 50, with some surprising twists that are unique to older people. But we’re not trying to call up “those were the days” kind of messages.
Instead, we’re trying to bond with our audience of older consumers in a powerful way. And nostalgia can help make that happen.
But be careful. As you’ll hear, poor execution of nostalgic messages can backfire spectacularly, especially with older people.
Tune to hear:
* A brief reflection on the nostalgia of the holiday season
* Is nostalgia actually a “bittersweet” emotion?
* How Brian uses nostalgia in past and current projects
* What the research shows about how older consumers respond to nostalgia
* Advice on the types of messaging marketers should avoid when using nostalgia
* The problem inherent in an advertising industry that skews young trying to relate to older consumers
Links:
* Mazda commercial “A Driver’s Life”
* What You Should Know About Nostalgia Marketing
* Nostalgia and Consumer Behavior
* When Nostalgia Marketing Backfires: Gender Differences in the Impact of Nostalgia on Youthfulness for Older Consumers
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On this week’s episode of the show, we're talking to Michael Clinton. He was publisher of GQ Magazine from 1988 to 1994 before becoming an executive at Condé Nast until 1997.
Clinton then joined Hearst Magazines as senior vice president and chief marketing officer. Beginning in 2010, Michael was the president, marketing and publishing director of Hearst Magazines and also served on the board of directors.
He’s also a photographer, has traveled through 124 countries, has run marathons on 7 continents, holds two master’s degrees, and still has a long list of life experiences that he plans to tackle.
Oh, did I mention that he’s 70? It’s easy to forget that part. Clinton is an example of the “new longevity,” and he’s actively helping to spread the word about the opportunities of the longevity economy.
After “retiring” in 2020, he remains as senior media advisor to the CEO of Hearst. But what he’s truly focused on is his next-phase venture – ROAR Forward, which complements the book he released in 2021 called ROAR into the second half of your life.
Tune in for some amazing insights into the longevity economy, including brand examples of who is getting it right, plus:
* How Michael went from “$60 bucks in his pocket and no contacts” to the pinnacle of the magazine business
* The “big disruption” that has affected newspapers, magazines, and now television – and how Michael helped his teams and brands navigate the changing landscape
* Why Michael believes “you have to be a student every day” in your personal and professional life, and how he walks that walk himself
* The motivation and opportunity that drove Michael to switch gears toward a second career after age 70 by writing the book ROAR.
* Why now is such a good time for 50+ adults to “wind up” even while lagging societal stereotypes suggest they should wind down
* The lessons Michael learned about what really motivates people to reimagine their future and find a second act
* The importance of being fundamentally optimistic and curious about the future
* How Michael’s feats of physical achievement have made him an “accidental role model” and mirror a larger societal shift in how older adults are portrayed
* The other side of ROAR: how Michael hopes to help the C-suite understand the power of more empathetic messaging to the 50+ market
* Why Michael is a proponent of the idea that Baby Boomers should spend their substantial collective wealth now, instead of just waiting to pass it on
* The importance of “authentic representation” in all marketing and strategy, but especially in the 50+ market
Links:
* Caddis Eyewear
* L’Oreal for All Generations
* Michael Clinton LinkedIn
* ROARForward.com
* @roarforwardcom
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When we talk about movements, we bring a powerful element of influence to bear – unity. But underlying that group identity is something more fundamental: status.
As soon as we belong, we begin jockeying for a position relative to others. This is the potent intersection of belonging and self-esteem in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.
Status seeking is not inherently shameful; it’s inherently human. Even saying you don’t care about your social position is a form of status-seeking. It’s also a prime motivator for doing good things for others and society at large, and that’s in no way a bad thing. Just be careful with the virtue signaling and humble brags.
Marketing inherently caters to status. Inadequacy marketing plays on a lack of stature to prompt purchases, while empowerment marketing seeks to elevate social standing from a more positive frame. The type of status games people play go back to worldviews and values, so inappropriately playing the status card will alienate prospects instead of empowering them.
Older consumers are suffering from a lack of status, which is even more puzzling when you account for the wealth and consumer spending power they wield. In this episode we discuss the first step to changing the status quo with your marketing efforts.
Tune in to hear:
* Why seeking individual status is such a fundamental human desire
* How status impacts dynamics between and within groups as well
* Why even the decision to abstain from cultural status symbols is, itself, a form of status seeking
* How the signs of status we focus on change as we get older and have more life experience
* The most fundamental form a status that tends to be meaningful across all psychographic categories of older adults
* Why empowerment marketing is so much more effective than inadequacy marketing with older consumers
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Modern marketing is all about empowering consumers to solve their problems and satisfy their desires. Try to make them feel bad about themselves with old-school inadequacy tactics, and they’ll click away.
And yet, that’s exactly what marketing and advertising to older consumers looks like (when it’s present at all). More than just stereotypes and misconceptions, this is due to ageism.
That means that in addition to the general anti-ageism movement that is gaining momentum daily, marketers and entrepreneurs who serve older people can find themselves in the role of advocates as well.
Do it well, and you’re part of the movement. Do it poorly, and it will backfire.
Tune in to hear:
* The important reminder Jerod received on his dad’s 70th birthday
* How the lines between marketing and advocacy get blurred in the longevity economy (and why that matters)
* A list of prominent people who are helping lead the charge in the anti-ageism movement
* The tricky line that must be toed when companies mix marketing with advocacy
* A breakdown of Apple’s recent video that both advocates for the environment and promotes its own substantial list of environmental initiatives
* The differences between advocacy advertising and advocacy marketing
* Why advocacy is at the heart of commercial movements and thought leadership
* A look back at the businesses Brian has founded over the last 20 years and how advocacy has been the throughline that connects them all
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Other listening options: Apple | Spotify
Demonstrating your expertise is a powerful way to succeed with digital marketing. And that’s true as you venture into the longevity economy.
Sharing valuable content that addresses a prospect’s problem can earn you followers and fans thanks to powerful influence principles like authority, liking, and social proof. And if you have followers, that makes you a leader.
That’s the more important word in the concept of “thought leadership” – leader. The key to being seen as a leader has more to do with a shared identity with the people you’re looking to help than it does with your credentials or actual level of expertise.
That brings us to the concept of “leading expert,” which typically refers to the person with the best credentials. In this case, however, the emphasis is on being the “leading” expert – a person who is fighting against the status quo as part of a movement with business implications.
Here’s what we cover:
* Happy 56th birthday to Brian!
* A friendly reminder of why you should get a premium Longevity Gains subscription now (before the prices goes up on October 6th)
* What does it mean to be a “leading expert”?
* How Robert Cialdini tied his principles of influence together with the addition of the Unity principle in 2016
* Why demonstrating your expertise beats claiming your expertise in the digital age
* What is true “thought leadership” anyway?
* Why the question of Founder-Problem Fit is more compelling (and important) than Product-Market Fit
* Why focusing on your personal brand is much less effective in the long run than focusing on being a leading expert
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It’s one thing to talk to experts who have made the longevity economy and the shift to an older society their life’s work. It’s another thing to talk to someone who’s doing the work and actually experiencing life and business as an older worker who has chosen the “unretirement” route.
Unretirement is when older people (in this case, Baby Boomers) return to work due to a loss of meaning and purpose without work, plus the desire to generate income. The term has gained a lot of traction lately, but the trend was first documented back in 2014 in a book by journalist Chris Farrell.
Richard Eisenberg is a freelance writer and editor who specializes in issues related to aging and personal finance. Instead of fully retiring at 65, he shifted to freelance so he can continue doing the writing work he loves without the management aspects of his former career.
Across Richard’s long and distinguished career, he’s been the managing editor of Next Avenue (the PBS web project for folks who are 50 and older), the executive editor of Money magazine, and written two books. He also hosts a couple of podcasts and teaches a class at New York University.
Listen in to hear:
* How Richard came to realize the purpose that drives his work
* The story behind Next Avenue, which Richard helped found and run
* The biggest changes Richard saw in terms of reader questions about aging during his 10 years as managing editor at Next Avenue
* Why Richard left Next Avenue to move into the “unretirement' phase of his career
* The truth about why unretirement is attractive even when you love your job
* The most common misconceptions people have about what it takes to succeed with unretirement
* Why the question of unretirement is about so much more than just money … even though the money part is still important!
* What stood out to Richard from Brian’s free Longevity Economy Ebook
* Do we have a nomenclature problem when it comes to “retirement?”
* Some jarring stats and stories on the pervasive ageism in the media
* The enduring problem of “casual ageism,” and how the path to further combating it starts with more intentional word choice
* Why not having more multi-generational teams is such a missed opportunity – both in business and life generally
* Richard’s suggestions for terms we need to get rid of and the best potential replacements
Show Links:
* Next Avenue
* Julia Louis Dreyfuss podcast
* Ageism in the Media: An Insider’s Perspective
* Wanted: 20,000 Young Americans to Fight Climate Change
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In last week’s premium lesson, Brian introduced the Empowerment Marketing Framework — a way to figure out what to say and how to say it when crafting messages for older consumers.
And he did it by talking about the power of thinking in terms of movements instead of marketing or audience. He elaborates on the importance of this mindset with a simple yet powerful message:
The status quo doesn’t need you.
Brian and Jerod also discuss:
* Why movements are better than audiences, especially in the longevity economy
* The enormous opportunity movements present to entrepreneurs and marketers
* How movements deliver the essential elements that poor marketing efforts lack
* Brian's personal history of carving out leadership in existing movements
* What is empowerment marketing?
* How empowerment marketing differs from old school inadequacy marketing
* What bad marketing gets wrong about The Hero's Journey metaphor
* How the Empowerment Marketing Framework helps you determine the most effective way to guide your prospects
Listen on Apple or Spotify, or click the play button up top.
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This week’s guest has had a lot of influence on Brian when it comes to thinking about the longevity economy and the challenges and opportunities ahead.
He’s Bradley Schurman, a demographic futurist and specialist in understanding what it means when there will soon be more people older than sixty-five than those under the age of eighteen.
Bradley is the author of The Super Age: Decoding Our Demographic Destiny – a highly influential book about the demographic changes that are already disrupting the status quo. He is the founder and CEO of an inclusive design firm by the same name.
Tune in to hear about the market forces that propelled youth culture at the time the Baby Boomer were born, and how that same generation is dealing with being basically ignored despite sitting on a mountain of wealth – and why that situation is changing right now.
Plus:
* How Bradley’s unique professional background made him perfectly suited to write The Super Age
* Bradly defines the aging “Super Megatrend” and explains the many ways it is reshaping society
* Bradley and Brian explore the curious reality of why more people don’t understand these aging trends are happening, especially with such clear and compelling data
* Brian explains his view on how marketers created the current climate of ageism and the “retirement myth” and why it will be marketers who have to get us out of it
* The surprising details about why and how Apple is succeeding with older adults where other companies are failing (or ignoring the market altogether).
* How markets have ebbed and flowed with different population booms and busts throughout the last 100 years, and what impact the impending Super Age is likely to have
* How the Super Age will compel smart companies to treat employees as human capital rather than replaceable commodities
* The shifts we should expect in education as “long life learning” becomes more and more prevalent
* And much more, including Bradley’s assessment of how the public discourse about population trends and the longevity economy is changing as more smart people recognize the urgency of the opportunity.
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If there’s been one predominant question of 2023, it’s:
What effect will A.I have on ____________?
Some of you have already asked that question with regard to marketing to older consumers.
So, for the second episode of the Longevity Gains podcast, Jerod and I tackle that question from several angles.
In the process we reveal just how unique the longevity market is, even as we highlight how artificial intelligence is going to take a while to fully reveal how disruptive it will be.
Here are some of the highlights:
* Brian's recent experience at Red Rocks with a legendary band adored by Gen Xers
* What to expect from the Longevity Gains podcast and newsletter content moving forward
* What will AI do to the demand for older workers (i.e. the longevity economy flywheel)?
* The weaknesses of AI programs like ChatGPT when it comes to longevity marketing messages and content strategy
* The human elements that AI simply cannot deliver (at least for the foreseeable future).
* The emerging business opportunity for facilitating social connections among older adults
* How AI will empower older workers to stay at their current job or leave to launch their own business
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Why is futurist and trend forecaster David Mattin our first guest on the new Longevity Gains podcast? Well, it’s his job to see what’s happening, and what’s coming.
In his words:
The UN says that the global population aged 65 and over is growing faster than any other age group. In 2019, one in 11 worldwide was over 65; by 2050 it will be one in six.
It’s an unprecedented demographic change. And because it will shape our response to everything else, I’ve come to believe that it is the most consequential megatrend reshaping the decades ahead.
Listen in to hear this illuminating conversation on the Longevity Economy, including:
* The economic and societal implications of elongated life spans and, more importantly, healthspans.
* Why devising new models for lifelong learning is vital.
* How the typical stages of life may need to be reexamined moving forward.
* Why intergenerational tension is increasing … and why it’s crucial for this tension to ease moving forward.
* Why professional tennis is a great analogy for the impact of advanced healthspans.
* The curious case of the Baby Boomers and the cultural revolution of the 1960s, and why “youth power” may be more anomalous than previously thought.
* How careers and content will change moving forward and why an increase in individual “micro-businesses” is likely.
* What to make of the recent developments in anti-aging (and even age reversal) science.
* The philosophical questions that are inevitable as people continue to live longer and longer.
David Mattin is an experienced broadcaster, writer, speaker, and an internationally recognized expert on trends, technology, and social change. Mattin is the creator of New World Same Humans, which reaches over 22,000 subscribers each week. In the newsletter David shares trends to supercharge incumbent organizations, helping clients learn a simple, powerful framework that empowers them to start spotting their own trends. David sits on the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Consumption, which brings together leading experts to imagine new futures for business and consumerism. He is also the co-host of What's NEXT and a contributing editor of Los Angeles Review of Books.
Get full access to Longevity Gains at longevitygains.substack.com/subscribe
