Age – more than just a number when marketing your optometry practice!
A true luxury that optical practices have, is that you require to obtain and store details on patient demographics, including date of birth. Age demographics are a crucial focus when it comes to successful targeted marketing techniques. It won’t surprise you to learn that what works for your 30-year-olds, doesn’t necessarily have the same effect on your 70-year-olds, and neither it should!
Generationally, we have all grown up with varying levels of literacy, and even more so in this day and age, computer literacy. This needs to be one of your biggest considerations when marketing to your patient populations. If you want to target certain population groups individually, you should select your marketing medium carefully with their age in mind. If you are hoping to reach your whole community at once, you will need to adopt a mixed marketing method and perhaps adapt your messaging to capture all generations in one go.
So, what works best for whom and why? We are specifically going to look at the five generations that you are likely to have registered in your optometry practice and discover what makes them tick!
Silent Generation (Born before 1945)
This generation is your toughest audience to market to in the modern age. However, despite this, they are usually very loyal and will continually return to your practice annually, spend with you and value the relationship that they have with you as people and service providers. Messages to this demographic need to be straightforward and relatable.
Best marketing methods:
Television and radio advertisements, print advertisements such as those in local newspapers and magazines, as well as direct mail in the form of postcards, letters, and fliers.
Baby Boomers (Born between 1946 – 1964)
The baby boomer generation is arguably your most valuable clientele, given their age and time in the workforce, they are likely to hold the most purchasing power of all your patients. Although this generation has lived most of their life in the absence of technology and social media, they certainly are embracing it with mobile devices and online shopping.
Best marketing methods:
Television, radio and print advertisements again are useful, with the addition of social media (mainly Facebook) for quick brand research. Loyalty programs are also great for this population group.
Generation X (Born between 1965 – 1976)
The smallest of all our generations, generation X grew up in a recession. Given this, stereotypically Generation X are more calculated spenders. This generation prefers to stick with what they know and usually do their due diligence on a business or product before they commit to using or purchasing it.
Best marketing methods:
Word of mouth and testimonials, email and social media marketing campaigns, MMS & SMS marketing, incentives such as discounts, loyalty programs and traditional advertising methods such as television and radio.
Millennials (Born between 1977 – 1995)
Conversely to those before them, the millennial generation is the largest in our history. This means that for you, marketing to this group means you have a wide audience and a large consumer group. Despite this, millennials have grown up with modern technology, placing them on an even playing field in that respect. Millennials value authenticity and often gravitate to brands that get behind social and environmental causes.
Best marketing methods:
Social media and content marketing, influencer marketing, MMS & SMS marketing, millennials also appreciate a multifaceted approach to marketing.
Generation Z (Born between 1996 – 2012)
The most diverse and the most tech-savvy of us all! Whilst still young, this generation’s purchasing power shouldn’t be discredited, particularly due to options such as AfterPay. Generation Z rely heavily on reviews and recommendations made via social media platforms and are most likely to book with you if you offer online booking.
Best marketing methods:
Influencer marketing, social media advertising and selling (including TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram). This generation is likely to take what influencers say as gospel.
As you can see, as we shift through the generations, unsurprisingly successful marketing methods change from traditional methods to those that are quite mainstream. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, you will undoubtedly have outliers in your patient populations, for instance, those who are young at heart. We certainly don’t want to place anyone in a stereotype, but this is a great guide to follow using patient data you already have when considering a targeted marketing approach.
At Eyebenefit, we stand to take the guesswork out of this for you and are available to assist and guide you with all your marketing needs! If you are looking to target a specific population you want to see more of in your independent practice in your next campaign, simply let us know and we will work with you to create and execute the perfect marketing plan.
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