Beginning in 2003, my business blog for Creative Services, Copywriting, Consulting, and Speaking. You'll find all sorts of information about the current trends in advertising and marketing to this unwieldy, diverse demographic.
NostraChuckus has never been a big fan of a financial company’s advertising. He thinks the me-too is likewise quite creepy.
In 2010, the Soothsayer sees this:
You decide.
_____
Your Financial Advisor Is Not The Pillsbury Doughboy
United States
Australia/New Zealand
Asia/Japan
Special Thanks to Dr. Florian Kohlbacher for sending advertising and academic material from Japan.
United Kingdom
France
Germany
Belgium
Click graphic: 
Spain
Norway
Then we settled in Turkey.
Most attendees were from the country’s thriving, boisterous financial sector. A major concern: Baby Boomers and older in Turkey have not warmed up to online banking and financial services. They make an attempt - but soon become frustrated, returning to their old ways (needless trips to the bank, using mostly checkbooks and snail mail, etc.). They are simply not online.
I couldn’t dig too deeply into hierarchy and usability issues – although I did talk (almost endlessly) about graphic design and how important it is for older eyes. Instead, I offered a bit of motivational marketing.
In the early 1980s, Turkey’s government loosened its (almost total) grip on the economy and freed up manufacturing and banking resources. The economy slowly gained momentum. Today Turkey is an international economic powerhouse.
A gentleman brought up all this during a break. I knew about it, but thought it might be too hot a political potato and decided beforehand not to talk about it. He convinced me to toss it around the room.
My idea: Folks now in their fifties, sixties, and early seventies were the thought-leaders and workers who accomplished this unprecedented economic growth. It’s something they are and should be proud of.
In your advertising/marketing campaigns, make the connection between these economic achievements and the recent growth of the internet. They will feel as if they are not only a part of the technological revolution, but helped make it happen. Their accomplishments are the reasons Turkey is a major player on the world stage.
Of course, you wouldn’t simply say all this. Marketing and advertising creatives would come up with vivid scenarios to tell the story.
There are 15 million people living in Istanbul – and I think I saw all of them.
And I met about two dozen of the brightest.
One truly appreciated email:
Dear Chuck,
First off, thank you for the workshop last Friday, we learnt a lot. I hope your trip in Istanbul went well.
Could you please send your presentations of the workshop along with the ‘word of mouth marketing’ presentation you did at the end of the workshop.
This way, we can share it with our colleagues.
Thanks and regards …
Attendees included marketing executives from Fortis, Anadolu Hayat Emeklilik, Yapi Kredi Bankasi, and IS Bankasi.
I don’t know what their takeaways were, but here were mine:
