SENIORS ARE REALLY DIFFERENT FROM OTHER TOURISTS?

Rightly, the tourism industry is closely monitoring market developments "baby boomers." Now this population ages and ranks gradually in the family of "seniors", which are of undeniable interest; but you have to know how to woo. For this, we must first ask whether older clients adopt a particular behavior. But we quickly realized that they do not form a monolithic block and some segments are more attractive target than others.

WHY LEARN ABOUT SENIOR MARKET?
Demography is one of the few variables that can be plotted fairly reliable prospects. Here are some things to consider about the senior market (50 +):

every 8.4 seconds in the United States, a baby boomer becomes a senior;
a person born in 1950 will live 20 years longer than one born in 1900;
in 2025, 63 million Americans will be over 65 years;
Florida has the highest concentration of people over 65 years and this will continue until 2025;
in France, more than 16 million people, or 30% of the population will be aged over 60 by 2025;
given current demographic trends, it will identify soon more grandparents than young;
On average, seniors spend more than any other segment of the population for many consumer products, including travel;
in 2001, already more than half of Americans aged 50 to 64 were "connected" on the Internet.
William S. Reece, from West Virginia University, has studied the clientele of senior citizens in individually assessing sociodemographic variables may produce an impact, negative or positive, on the propensity to travel (Figure 1). He directed the exercise for a sample of American seniors tourists, whose average age was equivalent to 69 and another group whose average age was 40 years.

What we must understand is that variables have, to varying degrees, affect the propensity to travel the elderly. The study found that for certain categories of individuals responding to a particular variable, willingness to travel may differ. Thus, persons 40 years of age with a household income of 75 000 $ 100 000 is more likely to take a trip that seniors in the same income class.

The scale of the chart to grade the strength of influence of each factor. The orange area (+ 1.96) represents the threshold at which the variables are of significant difference. We note that only two criteria cross this area: the distance from the destination to the place of residence, as well as living in a house. Thus, according to these variables, seniors have a propensity to actually travel greater than that of people in their 40s. This can be explained by the fact that older consumers are usually released most of their financial obligations. The proof: about 80% of Americans over 65 own a home and 80% of them, the property is debt free. As for the other criteria, the observed differences appear not important enough to be considered significant.

The author of the study rejects the idea that the travel behavior of older people is similar to that of other passengers. However, differences remain considerably less than might be expected. Nevertheless, the results show that older people are traveling further than average.

WHAT YOUNG SENIORS ARE NOT
The age of the baby boomers between 40 and 60 years. Among them, those who are reaching the fifties qualified young seniors. Although they show a propensity to travel altogether comparable to that of others, the reasons for doing so are found, they, quite different. Lalia Rach claimed, the Tisch Center for Hospitality, we have to know the new realities specific to the elderly to understand their influence on the tourism industry.

The new generation of people over 50 years was born in 1950 and experienced the revolution of the 1960s, when social values ​​have evolved. Result: this segment of consumers do not conform to the stereotype of the older person who lives at home.

However, some false myths about seniors remain:

they are "cemented" to a brand;
they are not comfortable with technology;
they favor a certain structure (eg .: travel in organized groups);
they are looking for dedicated activities for the elderly;
they retire at 65;
they adopt a lifestyle idle.
WHAT THE YOUNG SENIOR
All the old assumptions no longer hold. The senior more than 50 years defined as:

highly educated;
independently in all aspects of life;
living a form of personal revitalization;
with a hectic lifestyle;
living without compromise;
adoring make choices;
with a thirst for knowledge.
WHAT STRATEGIES?
Tourists over 50 years are now more adventurous than ever. A study by the company NOP World conducted among British, seniors avoid the traditional beach holiday and opting for remote destinations. About 65% would participate in such a safari. The survey also found that two thirds of people over 50 feel fully enjoy their life. Tourism products and marketing strategies must reflect this reality.

That's what some industries have made ​​in providing innovative equipment, to enable older people to practice their sport longer. Skiers can count on a "soft" boot (pictured) much more comfortable, and golfers on sticks "Big Bertha" (photo) allowing them to hit right away and without much effort.

source : http://veilletourisme.ca/2005/05/22/les-seniors-sont-ils-vraiment-des-touristes-differents-des-autres/