Report: Boomers may take social networks from kids

Move over, kids, your grandparents may be taking up more of your computer time. According to a recent report from USC's Annenberg School for Communication and the AARP American consumers over the age of 50 are turning to social networks and other Web 2.0 platforms in huge numbers.

by Kristina Knight

In some cases, these Boomers are spending more time online than the Millenial generation.

The report finds that 42% of American Boomers log on at least once each day to check news; only about 18% of Millenials do the same thing. On the social front, 70% of Boomers are logging on to social networks; many of these consumers say social nets are "very" or "extremely" important for them. Boomers are logging on to social nets several times each day. Only about half of Millenials log on multiple times to check on their social standing.

Boomers are most likely to be found sharing photos and videos, blogging or engaging on message boards to share their opinions about an article they've read.

Social marketers should take this trend into account, as up to this point, many marketers have focused their social campaigns on younger demographics. It turns out that marketers should target both young and old, which means more ads. Millenials and Boomers won't be attracted to the same display or video ads so more money will need to be spent on ad creation. However, with the right targeting, this expenditure could be more than compensated for with a higher ROI.