Peter I was having This very discussion last night with someone at dinner who just didn’t get it. I cited various examples on how important social media is from your book to this person. He sat there and as he listened to what I had to say, his response was, “you know I think you’re right.” GREAT BLOG POST!!!

Good info, as always!

Oh, and AARP is a lot of things, but despite how they promote themselves, “nonpartisan” is not one of them. Take a look at the candidates & causes they support, & you’ll see what I mean. As Deep Throat advised Woodward & Bernstein, “follow the money.”

WHAT AN AWESOME VIDEO !!!!!!

One thing leads to another. I like this news because the demographic in my industry is age fifty and up. The added wisdom factor will enrich everyone’s experience. We need everyone’s perspective seasoning the social soup.

Hi Peter,

Thanks for sharing what AARP is doing. Agreed, outstanding video produced by Alejandra Owens and her team!

I’d like to feature your post and the AARP video for the students in my Intro to Social Media class at OLLI-Rutgers http://olliru.rutgers.edu which is part of Rutgers University Division of Continuing Studies and specifically designed for adult students ages 50 and older. Your commentary and the video are perfect for getting the message across.

Thanks and regards,
Eva Abreu

Thanks for sharing what AARP did to engage that top-down buy in we need to really move social media initiatives forward.

For any new innovation (though at this point, social media isn’t as much of an innovation than it is a business/marketing standard), there will be naysayers and plenty of reasons NOT to engage. But to completely ignore social media is foolish. Adopting new marketing methods can be tough. Traditional marketing feels safe, while social media seems risky. But in my opinion, the greater risk is having your social media brand being built without your active involvement.

Great blog post as usual Peter. Thank you.

The stats in that video were really interesting: I would imagine that the huge growth in 65+ users is partially due to parents and grandparents figuring out that it is an amazing way to stalk their relatives!

WOW! is right! What a video – a wealth of information! I am completely shocked!

Your last line is brilliant: “It’s not social media. It’s not Web 2.0 or 3.0. It’s life – you should coin that phrase, Peter! That was my ah ha moment of how much more important this is than I have placed value on it. Thank you!

Such an interesting article! The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce is having a conference next week, Marketing to Boomers: Sarasota Style (there are quite a bit of retirees here :)) and some of us at the ad agency are attending to see what they have to say. Incredible information – thanks for sharing!

Great post! Love to see the growth of social media in the 65+ age group. Great video too, AARP!

I ran into a whole lot of “this has nothing to do with us” when I was at my last job. As a marketer for the architectural, engineering and construction industry, there’s a common theory that the A/E/C industry is a late adopter of social media. It was a stretch for various members of my last firm to get on LinkedIn but the internet restrictions didn’t allow full utilization of LinkedIn (such as inbox & discussions). Meanwhile a considerable number of my connections and information sharing was & still continues to be through social media.

I shared BOTH these posts with all my clients and FB friends THANK YOU for some awesome validation and back-up for all those many conversations I’ve had and will continue to have with folks about how it’s TIME TO JUMP IN BABY!!!! :)

Great work as always!

Jenny

Thanks for the post and video! I am working to promote the use of social media to an industry full of “We’re a ______ company – what do we need social media for?” companies. I’m going to use the video and your post as I carry on!

Especially enjoyed the last line…”It’s Life!”

wow.. that’s great post Peter. its good to see the influence of social media among we people. And yes, awesome video. Thanks for the post.

This is a great reminder that social media is no longer a separate part of our life that we do online, it’s a fully integrated piece of reality.

AMEN to this post. I totally agree with your point here. Unfortunately there are way too many B2B companies that automatically dismiss social media as something that ‘retail’ companies should deal with and ‘not them’.

It’s not the case! SocMed is a vehicle for the way people communicate – and if we don’t evaluate it now we will lose valuable branding momentum.

Whenever I hear people say anything along the lines of “I don’t need this [insert name of newfangled thing]. It doesn’t apply to me.” I always think twice.

How do you know you don’t need something if you don’t know what it is? Better yet, what about taking something that is new (even tho social media isn’t exactly wet behind the ears anymore) and using it to expand in ways no one has done before.

As for the AARP age group adopting social media skills? My parents, particularly my father, are on all the same SM sites I’m on. They skype, FB and even couchsurf. Why? Because it’s a great way to stay in touch with family over long distances. Because my dad is retired, has health issues that make it difficult for him to move with ease and sitting in front of the computer learning a new skill that allows him to communicate with people all over the world is a fantastic use of his time and energy.

Totally on point, Peter. Never say never.

It seems like it should be obvious that social media is an essential, but I didn’t realize how many overlook it. These people also must be simply afraid of what they don’t understand. So, we can all do them a favor: give a little kick in the butt and some valid reassurance. This can go a long way.

I knew that older age groups were taking over social networking, but had NO idea they were booming that fast in the online world. Really eye opening and a good lesson to learn here.

Great posy making me think and rethink our strategies