Consumers Crave Open & Honest Relationships

Last month I was cleaning out my email inbox and found an article from 2018 from Mediapost that I had been saving for the future.

Today is the future.

As much as things have changed this year, I’m sure you’ll agree that somethings have changed very little.

The Mediapost story is titled Boomers Crave Open, Honest Marketing and when I first read the story, I thought, not just Baby Boomers, but everyone craves honesty in the advertising and marketing they are exposed to.

First, let me share some quotes from this 2018 article:

Target. Equifax. Cambridge Analytica. Our system of voting.
It seems every day a new report comes out explaining how a major company has failed to protect our personal data or attempted to monetize it in an exploitative way.

While senior users make up only a fraction of all internet traffic, they are very concerned about their privacy. A 2017 poll by AARP found that 78% cite privacy as a major concern, while 84% fear having their personal information hacked or stolen. The boomer market is fearful about information security.

In recent weeks, the concerns about internet security have hit people of all ages.  The video conferencing company Zoom was discovered to have lax security measures and yes there have been multiple more companies that have had data breaches over the past couple of years.

Healthcare providers and financial corporations are moving away from person-centered customer interactions, automating as much as possible to save money.  In reaction to this trend, we find many boomers and seniors attempting to eschew digital interactions because it makes them feel safer. With the news blaring the pitfalls of Facebook, online credit scams, and major privacy concerns, it’s no wonder that this is a trend. But the modern world makes it hard for boomers to escape the clutches of marketers.

Nearly every boomer and senior has adopted the ubiquitous “membership card” for local grocers and other stores. Maybe they’ve even signed up for emails about upcoming deals. After all, who doesn’t love a sale?

Yet each of these contacts provides a way for a retailer to collect data about consumer preferences and interactions. Even the simple act of having a Facebook account causes this to happen.

The Covid-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders really made it impossible for everyone to avoid the web.  So what is the solution to give all consumers, not just Baby Boomers and Seniors, what they really want, which is open and honest relationships with the companies they do business with?

In a word, Transparency.

Here’s my challenge to you.

What can you do to over communicate the stuff that your customers might feel uneasy about?

If you are a service business, how about upfront price guarantees?

If you sell online, how about a big bold message that states how you will use or not use your customers information?

If you say, you do this stuff already, is it buried in a bunch of fine print or legal terms and conditions that no one reads anyway?

Change it.

We want to trust you.  Give us open and honest communication and transparency and in return we’ll give you our money.

Signed, the consumers of the world.