Pragmatic Boomers and Their Internet Ways

They may not be spending hours decorating their MySpace pages or posting YouTube clips of themselves doing the Frug and the Monkey, but according to a new study conducted by ThirdAge Inc. (a web destination for older users) and JWT BOOM (a marketing company with a focus on the 40+ market), boomers are alive, well, and wrapped up in their own Internet world.

It's all about information and staying in touch reports the survey. Seventy-two percent of the 1,210 adults over 40 that were surveyed had broadband at home (higher than the national average across age groups), and of those, 82 percent researched information online.

According to the survey, these Third Agers use the Internet to:

• Seek out information (92 percent);
• Stay in touch with friends and family (95 percent);
• Shop online (73 percent);
• Browse the web (95 percent);
• Read articles (91 percent); and
• Research products before purchasing offline (86 percent).

What they're not doing, according to the study, is watching videos, writing blogs, playing games, or downloading music. On the other hand, they make up more than 40 percent of the population and account for 70 percent of the U.S. net worth, so for marketers, they're worth seeking out in their digital nests.

Of course the study was conducted online, which sort of eliminates a few folks, but there's no doubt the boomers have their own routines in cyberspace. To read more.