Life begins at 50 - sourcing the data

The UK is home to more than 17 million individuals aged over 50, but marketers often treat them as a single homogenous group. Royal Mail has done extensive data analysis of this target audience to develop a new segmentation, identifying many different sub-groups within this age demographic.

In this 2010 presentation, Royal Mail data consultant Mary Alcock looks at the characteristics and behaviour of these various groups, allowing different organisations – from councils to high street retailers – to target them with relevant products, services and welfare information.

Key findings include:

• There are three broad age groups – prime of life (50-64 years), retirement years (65-74 years), and later life (75+ years).

• Identifying the 'charmed generation' – individuals who have profited from the four Ps  –  prudence, pensions, parents and property  –  and who are cash and asset-rich.

• There are over 21 different subsets of the over 50s, including wealthy empty nesters, credit hungry families, self-sufficient solos, hard-up households and pound-stretching pairs.

• Which groups respond best to different media channels from phone, online, direct mail or face-to-face marketing, and the brands they prefer.

This presentation was given at the MMC Life begins at 50 seminar on 9 March 2010. If you are interested in attending future sessions, please contact us.