Seniors Consumer Insights

Trend - Brands are developing educational, tutoring-style programs to teach seniors how to use digital technologies and navigate the online world effectively. These programs aim to reduce the likelihood of seniors falling victim to scams while teaching basic computer skills, social media, and online safety.

Insight - As emerging technologies continue to revolutionize various industries, older generations are actively seeking ways to enhance their media literacy. In response, programs have been developed to teach device operation and online safety, providing essential support for those needing help acclimating to the digital age. Businesses that offer support and resources to senior consumers can tap into a large and often underserved market segment, unlocking new opportunities for growth and brand loyalty.

Trend - Automotive manufacturers are launching new vehicles inspired by retro designs. These cars blend retro aesthetics with modern features, such as electric engines, network connectivity, or motion sensors. Often limited-edition products, these vehicles capture nostalgia without compromising on comforts.

Insight - While more consumers adopt electric vehicles (EVs) each year, there are still large subsets of drivers that prefer traditional gas-powered vehicles. Whether due to aesthetics or function, these consumers are hesitant to adopt EVs, despite these vehicles often being more environmentally friendly, having lower costs of ownership, and having more modern features. In an attempt to accelerate EV adoption amongst these consumers, brands are tapping into retro designs to capitalize on nostalgia.

Trend - Healthtech brands are creating specialized eyewear with built-in hearing aids. Utilizing technologies like bone conduction, transcription, or audio amplification, these glasses aim to provide a non-intrusive solution to hearing impairment—meaning they can be worn daily with minimal discomfort.

Insight - As individuals age, many develop issues related to sight or hearing impairments. These consumers turn to wearable solutions, such as corrective lenses or in-ear hearing aids, to improve their quality of life. However, of these consumers acknowledge that these solutions are uncomfortable, and are just worn as necessities. Brands are now looking to use modern technologies, such as artificial intelligence, to improve the quality of these solutions, both in terms of comfort and assistive ability.

Trend - Brands are tapping into nostalgic soda flavors, reimagining these drinks as health-positive products filled with probiotics. These items satisfy nostalgic desires for hearty, classic sodas while simultaneously boosting consumers' gut health.

Insight - Many consumers remember the joy of drinking soda as a youth. However, far fewer customers continue to drink soda in adulthood for health reasons. These consumers desire to recapture these flavorful, youthful experiences, but not to the detriment of their own health. Therefore these customers place pressure on brands to create better-for-you products that appease nostalgia.

Trend - Brands are increasingly launching digital and technological menopause solutions, as consumers have become more familiar with technology over the pandemic. These products help consumers manage symptoms from home while ensuring they have on-demand access to support through digital channels.

Insight - The pandemic caused women experiencing menopause to feel more isolated than before as in-person medical services were moved to digital platforms. These conditions led to aging consumers becoming more intimately connected to technology than before, increasing the perceived value of menopause-focused technological solutions. This directly caused an increase in demand for smart gadgets, AI-powered solutions, and digital platforms focused on perimenopause and menopause support.

Trend - Due to mobility issues and/or other age-related disabilities, senior citizens find it more difficult to connect, travel, exercise, and enjoy outdoor activities. Brands are leveraging the accessibility of the metaverse to create tailored experiences that address these problem areas. Services emphasize social interaction and immersion in the metaverse.

Insight - The pandemic caused levels of perceived isolation to worsen, leading to elderly people feeling even more disconnected from their friends and communities. These individuals found it harder to remain active and access daily services. The rapidly-advancing metaverse arose as a space for innovation in these areas, leading to brands creating curated experiences for elderly people that help with socialization, exercises, mental stimulation, and services such as banking or healthcare.

Trend - To tackle senior mobility challenges, various "age tech" startups have opted to reinvent one of humankind's first walking aids: the cane. These reimagined canes boast sleek contemporary designs and feature high-tech elements such as built-in sensors, biometric activity trackers, and cell data.

Insight - Thanks to tech-enabled advancements in elderly care, today's senior population is actively adopting an 'Age in Place' approach to living. Aging in place describes the process of growing older independently in one's own home. As more seniors embrace this approach, the need for sophisticated mobility solutions that are safe for independent use has become critical. A notable example of this comes from startups that have turned the traditional walking stick into the connected cane.

Trend - As the possible applications of artificial intelligence continue to evolve, new med tech startups are leveraging Wi-Fi sensing technology augmented by AI to provide non-invasive forms of health monitoring to at-home patients. This includes fall detection, activity level monitoring, and abnormal behavior monitoring.

Insight - Pandemic-driven lockdowns have caused many people, particularly elders, to remain at home more frequently. Combining this with the fact that many primary caregivers were often away from home for long periods of time, there arose a need for constant home monitoring of risk-prone individuals. However, solutions such as cameras are invasive to personal privacy, leading to many brands creating wireless, camera-free sensors that operate constantly. This new solution, then, offers both peace of mind and privacy.

Trend - Brands are launching products and services aimed at keeping seniors connected and engaged amid the COVID-19 restrictions. These range from playful QSR entertainment to retiree-specific radio station recommendations.

Insight - The COVID-19 pandemic has been a very difficult lifestyle adjustment for people of all ages, and older generations have the added risk of being more likely to be affected by the virus. Although economies around the world are reopening, many social distancing restrictions are still in place and are causing a prolonged period of isolation for this demographic. Countering the collective psychological impact of the ongoing pandemic is just as important as containing the virus itself.

Trend - City infrastructure is being adapted to accommodate the senior community through design-forward features that motivate activity, preserve health and safety, or simply allow for intermittent rest. These developments show a commitment to making spaces more accessible.

Insight - Many senior citizens are emphasizing their desire for independence, both in public and private spaces, and this prompts a demand that advocates for more accessible designs within the city environment. When this is taken into consideration and the accessibility needs of an older demographic met, consumers become increasingly confident and comfortable to be active outdoors, ultimately allowing them to combat feelings of loneliness which tend to be common for the senior community.