Forgetting to invite the boomers: Does marketing have an ageism problem?

Forgive me if I’m wrong, but sometimes it feels like we collectively decided anyone over the age of 55 doesn’t exist, or at least, don’t scroll.

If they are online, we kind of imagine them stuck in pop-up purgatory, typing with one finger, forwarding chain emails with subject lines like “Fwd: Fwd: RE: Angels Among Us”. And well, that’s stupid. Because they’re not. They’re on WhatsApp, Pinterest, and (obviously) Facebook. They’re buying plane tickets, designer soy candles, and CBD balm for their sleep (and joints). They're sending you TikToks you saw yesterday. They're quietly thriving digitally, yet totally ignored by marketing.

If it’s not some shiny new stats about Gen Z, it seems we just don’t care. And for an industry that claims to be obsessed with “knowing your audience”, we’re awfully bad at acknowledging older consumers - one of the most powerful demographics in the game. So… why did we stop inviting them to the digital party?

First of all, the internet has a youth complex.

Everyone does tbh. But marketers in particular are obsessed with youth. We build campaigns around Gen Z trends, rewrite tone of voice guides to include “slay” and “it’s giving”, and stay up late refreshing TikTok to understand a meme that will be irrelevant by morning. We bend over backwards to appeal to 17-year-olds with no money while completely overlooking Boomers and Gen Xers who collectively control over 70% of disposable income in countries like the US, the UK, and Australia.

This isn’t a mere creative oversight, it’s freaking delusional. And it’s costing us big time. Just because you don’t see older people online, doesn’t meant they aren’t there - duh. They’re not digitally illiterate, they’re just not doing thirst traps and trauma-dumping in comment sections. Their digital lives look different, less performative and more practical. They use tech with purpose. They don’t need six browser tabs open to validate their existence. They’re not allergic to (gasp) calling customer service.

And yet… marketing still treats them like they’re confused grandpas clicking on phishing links (RIP to the ones who’ve fallen victim). If your customer journey assumes anyone over 60 is using Internet Explorer and calling TikTok “The Ticky-Tok”, maybe the problem isn’t them. Maybe it’s your imagination.

Digital ageism is real, and weirdly acceptable.

Like, imagine saying “we don’t market to women” or “we don’t really target people of colour” in a campaign planning session. You’d get (rightfully) dragged out of the room and cancelled for the entirety of you career. But saying “our digital strategy skews younger” is somehow… normal? It’s not just lazy, but kinda sh*tty and, ironically, deeply shortsighted. Because unless you're planning to spontaneously combust at 40, you’re going to age, too, bud.

Marketing culture rarely engages with this because aging is seen as the opposite of aspiration - it’s inconvenient, and it’s sooo not hot. But aging is also inevitable, interesting, and incredibly underrepresented. We talk about inclusivity, but exclude a massive group based on an outdated idea of what “digital” looks like.

What if, instead, we actually designed for them?

Most digital products weren’t built with aging bodies or minds in mind:
Small fonts, light grey text and button placement straight from hell. Microcopy that assumes you know five layers of subtext, and dark patterns wrapped in “user delight”. Older users often navigate all this despite the experience, not because of it.

So… what if we actually tried? What if campaigns considered:

• Clearer UX without sacrificing style

• Messaging that respects intelligence without being patronising

• Visuals that include aging without leaning on lazy stereotypes (no more stock-photo grandmas with salad bowls pls)

And also like… how about hiring more older creatives, strategists, and designers? So our work isn’t being shaped by the same 29-year-olds with ring lights and oat milk subscriptions?

Aging is not a niche.

Nor is it a trend, or a phase, or a personality you “tap into”. It’s literally all of us, eventually. So, why not speak to the people who actually read the emails you send and click the links you post and buy the things you make? The ones who are less likely to scroll past your ad mid-existential crisis because they’ve already done their inner child work?

They have taste, trust, and most importantly, disposable income - y’know, that thing you want the most? And they’re right here, waiting, scrolling and spending it up online. All you have to do is invite them in!

-Sophie Randell, Writer