Market Strategy for Generation X

This article offers a thoughtful marketing approach that focuses on the unique financial needs and communication preferences of Gen Xers.

By Bryce Sanders

As you create your marketing plan, you will quickly realize that one size doesn’t fit all. Cultural differences matter, as do generational differences. After all, you aren’t selling ponchos — you are selling customtailored clothing.

The same line of thinking should be on the top of your mind as you figure out a plan for marketing your insurance and financial services to Generation X. What do they need and value from a financial advisor, and how can you deliver those services to them?

Before you start to create a marketing plan, you should first take a look at some of the experiences and attributes of Gen X and then figure out how to successfully market to them. The following information will help get you started.

• GenXers have witnessed many crises. According to Kasada. com, Generation Xers are the 82 million1 Americans born between 1965 and 1979. They are stuck between the Baby Boomers and the Millennials. Watergate (1972), Reagan’s presidential election (1980), the AIDS crisis (1981) and the Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989) all took place when they were growing up, and the dot com crash (2001), the real estate bubble (2008) and the Great Recession (2007) happened during their adult years, and now they are dealing with the devastating impact of COVID-19. As you can see, many things went wrong during their lifetime; as a result, they tend not to trust institutions and big companies.

— Marketing strategy: The guarantees associated with insurance products and the ability to build cash value are attractive to them.

• GenXers have a different outlook from that of other generations. Boomers and seniors have a “Have, Do, Be” mindset. They believe that if you have enough money to do what you want to do, then you will be happy. In contrast, Gen Xers and Gen Yers often have a “Be, Do, Have” mindset. This means that you need to determine who you want to be, do things that make you good at what you want to be, and then you will be happy. In other words, do what you like, and the money will follow.

— Marketing strategy: Because Gen Xers tend to be entrepreneurs2 , they will most likely need business-related insurance and workplace retirement plans.

• Gen Xers have a lot of student loans. According to Experian, Gen Xers average $39,584 in student debt. 3 Their average FICO score is 688, while base scores range from 300 to 850.

— Marketing strategy: Although lots of Gen Xers have huge amounts of student loans, many of them still believe in the value of education and still want their children to pursue higher education. Carrying student debt themselves, they will likely not want their children to have the same problem they have. So, college savings accounts make sense for them, especially if they have relatives who want to help.

• Having experienced the Great Recession, many Gen Xers are still worried about job security. Boomers and their parents believed that you should work for one company or employer until you retire. The Pew Foundation reports that Gen Xers and Millennials share similar job tenure numbers. For example, 59.9% of Gen Xers stayed in the same job for 13+ months, while 21.8% stayed for five or more years 4 . And according to USA Today, the typical employee will have 12 employers during their lifetime 5 .

— Marketing strategy: Having multiple employers during their career often means they have orphaned retirement plan assets, which should be accumulated in one place and given attention.

— Marketing strategy: Gen Xers need to understand that they are responsible for providing for their own retirement. The financial-planning services you offer should show them where annuities and cash value life insurance fit into their plans.

• Gen Xers are more tech-savvy than their predecessors. These days, everyone uses smart phones. In 2015, the Economist reported that the average smart phone user spends two or more hours a day on their phone, and checks it within 15 minutes of waking up in the morning7. Texting and social media messaging have now displaced traditional phone calls.

— Marketing strategy: You should communicate with prospects and clients through their preferred communication channel. This means identifying the channel that is getting most of their attention and using it to communicate with them.

1 https://www.kasasa.com/articles/generations/gen-x-gen-y-gen-z

2 https://www.foxbusiness.com/features/ generation-x-are-better-entrepreneurs-than-millennials

3 https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/research/ millennials-and-student-loan-debt-study/

4 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/19/ millennials-arent-job-hopping-any-faster-than-generation-x-did/

5 https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/ careers/employment-trends/2018/06/11/ why-millennials-resign-more-than-older-workers/35921637/

6 https://www.epi.org/blog/private-sector-pension-coverage-decline/

• Many Gen Xers do not have pensions. In 2013, The Economic Policy Institute reported that 55% of households had a work-based retirement plan and 56% of those had a defined benefit pension plan6 . This means that only 31% of people had traditional pensions.

7 https://www.economist.com/leaders/2015/02/26/planet-of-the-phones

Bryce Sanders is president of Perceptive Business Solutions Inc. He provides HNW client acquisition training for the financial services industry. His book, Captivating the Wealthy Investor can be found on Amazon.