Frazer Blog

Generation X: The forgotten generation

by | May 31, 2016 | Funeral Home Marketing

A man in a suit on his phone

You hear about the Millennials and the Baby Boomers all the time. But the most important generation for funeral homes might just be Generation X.

Generation X is the generation sandwiched between Baby Boomers and Millennials. Most demographics experts agree that Gen Xers have birth dates ranging from the early 1960s to the early 1980s, making them somewhere between their early 30s and their early 50s.

Aging Parents

Most Gen Xers are the children of Baby Boomers, and the oldest members of that generation are just hitting the 70-year-old mark. Though some are as young as 50, most fall somewhere between, where end-of-life care and funeral planning is becoming more prevalent since the average lifespan for Americans is 78.8 years.

As their parents age, Gen Xers are more frequently turning to funeral homes to help them plan services they will likely need within the next few years.

Spending Power

One of the biggest differentiating factors between Gen Xers and other generations is that they have significantly more spending power than any other generation. More than 31% of total income dollars in the U.S. belong to them.

Because of this financial stability, many Gen Xers are supporting loved ones in both the Millennial and Baby Boomer generations. According to the Pew Research Center, nearly half of adults in their 40s and 50s are raising a young child or financially supporting a grown child, and about one in seven are providing financial support to both a child and an aging parent.

Informed Buyers

Gen Xers are considered savvy, skeptical, and self-reliant. They aren’t interested in being preened or pampered. Though Gen Xers hold the most spending power in the U.S., they work hard to ensure that the money they spend is spent well.

More than any other generation, Gen X does extensive research before ever making a purchase. They compare prices and features, find contact information to ask questions, and much more.

Avid Internet Users

According to Millward Brown Digital, 60% of Gen Xers use a smartphone on a daily basis while 67% use a laptop or PC on a daily basis. That’s about two-thirds of all Gen Xers, a generation made up of nearly 65 million people.

Just last year, Business Insider said that nearly 50% of online shoppers were between the ages of 35 and 54. We’ll say that again, in case it didn’t sink in: nearly half of all online shoppers are Gen Xers.

Reaching Gen X

Gen Xers do a lot of research online before they spend money on anything, and that includes funeral expenses. What are you doing to ensure your funeral home is considered?

If you’re like many savvy funeral directors, you already have a website and have taken a step in the right direction. But there are so many more factors that should be considered in order to ensure that your website is effective.

An effective website:

  • Is well-designed, with a modern and sophisticated look
  • Is easy-to-use and helpful to website visitors
  • Is designed to make your job easier
  • Is connected to social media
  • Utilizes search engine optimization so that users can easily find it
  • Is consistent throughout the website
  • Is mobile-friendly

Making sure your website is up to par can be quite the undertaking, no matter what generation you are trying to reach.

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