The 5 Traits of Baby Boom Business Owners
As a Small Business Marketing intern and student, I have recently been contemplating ways to improve my business. I found it fascinating to realize that over 95% of my hot clients and prospects were Baby Boomer’s who own a small business.
With this group identified as my target demographic, it was important to understand them better. Who are these people? What attracted them to me? How can I work with them in the most effective way? I found the following five common characteristics among this growing group of women and men.
1.) These individuals often held high positions in the corporate or business world. Many were downsized or laid off after a sale or merger. Some lost their jobs after a business failure. Others could no longer tolerate dissatisfaction in their life and career. Their experiences have created the need to establish comfort and trust before doing business.
2.) In the mid-1980s, Baby Boomers began to desire a deeper awareness of the meaning of life. They found information that “felt right” and embedded a spiritual understanding in the fabric of his life. This understanding drives them today. As a result, the people and companies you deal with must feel good before you commit to exploring new ideas.
3.) Your goal and overriding dream is to experience ultimate comfort and success without sacrificing personal freedom. Many are discovering safety in the concept of multiple income streams and are open to fusion marketing. They want time and money to enjoy leisure, travel, and a high quality of life with family and friends. If these goals have not been achieved, Baby Boomer business owners will continually seek new ideas and avenues to achieve them.
4.) They are too vital to retire and are dedicated to their dreams.
Your options are: a). Sell an existing business for a big profit. That profit is reinvested in a unique company based on a dream or personal talent that they can enjoy for a lifetime.
B). Feeling “unemployed”, they realize that they have no choice but to develop a business based on past experiences and / or a passion or talent they already possess. Many are first-time entrepreneurs with limited knowledge or resources about small businesses.
5.) This enthusiastic group has a sincere desire to help others and make a positive contribution to the world. Sense of purpose, authenticity, and integrity are important drivers for this group as a whole.
Baby Boomer business owners require easy-to-understand systems to be successful. They look for universal principles that guide personal and business growth. Helping this dynamic and rapidly growing demographic achieve the lifestyle they want, through entrepreneurial endeavors, will create a bright business future with potential.
“When you stop seeing life as an adventure and a journey, your vision becomes clouded with limitations instead of clearing with limitless possibilities.” – Bill Gluth