The basis of generational or cohort marketing is a theory posited by German sociologist Karl Mannheim (1893 1947). A « zeitgeist » is a shared feeling for an era and the unique spirit of a generation. As Mannheim observed, social upheaval during the impressionable years of adolescence can shape a generation’s collective outlook.
Just as the lessons of depression-era economic deprivation live on with the children of the 1920’s, the Leading-Edge Baby Boomers born between 1946 and 1955 carry with them an indelible sense of intra-generational connectivity, a quixotic attraction to a chaotic period when effusive societal change was the norm.
The Boomer zeitgeist developed roughly between San Francisco’s Summer of Love in 1967 and the end of the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War in January 1975. This hectic era continues to exert its influence by mobilizing and motivating the generation today.
For example, when we consider the 1960’s and 1970’s, we’re likely to think about racial desegregation, women’s rights, environmental awareness, the human potential movement, antiauthoritarian behavior, and democratic mobilization against tradition-bound government. Enduring Boomer values stimulated by these social movements include diversity, feminism, sustainability, personal growth, creativity, individualism, self-sufficiency, and challenging the status quo.
When we then consider popular consumer brands such as Apple, New Balance, Harley-Davidson, L. L. Bean, and Chico’s, we uncover some of the same Boomer values at the psychological core of brand identity. These iconic brands appeal variously to the values of self-sufficiency, creativity, abundant health, self-awareness, antiauthority, sustainability, and feminism.
In his influential Marketing to Leading-Edge Baby Boomers: Perceptions, Principles, Practices, Predictions (2005, Paramount Market Publishing, Inc.), author Brent Green presents further insights about how the Boomer zeitgeist persists today and is becoming one of the most profitable segmentation strategies for insightful brand leaders.
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