The different way of persuading Boomers

One distinct characteristic of the Boomer generation is a tendency toward individualism, as pointed out at the Engage:Boomers blog, at You Better Be Marketing To Me.

Rather than accept the marketer’s version of why a product is good, they’ll often want to internalize before they agree:

Boomers … want to answer “What’s in it for me?” by determining for themselves the benefits of your product or service. If you tell them what the benefit is, it should be talked about in such a way that they can modify and personalize it….

Fundraising, which has been developed for and shaped by the older generations, has followed the older marketing model, which tells people how and why the product is good.

With Boomers now making up nearly half of the ranks of donors, we need to work on the other way of persuading:

• Present the problem their gift will solve — emotionally, of course.
  
• Present the solution, emphasizing effectiveness and impact. Connect a dollar cost with an outcome.
  
• Be urgent.
  
• Let the donor internalize why she should take up the cause.