We all know that staying competitive in the digital world means staying on top of new marketing trends, knowing when the latest SEO changes are taking place, and trail blazing new opportunities. But, if you are trying to focus on a more elderly market or targeting senior marketing initiatives, it's important that you use market research to understand where your audience is spending their time online, how they are consuming digital content, and what types of senior marketing ads are relevant to their lives.

This year (or at least part of the year), forget about the millennials. We know, we know. We can hear your collective gasp from here. We are exaggerating a little bit. We only give this advice to organizations and brands that are targeting baby boomers, senior marketing, or non-technical natives. If that's you: read on.

1. Use market research to target your senior marketing group

First and foremost: big data is your friend. We have never been able to glean a more precise understanding of what people are doing and where they are spending their time online than right now. This is important when you are targeting a group that may not consume digital content the way you intended them to. Older demographics may favor certain channels over others, adopt trends slower than digital natives, and more consistently start and complete their online journey on fewer devices. While this certainly isn't always the case, it is a good foundation to begin building and testing into hypothesis to drive your digital sales motions. Use a little market research to guide where you believe people are entering your site, how best to target them, and why they may be having trouble completing sales farther down the funnel.

2. Start 2017 with "winback" senior ads

Another great use for market research within the senior subset is for winbacks. In short: do your homework. Cross reference information about your target audience with your competitive set to understand why you may have lost some customers over the past year, then target and differentiate yourself to win them back. Market research is especially helpful when you are trying to avoid a downstream price war or want to avoid competing on price alone. Remember, when you're targeting Baby Boomers, you have the luxury to focus on value rather than price because they still hold the top spot as the demographic with the most disposable income in the market.

3. Market research unlocks product innovation within the senior marketing group

In the same way that market research can help you determine which customers are most likely to come back to your brand, it can also help you understand if (and where) you fall short against your competition. Use market research to understand how important certain features or services are, how valuable your product and others like it are perceived to be, and what secondary targets might be interested in your brand. This information can help you expand your market share by depending loyalty within your older segment and preparing for the next generation of customers.

But don't take our word for it. Click here to discover ways market research has helped our clients like you and get back to basics today.