Adding audio to your websites and blog is a great way to increase the content your offer visitors. Audio provides a new communication strategy that broadens your product offerings and marketing tools and motivates purchases. Here are seven top ways audio can help to motivate purchases as an internet marketing tool. 

Audio in Internet Marketing 

1. Audio is one of the best ways to let people you may never meet in person get to know your personality. This is one of your biggest assets as the owner of a small business and audio makes it extremely easy to communicate your personality to your audience and target market group.  By listening to you, people can come to like you as a person.  Psychology shows that people will be more likely to purchase from you as a result. Use audio messages to connect with your audience and influence them to get to know and like you. Even a simple welcome message is a great start. 

2. Audio helps promote you as an expert in your field. People buy from people or companies they consider to be an authority or expert in the industry. Audio is an exceptional tool for you to use to demonstrate your authority on your niche topic as it lets you provide extended information in a short period of time.  Even 5 minutes of hearing you speak with authority has a lot of impact.  Produce how to audio messages, interviews and lessons as tools to demonstrate your authority on a topic. 

3. Audio Adds Proof.  People often make purchasing decisions based on the opinions of others. This is called using social proof. This opinion is particularly important if those “others” are people your target market respects, admires, or desire to be like. Easily tap into this social proof trigger by interviewing experts in your field and posting audio testimonials on your website. 

4. Audio is easy to produce.  Nothing beats the ease of producing an audio product.  You can use free audio software such as Audacity or purchase audio recording software to use.  Normally all you need is a good microphone that hooks right into your computer to start recording audios.  You can write out a script or talk about what you know without one.  An audio can be completed in a few minutes and uploaded to your website for your target group to hear. 

5. Audio is versatile.  You can easily take the audio you produce and create other information products.  Get the audio transcribed and you can have an ebook, book or home study program.  That means, you do the audio once and recreate it into many different, effective formats.  Learning to work with audio is a valuable tool in this modern business world. 

6. Audio is transportable. Because you can download an audio file to an ipod or other portable device, it remains one of the most popular ways to share information.  Being able to transport the audio to other areas makes it highly convenient.  Being able to listen to recordings at will when it’s convenient increases the audience base. 

7. Audio is Comforting. People love to recognize a voice.  Don’t you enjoy hearing the voice of your favorite person on the telephone? What about hearing an actor in the distance; doesn’t that peak your interest?  The same goes when people start to get accustomed to your voice.  Hearing a familiar voice can be very comforting to people.  Let people get to know you through your audios and you create a fan base, while developing and growing your business opportunities.

1. Boomers Continue to Learn

Boomers are life-long learners who continue to seek out quality educational and information resources and they will look for information on several areas of interest.  Boomers are heading back to school in large numbers to earn degrees or to upgrade or learn new skills. They also find and read how-to information on a variety of topics.

Boomers access information from both online and off-line sources and through courses and other educational and information products like never before. “Many feel that ongoing education enhances opportunities, provides a good insurance policy against obsolescence, and is one of the most positive ways to increase job security and achieve promotions” (Knable, 2006). 

Boomers are interested in a variety of educational topics. These range from financial planning education and services, ways to earn extra money or to start a small business, home-based business opportunities, or entrepreneurial ventures to name just a few areas.  Seminars, workshops and other face-to-face educational opportunities attract this audience.

2. Boomers Want Business Information

One of the areas of interest for Boomers is information on business start-ups. They want to use their years of experience to generate funds as a source of continued income or to be able to enjoy life with more relaxation.

Fresh ideas on innovative products or service creation are of interest to this market. A smart marketer will be ready to make necessary adjustments to personalize their offerings to Boomers. You can see that this is a distinctive group with its own needs. 

3. Boomers are Health Conscious

Staying intellectually active is necessary for overall boomer health. Reading, learning, and stretching the mind through intellectual pursuits is a way to keep the mind healthy and active. It also helps to prevent or delay the onset of mental deterioration. “A relative increase in the amount of time devoted to intellectual activities from early adulthood (ages 20 to 39) to mid-adulthood (ages 40 to 60) was associated with a significant decrease in the probability of having Alzheimer’s disease later in life” (Friedland, 2006).

 On the other hand, the overall health of the majority of Boomers is not what it should be. Many are overweight, or suffer from social diseases brought on by a bad diet and lack of exercise including diabetes, obesity, hypertension and similar diseases.  As the population ages, more business related to elder care will be desperately needed.

What are Boomers spending their money on these days? The answer could be lenghty but here are five areas where Boomers are spending significant dollars.  Since Boomers are less likely to move into a traditional mode of retirement like the generation before them, they will need products and services that help them continue living a healthy and active life.

Of course, talking about a few areas of need can’t possibly cover everything the Baby Boomer market wants.  But it gives you at least an idea of how this market group thinks:  

1. New Business Support: Boomers want information on money-making ideas. They want to use their lifelong experiences to make income to support their lifestyle, particularly after retiring from their traditional work. Business and entrepreneurial coaching, consulting and programs will go over well in this market.  

2. Financial Information. Boomers spend 57% above the average on retirement programs. They are interested in financial programs and information.  Show them how to make the money they have stretch through good fiscal programs and plans. 

3. Self-Care. Fitness, wellness and nutrition are big interests of Boomers. This group might be growing older in their bodies but not in their minds. The quest for youth will be continual with this market.  

4. Apparel.  On average, Boomers make about 37% of apparel (clothing and accessories) purchases and spend about 40% on household furnishings and equipment. It’s time for them to fix up their homes and to buy those material items that had to wait until this time in life.

5. Leisure. Travel and tourism is also a growing area for Boomers who love to see the world. Boomers that find a way to combine their love for travel and with a way to earn money will be very happy.  Travel and tourism services for this market will be hot for quite a while.   Some start their own travel services, which gives them the opportunity to get away while earning a living.

6. Education. Boomers continue to learn and educate themselves about what is going on around them. They look for online courses, continuing education, special interest courses, degree programs, and general interest classes both online and in the local community. 

These are not the only areas that gain Boomers dollars but this gives you a great glimpse of ossiblities for targeting what you have to offer to Boomers. Boomers going into business will be a trend that lasts for many years.   As the economy begins to rebound, so will Boomer spending so get geared up to reach this market group.

If you want start targeted the Baby Boomer consumer demographic in your marketing efforts and desire to develop a sustained customer base with Baby Boomers, show Boomers that you understand they are a savvy group of potential customers. When you advertise to this market group, show that you know what you are talking about and deliver a message that speaks Boomer language while addressing their interests. 

To market to Boomers means to know them. This group is young at heart and in their minds. They are sharp when it comes to technology (remember that the people who invented and pioneered the new technological concepts are now a part of the Boomer target group).  

Contrary to some popular beliefs, Boomers learn fast, think fast, and expect fast results and they are not afraid of the Internet! 

So What Marketing Message is Needed? 

To reach the Baby Boomer market, approach them with a marketing message that is honest, respectful, and sensitive to their needs.  According to the Focalyst research group, a study showed that “nearly half of the Baby Boom Generation believes there is little truth in advertising and more than 60% wish ads had more real information, suggesting that America’s advertising industry may be missing the mark in targeting the most affluent generation in U.S. History” (Advertisers fail, 2006). 

Give adequate information in your marketing to allow Boomers to make an informed decision on a topic. Review your advertising copy. Does it really give enough information to understand your product or service? Some advertisers want to be clever and end up confusing the consumer instead of making their message clear.  Baby Boomers do business with marketers who give clear, honest, informed messages about their product or service.  

Even large marketing firms make a major mistake when marketing to Boomers. Research found that “more than 70% (of Boomers) are less likely to buy a product if an ad offends them. More than 50% say there is little truth in advertising” (Advertisers fail, 2006). 

Learn to develop marketing messages that shows respect for the  diverse experiences and backgrounds of Baby Boomers.  Use techniquies that reach a market where diversity embraces differences in ethnic, cultural, gender, lifestyle, social, economic, and religious areas. Use language and a message that is sensitive and respectful to Boomer needs and desires in the market.