Boomer Buying: I bought a dishwasher online last night…

Yes, the age of online shopping is here to stay. When a Boomer buys a major appliance online, it’s a big deal. We were raised by the Builder Generation: people who wanted to see it, touch it, smell the new paint, and test it…because they basically didn’t trust it.

Our parents were classically loyal to brand names; we Boomers revel in choice and take a chance on new products. My Dad bought only Fords. At age 85, his last car was a Crown Victoria. Mom raised us on Del Monte canned vegetables because her Mother raised her on them. It wasn’t because variety wasn’t available; it was brand trust and brand loyalty.

This is not news to Boomer marketers. The research is stunningly accurate on what Boomers want because of who we are: spontaneous, confident risk-takers, willing to work hard for things, ideas and values we cherish and admire. Even in our youth, the amount of money Boomers controlled enabled us to open new markets (designer jeans), inflate existing markets (bottled water), and deflate others (non-disposable diapers).

Boomers are a huge audience in an ever-growing online marketplace, and companies out there are watching, listening and responding. So this Boomer-ette was confident in her quest. I knew search-engine marketing would not let me down either.

Okay, I admit it: I bought the machine from Sears, a GenBuilder hang-out. Kenmore, Sear’s own brand, has proven reliable over the years, and I have owned many a Kenmore. But this time, I knew I wanted a Whirlpool Gold: quiet, energy-efficient, and parts are readily available.

Within the span of the DVR-ed movie Husband had settled on for the evening, I had chosen, ordered, scheduled and paid for the machine that will soon grace our kitchen and relieve us of our sadly quiet, kaput Kenmore.

Fortunately, I also had the good sense to call Sears when their website kept spitting at me when I tried to modify one simple (I thought) area of the order. Moral of the story: shop to your heart’s content, but before you enter credit card info on that big-ticket item, call a human on the other end of that screen, just in case.

I might be a spontaneous, confident risk-taker, but I really don’t want to hand-wash that many more dinner dishes. I want to see that new dishwasher…touch it, smell the new paint, and test it…because I basically want to trust that I made the right online choice.

©Di Patterson, MSG, CPG “No one WANTS to age, but EVERYONE wants to AGE WELL!”