I’ve been afraid you wouldn’t like it that makes sense because you are my readers. Do I know if you’ll like it, of course I don’t? I know that it makes it easier for you to leave comments and for us to communicate. Isn’t that the way it should be?

I think I’m experiencing what many of you have experienced; it’s working, why should I change it? Things need to be fresh and new; would you continue to read a magazine if the cover never changed? Of course you wouldn’t but I’ve not changed my cover in years.  Like the rest of the world I like to be comfortable but being comfortable can keep you from being successful.

Successful people are always uncomfortable, learning new things and taking risks. Today’s risk can be tomorrow’s success but you will never know unless you try.

The way to keep young is to embrace change and the newness that the world has to offer. will keep you from being successful.

Embrace new technology (in my case more video) and say you love it. You know you can talk yourself into it? I often hear people say, I’m just not comfortable with it; when I get comfortable I’ll do it. With the way the world is changing, you may not have time to get comfortable you may just have to do it. Nike is still right!

I need to find better ways to connect with you; I’m going to try new things for my blog. I’m going to get out more and take photos and video of the world. I have to trips planned to watch customers in the act of shopping and buying. A not very undercover spy!

The path to change does not have to be alone. There are so many talented people who can help you through the change—and you know it’s more fun with others. I recently brought a group of friends to talk about how we might help each other to get more business. Everyone sees it different and embracing our differences is what makes the world go round.

So look for more changes, a new web look, new products, tips, newsletters and whatever else you want. I get emails from many of you weekly asking for new ideas. Even stuff that works gets boring. I’ve heard the expression, you could die of boredom; I don’t know what that would be like but we’ll have none of that. What about your ideas? Share what’s making your day, share what you’ve discovered and what has given you that Ahha moment. Got a great idea, let me know and let’s work it into a blog.

I love this quote from Harrison Ford: We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. 

How come subscribing is so much easier than unsubscribing? Isn’t customer service giving the customer what they want? Maybe companies don’t check out their own policies or take their own suggestions.

When I get done unsubscribing I really hate them for putting me through all the nonsense.

My friend told me of his experience with Kmart and Sears; I think it’s a good lesson on “unsubscribing warfare.” We pick up the conversation as it gets juicy (my comments in italics).

Dear Mr. Valued Customer, (names have been altered to protect K-mart!) Thank you for contacting kmart.com. (Hmn, I wonder if its so?)

We apologize for the inconvenience of receiving unwanted emails. Please send your full address and we will remove you from the email and call list. (Simple enough, like he hadn’t sent it at least 4 times before?)

We do appreciate your business but understand this frustration. Please have a great week.

> Gloria B.>> >>>
Kmart Customer Care
help@customerservice.kmart.com
1-866-KMART-4U (1-866-562-7848)

My friend’s response:

>>
>
> >Original Message Follows: ————————
>When I insert my email address as you describe, your system will not recognize my address (even though it continues to send emails to that address) so I cannot get your system to forward to me my unknown password.

Are you starting to get a picture….there appears to be no way for ME to end this.

I never signed up for your emails (I didn’t even shop at Kmart & now most certainly won’t).

I don’t know my password to stop them, & apparently, even if I did know the password, your system wouldn’t recognize my email & password, allowing me to stop them. I didn’t ask for this,

I didn’t create this, I don’t want this, I can’t stop this; Kmart created this… (K-mart gone wild! I don’t think its girls gone wild.)

Kmart needs to stop this.

From Kmart:

Original Message —–
From: Kmart Help
To: Valued Customer
Sent: Tuesday, February 17, 2009 10:30 AM
Subject: Re: Unsolicited emails (KMM3172974I15977L0KM)
> Dear Customer,Thank you for contacting Kmart.com. (You think?)

We are sorry to hear that you would like to unsubscribe from our marketing list.

To stop receiving e-mail promotions from us please visit our site and click on the “My Profile” link located in the top left of the website. You will then need to follow the steps listed below:

1. Enter your e-mail address and password. 2. Click on “My Information” link located on the left. 3. Scroll down and select “I would like to receive special offers, updates and sale alerts.” under “E-mail Specials” located near the bottom of the page. Make sure the checkmark is removed from the box. 4. Save and return to Overview. Once these steps have been completed your e-mail address will be removed from our mailing list within a few business days. We thank you for your patience. We appreciate your business and again, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you.

Look for great bargains throughout the store and find Kmart exclusive brands like Martha Stewart Everyday, Thalia Sodi, (Thalia who?) Joe Boxer, Route 66 and Jaclyn Smith.

(Hey, good salesmanship; never miss the opportunity to resell the customer.)

Kmart Customer Care
help@customerservice.kmart.com
1-866-KMART-4U (1-866-562-7848)

From my friend:

>
>Original Message Follows: ————————
>That’s ridiculous. If I have a password I don’t know how I got it or what it is.

On EVERY email you send me I go to “unsubscribe” & do so yet the emails continue to roll in. Why doesn’t that stop the emails?

PLEASE REPLY TO THIS QUESTION! Call or send my password to XXX, It’s obvious my initial email wasn’t completely read as there’s no way I’ll be looking at any “great Bargains” or brand names at Kmart. (No crap)

From Kmart:

—– Original Message —–
From: Kmart Help
To: XXX
Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 11:46 AM
Subject: Re: Unsolicited emails (KMM3157376I15977L0KM)
Dear XXX

Thank you for contacting kmart.com.

We appreciate your recent correspondence. We welcomed the opportunity to email you our many in-store and online specials. (OMG)

We are sorry to hear that you would like to unsubscribe from our marketing list. To stop receiving e-mail promotions from us please visit our site and click on the “My Profile” link located in the top left of the website. You will then need to follow the steps listed below:

1. Enter your e-mail address and password.
2. Click on “My Information” link located on the left.
3. Scroll down and select “I would like to receive special offers, updates and sale alerts.” under “E-mail Specials” located near the bottom of the page. Make sure the checkmark is removed from the box.
4. Save and return to Overview.
Once these steps have been completed your e-mail address will be removed from our mailing list within a few business days. We thank you for your patience. We appreciate your business and again, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you.

Look for great bargains throughout the store and find Kmart exclusive brands like Martha Stewart Everyday, Thalia Sodi, (Thalia who?) Joe Boxer, Route 66 and Jaclyn Smith.

Angie D.
Kmart Customer Care
help@customerservice.kmart.com
1-866-KMART-4U (1-866-562-7848)

Ok, so, if the customer doesn’t get it the first time, send them the same message under another name. And don’t forget to try and sell them….again!

So my friend responds:

Original Message Follows: ————————
 I want a person in a position of authority to call me at XXX (And who might that be?)I have currently been “unsubscribing” to your unsolicited emails for several weeks each time I receive one. In addition, I’ve emailed this address & requested to be removed from your email list a minimum of two times. I have already resolved NEVER to make another purchase from Kmart, Sears or any associated stores.

I will now start a verbal & electronic campaign with everyone I know to boycott your stores. Upon receiving the next email from Kmart I will locate the proper governing body & complain to the government of your harassment. (Now it’s gone global, maybe it’s the wrong country?)

Apparently Kmart is so inept your E system doesn’t automatically delete my email automatically with my request & the personnel either are overworked, incompetent or uninterested.

Go for it XX!

I believe XX is currently alive and well after receiving a call from the President of Kmart who personally unsubscribed XX!

Please feel free to forward this off to anyone having a problem unsubscribing or needs a good laugh!

There was an interesting article in the New York Times about Miley Cyrus. (What We Talk About When We Talk About Miley, July 11, 2010). According to E-Poll Market Research, Miley’s appeal to her core group of customers, ages 13-17, has dropped from 45% to 24%. It seems that Miley is beginning a new chapter in her life. A seemingly nude photo of her with a short drape wrapped around her chest in Vanity Fair, a whirl around the stripper pole wearing bird wings and black ribbon corset now defines the new phenomenon known as Hannah Montana. The fans are mortified and leaving her for Selena Gomez and other role models more to their liking. They’re embarrassed.

Maybe this isn’t a bad move but the transition might have been a little smoother. The fans that Miley’s after may also have trouble viewing the new, all grown up 17 year old. Apparently Miley was seen in a video post on MTV giving a lap dance to a 44 year old director! The 17 year old isn’t legal to get into a bar to perform. The fans that built her business are leaving her in boat loads; can she replace them that fast? Could she have kept them, grown up with them?
Is she afraid she will get stale? Did someone tell her she needed to grow up; it wasn’t her customers.
Are you afraid your business is getting stale? If you’re having an ongoing dialog with them they will tell you what you need to do to stay on track. It seems that Sam’s Club, a division of Wal-Mart, has been surveying their customers to figure out how they might help them. Many of their customers are small businesses who, according to a survey by the National Federation of Independent Businesses, have had trouble getting business loans. In fact only half were able to borrow last year compared to 90% in the mid 2000s.

In order to do this Sam’s Club must assess if the firms were rejected due to the overall caution of banks or due to their weak balance sheets and cash flow. Maybe the companies are not credit worthy.

There are several powerful incentives to spur Sam’s on. Companies with access to capital are more likely to buy products and service from Sam’s Club so the money carries very little risk. Again, finding what your customers need will help you evaluate your customer service.

Do you know what your customers need? Have you changed accordingly? Toys R Us are pushing their customers to ‘save with them’ for Christmas by offering 3% interest if they open a Christmas savings club with them. Like the old fashion Christmas Clubs of the past they are trying to make sure their customers have money to spend. Target is giving customers 5% off on all their purchases if they use the Target credit card.

Consider redefining your customer service with your customer’s help. What about your small business customers? What are you doing to help them stay in business?

Maybe Wal-Mart is redefining customer service?

How many times have you felt your customer was interference and how much better your day would be if customers just weren’t around? By the way, you’re not the only one who thinks this way. Plenty of small business owners get burnt out and begin to dislike their customers. If you’re going to run a successful business you will have to find a way to get your customers to yell this place is Red Hot!

Here are some simple tips to get your customers pumped up and ready to do business with you again. These positive responses will make you feel better and impact your bottom line.

Promise and deliver

Too many businesses are reluctant to commit to anything and customers walk away with a nagging feeling that nothing good is going to come from this transaction. Check out your business, what “promisables” can you highlight in your marketing and sales stuff? How many things can you turn into ‘over promise and over, over deliver?’ Forget the under promise and over deliver. If you can’t do it better than right, don’t do it.

Or, consider becoming Tony the Tiger.

For 54 years on the back of the Frosted Flakes Box, he growled, Grrrrrrrrrrrrrreat. He's excited and smiling and he made you feel great. Are your staff feeling Grrrrrrrrrrrrrreat? Are they filled with enthusiasm, excited and happy?

The only impression is the first impression. Is everyone modern, clean, fresh looking or worn and tired out? Are your customers saying Red Hot for all the wrong reasons?
Step up to the plate You are the problem solver, step up and do the job. Everyone says they give great customer service until there’s a problem. No one wants to hear the complaint or deal with the unhappy customer. This is when the customer service starts. Fix problems quick and efficiently.

Become the customer’s good friend. When a business owner recognizes me, I’m putty. The more time they give me and show me they care the more I want to buy. Turn strangers into friends.

Give a ton of value for the money. Go for medium price and great quality, this will always create Red Hot.

Call them, call them and call them. Don’t call just because there’s a problem, call when everything is great and rejoice with your customers.

Make your list of ‘promisables’ and teach everyone to deliver the best.

Resources:

Red Hot Customer Service: 35 Sizzling Ways to Heat Up Your Business and Ignite Your Sales

According to a recent survey of execs from 100 companies of varying sizes, 78% of respondents said their companies were using social media — but just 41% said they had a strategic plan. Four out of ten active Facebook users say the site is a good way to get information about companies and products. It seems like every business is on Facebook except your business. Does this help you know what they’re doing?

It's alarming but not terribly surprising that half the companies using social media are basically flying without a parachute. This is not where you want to be in the new land of ‘transparency.’

We’ve seen it all or at least most of it. Someone can Google your name, take an aerial photo of your home or find out your social medial standings by downloading Xobni. Xobni is an Outlook plug-in that helps you search, organize your inbox and categorize your emails. It’s pretty amazing and pretty intrusive. Customers have access to complaints.com, ripoffreport.com and pissedoffconsumer.com to name a couple; all these sites are set up to let consumers vent.

As a person you can be as private as you like, as a business it’s more challenging. Prior to the Internet, consumers had no place to go other then the Better Business Bureau, who was kind enough to call you and let you know you had a complaint. If you’re really a celebrity or have annoyed enough people the complaint will be Twittered away and you may be the last to know. Let’s face it, the consumers are in charge and the best thing you can do is manage your online presence. Remember the story about your sister?

• Rule number one, shut up and listen. Don’t make any excuses even if you’re right. Customers aren’t always right but if you want to keep them, you will have to make them right. Sometimes if the comment is online a happy customer will come to your defense. Don’t wait too long; you will have to take it on.
• Become a super-sleuth and investigate your business. Know what consumers are saying about your business and where they’re saying it. Make a point to regularly monitor comments about your business. This includes Facebook and other social media haunts. This is one of the reasons you need a Facebook page. According to Trendwatching.com, Facebook is nearing 500 million users. The average user has 130 friends, spends 55 minutes a day on the site and receives three ‘event invitations’ to real-life gatherings every month. Foursquare allows users to explore their neighborhoods and get rewarded for doing so. This also means an unhappy customer can immediately trash your business.
• Handle the problem immediately. By failing to respond immediately to a serious problem you lose all control of the story. You have got to fill the vacuum of ‘what happened’ before the press or your customers do. Remember the Tiger Woods nonsense.
• Get your happy customers to sing your praises online. Before it hits the fan, and maybe it never will, collect testimonials, videos of ecstatic customers or audio interviews of delighted customers. Upload these to your blog, Facebook or have them plug you on Twitter.
• Have good content on your blog. Good content and useful information on your blog will help connect you to your customers. Someone with great information can’t be all bad.
• Monitor your employee behavior on line. The NFL and colleges monitor their athletes' Facebook pages. Set some employee guidelines for online behavior. Anything you post on Facebook can and will be used against you in a court of law.

Where did I hear that before?

GHENT, NY — In the wake of the unexpected passing of its founder, FABULOUS FLOORS Magazine, the first consumer publication devoted to floor décor, will continue publishing its quarterly issues.

“We will finish the Summer issue which Publisher Sonna Calandrino had begun prior to her death in late May, although we have had to push back production, printing and distribution some two to three weeks,” said Acting Publisher Richard Howland.

“Right now, our advertisers have indicated they will continue to support the title. For the Summer issue, a few last-minute advertisers have taken advantage of the timing to come aboard,” Howland added.

Looking ahead, Peachtree Communications, Inc., parent company of FABULOUS FLOORS, is planning its annual Fall design issue with bonus distribution to the American Society of Interior Designers as a memorial to the late publisher, largely at the request of advertisers and industry partners.

Peachtree Communications, Inc. which specializes in consulting, advertising, merchandising, PR and web content for the flooring industry, also was founded by Sonna Calandrino and will continue under the direction of her partner and executive vice president Richard Howland.

From the day they’re born, some people are just special. That describes my sister Sonna. She was beautiful at birth and as she grew she became more feminine; unlike me who always wore pants she wore dresses. When she was four she asked my mom for a pair of patent leather sandals, a new standard from the tie shoes that I was wearing. This was the start of the dress designer, fashionista called Sonna.

Of course as a 6 year old I didn’t want a sister, I seriously wanted a horse. Of course I never got a horse but I got something even better. I got a sister, a mentor, a business partner, a best friend someone to laugh with and a shoulder to cry on. My mother said I could name her which made me proud, since I was only six years old. I loved our next door neighbor Sonna Lee Berch so Sonna Lee it was.

She was the prankster, terrorizing me by hiding in the closet at night and jumping out as soon as I entered the dark room.

 There were things we shared, our love for gardening, water skiing, color style, make up and just walking and talking. We were so alike and so different; in 1985 we both went shopping on the same day, in different cities and came back with the same outfit.
She was my business partner for 14 years and we were inseparable.—through thick and thin we were together. We fought, we laughed we cried, it didn’t matter as long as we did it together.

We shared an interesting ritual, she sent me sister cards and I bought her an amethyst piece of jewelry for her birthdays. Her birthday was February 15th, the day after Valentine’s Day. I gave her rings, bracelets, purple flowers, anything purple. The last birthday was in 2008 and I went to the hospital with purple earrings. She was so terribly sick, hardly recognizable but she said, I’m so glad you brought me something purple, I was afraid you would forget. Please put them on for me.

Today I went through the cards and letters and found the sister book. In essence it said, thank you for the years and what you’ve given me. Protecting and looking out for me, I will always be there for you no matter what. There was my birthday card and a note, that said, “Sis, I made it through another year."

Through her illness she distanced herself from many who loved her including me. Having had cancer I remember needing distance, time to focus on trying to live and not wanting to be asked, are you sure you’re all right? I wanted to be there for her and protect her from the horrible illness that was taking her strength and her beauty but I never got to do my job. It makes me sad but her husband Rick was with her. Reading through her cards and letters makes me still feel close, maybe not part of her life, but certainly part of her soul. My mom used to laugh with us, she couldn’t distinguish our voices on the telephone which gave Sonna and I another bag of tricks. I will remember the tricks, the water skiing and the knowing that she is no longer in pain. I will go visit her grave, talk with her and leave her with her favorite purple gladiolus or grandmas peonies which we both loved. I missed her birthday this year.

Prepare yourself, for those of you that don’t know what I’m talking about. The present fad, as of this blog, is Silly Bandz. Silly Bandz are rubber bands shaped like animals, dinosaurs, sports, princesses, and lots more. They come in a pack and can be found in various stores ranging from $2.99 to $5.00.

Manufacturers and shop owners are having trouble keeping up with the craze that is spreading like wild fire. There are lots to choose from– animals and pirates to roses and water creatures — playgrounds are turning into swap meets. Makers are constantly thinking up new shapes and colors to keep the interest high. I went on EBay to look at the latest styles and was amazed to find Silly Bandz in New York Yankee shapes.

What makes this so crazy and awesome is the simplicity of the business. It’s just colored rubber bands in all kinds of shapes.

What’s this mean to you and me?

Why do we make everything so complex? Sometimes simple is better and simple can make you money. I invite you to think about what you’re making complex that’s really simple? Sometimes simple ideas can ignite a fire faster and longer than you can imagine.

Is there something that’s really simple that you’ve made complex? Maybe simple is simple! The wheel has already been invented.

You don’t need a million dollars to create something, you just need to have an idea and go with it. After a few drinks a friend of mine shared a secret she had been carrying for years. I thought maybe it was a story about the one that got away—not the fish kind, but an unrequited love. No, it turned out to be a drawing of an appliance, a drawing of a side-by-side refrigerator. See this, she said, as she pulled out a crumpled piece of paper that was barely legible. I invented this years and years ago but never had enough guts to get a prototype built. Why do you carry it I asked? It’s to remind myself that life is short and getting shorter.

What’s that mean to you? When you’re thinking about starting a business, don’t make it so damn complex. Instead of telling yourself it might be a bad idea, tell yourself it might be a good idea. Sometimes simple ideas can ignite a fire faster and longer than you could ever imagine. As humans we tend to over think things. Sometimes simple is simple. Find ways to relax so you can dream up some new ideas. My favorite site by the way is Serenity Pathways by my friend Bonnie Snyder.

What else can we learn from Silly Bandz? It started as a fad and now everyone is crazy for them including the 20 year old with 4 on her wrist.

Create something catchy, get a new fad going. If nothing else, go buy a bunch of Silly Bandz and advertise on your web site that for every $1000.00 spent the buyer will get a bag of Silly Bandz. The quicker you get on it the more likely you are to catch the first round of customers. If your customers have kids, after seeing your offer, the kids will drive their parents to your store.

Watch the trends, be on the cutting edge, blog about it. Your customers expect you to be smart, why disappoint them? I just ordered 200 for my next seminar; I don’t want to be left behind! 

Why does Randy work so hard in the community, especially when business is so challenging? 

"I’ve always been a team player," says Randy. "I believe in my community and in bringing events that benefit all of us. With the world changing so quickly it’s important to stay with and ahead of the trends. Customers are the lifeblood of all of our companies and they deserve the best of what we have to offer."

Business is better, but business is different. The new home market is quiet, remodeling is picking up and residential customers are shopping. Things should be all good, right? Well there are some other things. These other things are called social media; specifically Facebook.
If you need to find information on a carriage, do you Google or Facebook? It seems that Facebook is starting to rival Google for information. Consider that you’re looking for information on a baby carriage. If you put baby carriage in Google you will get over 3 million citations. When you get all done, will you know what type of baby carriage you need; will you trust what you read? Let’s put “I need a baby carriage” and "what should I buy"  in your Facebook search and what will come up? Probably answers from 15 friends on what they’ve bought and what works. You can’t buy these referrals.

How important are referrals? They are the lifeblood of any business. By the time a business is 5 years old, 85% of their new customers will come from referrals. Every business needs to find a place for customers to share their experiences. Apparently recommendations from friends on Facebook are rivaling the Google search. Is carrying more weight than the Google search. It makes sense to me; I would rather hear what my friend has to say about the baby carriage than all the citations from Google. It’s personal and my friends have no vested interest in what I purchase.

It’s obvious what this means. You had better get up to speed if you’re looking for customers. Customers posting to your “like" (or fan) page will be providing information to “possible customers.” Think of how this can snowball and provide you with new customers.
We talk about word of mouth, with Facebook and Twitter you have the advantage of listening to conversations. You also have the opportunity to influence conversations with customer testimonials.

This brings me back to these meetings in Orlando. One of the big topics was social media, why it’s important and how it fits. Barbara Abramson, one of the group members,   not only knows how to use social media, I think she’s one of the most “in the know” flooring people I’ve met. Barbara and her husband Ira own Sanford Carpet, which they took over from Ira’s parents. Barbara has brought innovation and energy to the sales floor while Ira handles the installation. During our meeting Barbara was helping make videos, taking photos, tweeting and celebrating her birthday on Facebook. For the next meeting Barbara agreed to get everyone up to speed in social media if they wanted to meet again. Another outcome of the meeting was the development of the Central Florida Color Center Leadership Council. Despite the time necessary to effectively run their own businesses here is a group that’s devoted to each other’s success. They don’t see themselves as competitors, they see themselves as partners.

The next meeting is set and Barbara is going to get everyone up to speed in social media. This is serious folks, everyone has to bring their laptops and their Facebook and Twitter accounts and be ready to work.

So what was the theme from Sunday's show? Basically, if your customers aren’t with you, you're going to be out of business. I have never forgotten what my father said: Find a customer, get them a product and you’re in business. If you think about your customer first you will get the right products. My business experience leads me to believe that businesses get stuck on their products and try to get their customers to buy them. And then if the customers don’t then it's “their fault”. In actuality if customers don’t buy there’s more than enough blame to go around.

In 2006, the Web changed from published content to user-generated content. With Web 1.0 in 1996, few Web sites published content for 45 million global users; user generated content was barely on the radar. This was the era of what was known as push advertising; businesses put it out there for everyone to see. 10 years later, a shift happened, the Web moved from 1.0 to 2.0, to what I call the ‘conversation.’ Think of 1.0 as one way publishing and 2.0 as including the customer in the equation. In 1996 there were 45 million global users and in 2006 there were one billion plus global users.

What are you doing in your business to accommodate this change of how customers are using and creating information? Have you moved your business to the era of the Social Media Revolution?

Whether you can make this change will provide the answers for the health of your business. Most businesses have been relying on their primary customer — the Boomer — for their business health. The boomers have been marketed to death and the hardest hit over the past two years. As a nation, businesses have lived off the baby boomers, the richest and most privileged generation of the world. Armed with plenty of cash, credit cards, pensions and insatiable appetite for “everything money could buy” , this 78 million strong generation made our economy. In 2000 things changed, tight markets, less money, collapse of banks, automobile dealers and you name it, the American dream was looking dismal for the group who had everything. All of a sudden priorities began to change.
If a business had been paying attention, they would have realized that because of the age of the baby boomer, we were due for an economic slowdown!

If you intend to thrive or survive, your business will have to be acclimated to what this group is now doing. What will they be thinking about? As this age group begins to look at the “winter” of their lives, many will be preoccupied with their health and trying to stay physically fit. Whether they spend money on grandchildren, traveling or vacations will depend on how they have fared through this recession. If you are planning on making money or selling your business over the next 10 years, it will only be valuable if it has customers. Are you investing in recruiting the next generation of customers for your business? If your business is all about ‘stuff’, do you have the right stuff?

How will you communicate with this group? This group may have been slow starters when it comes to technology but don’t discount them online. Sixty nine percent of Boomers do online banking, research, book their vacations and travel online. Boomers are the fastest-growing age segment on social networking sites such as Facebook and many log in at least once a day. How did they get there, by younger family members? In 2007, the percentage of Boomers consumer social media was 46% for younger Boomers (ages 43 to 52) and 39% for older Boomers (ages 53 to 63). By 2008, those numbers increased to 67% and 62%, respectively.

Click here to listen to the show:

Red Hot Customer Service – "Social Media" – April 4, 2010

Next post: Getting to generation X and Y.

Links:

• Baby Boomers
• Baby Boomers, Generations X & Y
• How to Reach Baby Boomers with Social Media