i3 - May/June 2019 - 47

By Coleen Sterns Leith

Business

CT R E P O RTS

Active Aging Perceptions and Attitudes

Westend61/Getty Images

t's no surprise that virtually all seniors want to
live independently and
stay home as they age, a key finding in CTA's 2019 Active Aging:
Consumer Perceptions and
Attitudes study, commissioned
by the CTA Foundation.
Caretakers and seniors agree
that technology will help them
do just that.

As people seek to stay active, healthy and
independent as they age, this presents
some unique opportunities for tech companies, app developers and retailers.
Active aging supported by technology is
the key to finding and maintaining quality of life for many seniors.
In the U.S., the active aging forecast is
expected to triple in just three years to
nearly $30 trillion. Health and remote
care are going to lead the initiative while
wellness and fitness technologies for
seniors are expected to reach some
$900 million by 2022.
Some of the key findings from this
study include that seniors view active
aging technology as a way to live more
independently but cost and concern
over learning new technologies could
be barriers to adoption. Caretakers are
less concerned than seniors over those
issues and caretakers, especially
younger ones, can be effective advocates for using technology. Both caretakers and seniors show high levels of
concern over potential emergencies
and in a role reversal, the caretakers
are more concerned than seniors over
every day safe living.
Over two-thirds of both seniors and
caretakers have concerns about privacy
with health monitoring devices for
seniors. With the plethora of news
regarding cybersecurity breaches and
how they effect nearly everyone, it's
easy to understand this fear.
C TA . t e c h / i 3

Health care
providers are by far
the most trusted
source for seniors
and caretakers to
adopt a new
technology.

Recommendations Matter

Another interesting development found by
the research is that health care providers
are by far the most trusted source for
seniors and caretakers to adopt a new technology. It's going to be important to market
to health care providers to get products and
services to the intended users.
As consumer technology products
continue to evolve and be adopted by
more consumers, products for seniors
will become more available, trusted
and recommended. The biggest challenges to the adoption of active aging
products are related to product management and daily usage.
To reach the senior market, consider
these survey recommendations when
developing and marketing your active
aging products and services:
● Recommendations from doctors and
health care providers are the most
effective way to bridge the gap for those
concerned with privacy in tech products that collect health data.
● Be sure to have strong tech support
available for any product or service to
ensure its correctly installed, and the
senior/caretaker can use the new
technology.
● Build trust with seniors, caregivers and
tech providers by using installation and

management services to ease concerns
over implementing new technology.
● Eighty percent of seniors own a smartphone. It's an essential tool for independent living. Make sure your product or
service has an easy-to-use app that both
seniors and caretakers can use.
● Caretakers need to know that the
tech products they use for seniors will
keep them safe and well. Reassure them
in your marketing and outreach.
● Use testimonials, case studies and
referral programs to allow seniors to
see and hear from others who have
used the product successfully.
● Managing day-to-day care is as
critical as solutions for emergencies. This
is an important topic for most caretakers.
● About one third of caretakers own a
smart speaker. Digital assistants with
voice control will play a greater role in
active aging. Use this tech in your
product if you can.
Note this survey is an online panel of
seniors. Thus some of the data such as
technology ownership is amplified
because this sample is already comfortable with technology. This report is free
for CTA members.
Coleen Sterns Leith is the founder and
president of Marketing Matters.
MAY/JUNE 2019

https://CTA.tech/i3

i3 - May/June 2019

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