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Who We Are
We take pride in having
advanced to this age. We are women over fifty years old. Senior,
in this case, means we have graduated from one life stage to another.
Our interests are varied, our tastes eclectic, our need for information
unending.
We don't deny it; We
want to make the most of it; We want to share this age with you.
The site is meant for women
over 50, but we've had communications with women as young as 36 and
those well into their eighth decade who find this site a home and, simultaneously,
a departure location.
We've fashioned this site in an attempt to reflect women's issues
and concerns. We also hope it reflects those two most compelling
relationships, that of community and connectivity.
We have been introducing authors, articles and columns that we
hope will engage and stimulate. Taking the title Senior Women
Web and the URL Seniorwomen.com for this site is a mark of pride
and celebration. Many women over fifty have found new challenges
and problems in a society somewhat uncomfortable with its aging
population.
Senior Women Web enjoys the contributions of women who bring original
content to this site. We have a monthly Culture Watch feature with reviewers Julia Sneden and our charter reviewer and colleague, Emily
Mitchell. Emily is now acting off and off-off Broadway, living
the life she was reviewing. Angela Pressburger is reviewing DVDS as they reach the consumer market and more of us stay home to view our entertainment. Art reviewer Val Castronovo has taken us to art shows we cannot reach but yearn to see through her writing. We think you will enjoy the reviews
of books that will appeal particularly to women (and men) of our
age.
Our Resident Observer, Julia Sneden, a transplanted Californian
these past three decades, living and working in North Carolina,
has been producing columns for this site faster than we can put
them up. Please consult the
authors page for a list of contributors whose humor (Rose
Mula, Roberta McReynolds, Liz Flaherty, Pat Beurteaux, Martha Powers, Pam Stone, Rima Magee, Ferida Wolff and the late David Westheimer), experience
and expertise enrich this site.
Feminist author and political scientist Jo Freeman regularly contributes articles on political trends, personalities, meetings and conventions.
Irish Expatriot Jane Shortall entertains with tales from her newly adopted French village. Linda Coyner has won
two Garden Writer's Association Garden Globe Awards for her SeniorWomen.com
column, Garden Edition. Margaret Cullison has been writing a series called My Mother's Cookbook and Sharon Kapnick, a sommelier and award winning wine author, is delighting and instructing us in the art of choosing wines. Gabriella
True has contributed a column on
food for the site, Culinary Discovery. Joan James Rapp has traveled to Africa on safari and promises more of her advice and adventures on the road. Jean Harris is writing an ongoing memoir and we have added to our collection of the late Naomi Cavalier's essays.
Besides these contributors, the site is responsible for bringing you connections with current studies, interviews, excerpts and other news items of interest. We also strive to bring you a window into the eclectic mix the Web provides.
I have retired from my position as a Senior Reporter for Time
Magazine (after a twenty-five year career), in part because
this website became increasingly important. We expect a lengthy tenure with Senior Women Web and with those who
enjoy and support it.
A recent Nielsen study revealed some entrenched myths about the 45-64 population (and, in all probability, beyond):
Myth: Younger consumers are a more lucrative target market for marketers in comparison to younger generations – where marketers and advertisers usually focus the
majority of their budgets – Life Jugglers and Life Surfers have higher average personal and
household incomes and are spending more on almost everything, from phones and mobiles
to groceries, financial services, travel and tourism and even technology and the Internet.
Myth: Life Jugglers and Life Surfers are brand loyal and won’t try new products and
services.
While the traditional Baby Boomer demographic has been pigeon-holed by marketers and
advertisers as brand loyal and unwilling to change, the reality is that Life Jugglers and Life
Surfers are just as likely to switch brands as any other demographic. These switching
intentions are driven by their values and are reflected in their preference for Australian made
products, their support for the ‘little guy’, their purchase of organic in their quest to maintain health and vitality and their willingness to save on ‘commodities’ and low involvement
purchases in order to spend more on the things that are important to them, such as
experiences.
Myth: Life Jugglers and Life Surfers are resistant to new technologies.
When it comes to technology and the Internet, Life Jugglers and Life Surfers are actually
driving the continued increase in online trial, with up to 13 percent logging on for the first time
in the past 12 months. More than two in every three Life Jugglers and Life Surfers are now
online and they are just as likely to have broadband access at home as any other age group,
and almost as likely to access the Internet regularly. Home PC ownership is higher among
Life Jugglers and Life Surfers compared to those aged under 45, while laptop ownership is
on the increase.
“The 45 to 64 year old population has long been a misunderstood and poorly portrayed
demographic,” noted Andrew Reid, Managing Director, Nielsen//NetRatings. “The reality is that this market is adventurous and is looking for
new challenges and ways to improve their lives. They’ve built a set of values over the course
of their life experiences and feel liberated to express these values through their purchasing
behaviour and lifestyle decisions.”
A Business Week article declared that "As a group, people age 50 to 60 are flush, with more than $1 trillion of spending power a year, about double the spending power of today's 60-to-70-year-olds. They're likely to be vigorous consumers as they empty the nest, take on new jobs, relocate, support children they had in their 40s, go back to school, start a second or third career, remarry, inherit money from their savings-minded parents, pursue new hobbies, and tackle the health issues of aging. ' "Marketers are slowly waking up," says Matt Thornhill, president of the Boomer Project, a Richmond (Va.) consulting firm. "If you're going to expand your business, you will have to market to the aging boomer." '
The National Association of Home Builders reports that "Active Adult Communities" designed for buyers age 55 and older represent the fastest-growing segment of the homebuilding industry. See our new house blog.
SeniorWomenWeb hopes
to continue adding readers who care for our purpose and content.
If you are interested in advertising or sponsoring a page on SeniorWomenWeb, please read the Sponsors page or call 510-524-1510
Tam
Gray, Founder and CEO
Color Tints by Rampline
Information Collection
and Use:
Please note that SeniorWomenWeb
is the sole owner of any information that might be collected on
this site. We will not sell, share, or rent this information to
others in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement.
This web site contains
links to other sites. Please be aware that SeniorWomenWeb is not
responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage
our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy
statements of each and every web site that collects personally identifiable
information.
We don't participate in link exchanges with other sites as a matter of course. We do add links as we feel them appropriate or of interest to our audience.
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