Canadian Baby Boomers Testing the Waters of New Technology

Increasingly connected, Canada's Baby Boomers are finding their footing in the digital age. According to a recent issue of the Ipsos Canadian Inter@ctive Trends Report, Canadian Boomers (89%) rival younger Canadians (99%) in their levels of Internet access and are slowly beginning to take up new media and devices.

Boomers are beginning to make up ground in adopting emergent technology, but there is a definite lag behind younger Canadians. The study, which delved into the Internet and technology-related behaviours and attitudes of Canadians aged 46 to 65 (those born in 1947 - 1966), found that online Baby Boomers have not yet embraced smartphones (29%) and the constant connectedness they provide to the same degree as that of younger Canadians (49%).

While it's clear that Canada's Baby Boomer generation is not taking to new media and technologies at the same rate or with the same commitment as the younger generation of Digital Natives, we are seeing online Boomers becoming more comfortable as their adoption of new devices is trending upwards. Smartphone ownership among online Boomers has increased 11 percentage points since 2011 (was 18%), and they are now just as likely to own a tablet as younger Canadians (16% vs. 18%).

Online Baby Boomers are not necessarily replacing familiar traditional technology, but they are certainly starting to supplement it by incorporating new channels and devices into the mix. So while television still rules the roost with 86% of online Boomers turning to TV for video consumption, including shows, movies, sports, news, etc., a surprising four-in-ten (43%) report that they watch video content via a computer on a weekly basis.

Boomers are connected, but you have to know where to find them. They are slowly starting to embrace new innovations although they trail significantly behind early adopting younger Canadians. Advertisers and retailers can reach Baby Boomers through digital campaigns but they shouldn't expect it to resonate to the same degree as with the younger generation. For now traditional media channels continue to play a key role for this segment.

The preceeding is based on the findings of an Ipsos syndicated study, The Ipsos Canadian Inter@ctive Trends Report, fielded August 3rd to 9th, 2012 and released in 2012 - Issue 4. This online survey of 814 Canadian adults was conducted via the Ipsos Online Panel. The results are based on a sample where quota sampling and weighting are employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to Census data. Quota samples with weighting from the Ipsos online panel provide results that are intended to approximate a probability sample. An unweighted probability sample of this size, with a 100% response rate, would have an estimated margin of error of +/- 3.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

For more information on the Ipsos Canadian Inter@ctive Trends Report, please visit the product page of the Canadian Inter@ctive Trends Report.