When the economy is bad, as now, wise people cut back on non-necessities. But, what is a necessity? Gifts for children at Holiday time may seem to be as necessary as food to some parents. Medicine is a necessity, yet many seniors cut back on their prescriptions and go to Bingo or dancing or out to eat, instead. A necessity is what you call it in your life.

As a marketer helping people do business in bad times, I recommend that you make your business or service into a necessity. How? Focus your advertising and marketing efforts on the target market most likely to identify your goods and servuces as a necessity. Take law as an example. Litigation, matrimonial law and bankruptcy fall into the necessity category; if you are sued you need to defend yourself. Other areas of practice, like estate planning and tax palnning are perceived as optional. So, one way to target the necessity-driven market is to change your specialty.

Now, let’s think flower shop. Decorative bouquets are a luxury to most of us, unless we are getting married or planning a funeral. By marketing to these needs you change an optional budgetary item into a perceived required item. Yes. Wedding planners may be cutting down of flower arrangements, but hardly cutting them out.

So, rethink your products to lead with the ones that spell necessity first, and concentrate your marketing efforts there.

If you, as I always encourage, are sending e-mails, blogging, or creating a newsletter, you may find yourself needing information with little time to research interesting ideas. One solution is to choose a word that relates to your topic and have Google Alert (visit www.googlealert.com) send articles on the topic to you daily, weekly, whatever you can stand. I read all articles on retirement, aging, boomers and marketing, daily. They give a synopsis, so you can cover a lot of ground quickly.

For example, today I found www.ThePatientPartnerProject.org, created by David Balch. I suggest you visit, and if you like it, offer the info to your clients or customers you discover have an ailing relative. I am very keyed into marketing to boomers through their role as caregivers. So many millions are. If you are one, yourself, you know caregivers must report frequently to other members of the family, and it takes time and sometimes it hurts. This site allows a caregiver to set up a broadcast e-mail just for loved ones to report on health conditions, etc of an ailing relative, friend, or employee. If you are an employer and an employee is ill, set one up for co-workers to read with the permission of the employees relative. That’s my business spin on this heartfelt need.

I know, every one is writing about this to get in their two cents. But an eerie thing happened to me that relates to Generation Bold, and I want to relate it to you in all it spookiness.

I am a professional speaker and take courses on training, etc to hone the craft. During one such workshop, attendees were asked to randomly select a piece of paper with the name of a great speaker and recite their lines to the other students. We all wanted to select some one we related to. I was hoping for Joan Rivers, or Totie Fields (who?), or Daisy Duck. In other words, a funny white woman. I got Martin Luther King.

I took the class to craft a speech on longevity. So, I figured this exercise was going to be both unrelated, as well as a disgrace to the name of this great world leader. I wanted to change my pick. Then the instructor said, “Stick with the random selection, it ALWAYS ends up to be the right one.” I was too weak to protest.

Then I looked at the words I was supposed to read. Yes, it was “I have dream…” But did you know the rest of the paragraph? Dr. King goes on to say that “longevity” (the exact word) is fine in its place, but that he had seen the mountain and there are more important things than long life.

Of course, I delivered the speech, shaking and in tears. Nevertheless, everyone was inspired. Then and there I learned that the speaker is important, but the right message overshadows the presenter.

When I present to a live audience, I like to cheer them up old age as a life stage. It seems I am not alone.

For the past several decades social gerontologists have “spinned” old age into a utopian time, when death is welcome, and our main goal is providing a legacy.

I would go into greater detail, but I am shortly do back on planet earth.

Instead, I direct you to,Sabrina Bruyneel at Onderzoekscentrum Marketing KU Leuven, Naamesestraat 69, b-3000 Leuven Belgium, or e-mail her at Sabrina. Bruyneel@econ.kuleuven to learn more about her study of old age. For now, I’ll paraphrase a few ideas, as Rod Serling said in every episode of Twilight Zone, “for your consideration.”

1960s: Cumming and Henry- Disengagement Theory-The old have an inherent tendency to withdraw from society and therefore society should not find a useful place for them (us) as they (we) age.  This leads to diminished engagement in social roles, as well as psychological reduced interest in involvement. It does not, however, result in a diminished capacity to shop at Wal-Mart.

1970s: Kuypers & Bengtson-Social Breakdown Theory-Offering stimulation to the elderly would interfere with their natural deconstruction and increase their dissatisfaction. So, I guess that the high incidence of male suicide after age 74 is a natural outgrowth of old age, or at the very least a good thing for both them and society.

1980s: Tornstam-Gerotranscendence-The flip side of social disengagement. A universal and culture free “shift in meta-perspective from a materialistic and rational view to a more cosmic and transcendent one, normally followed by an increase in life satisfaction.” In other words, no more trips to Wal-Mart, but you are happy. This satisfaction is also accompanied by feelings of cosmic communion with the spirit of the universe a redefinition of time space and objects, and a wild urge to have an affair with a Reiki master.

2001: Jonson & Magnusson-Sufi Explanation-Spiritual ways of thinking, not aging per se, are reasons people accept death, and are not ego centered. So, go to Wal-Mart, but don’t buy much.

2008:  Bruyneel and Marcoen and Soenens-Gerotransendence Scale-The mathematicians measure factors to determine the validity of Gerotranscendence. They conclude that more research is necessary, and take off for Nieman Marcus.