Following my post on types of Social Networking sites, I saw a NYT article about sites targeting older people. Two days after that, Techrunch posted an article about massive layoffs at Eons, one of the Baby Boomer sites mentioned in the NYT article. Eons was trying to preserve some of the $32m they've raised.
I am over 50, so I looked at Eons when it was announced and promptly left. I don’t think it was just lousy execution at Eons, although that was certainly a factor. The idea of targeting by age is just not smart marketing. Sure marketers want to target by age, but do “the people formerly known as audience” want content targeted that way? I can't think of a successful consumer print magazine which does that. Reader age certainly varies by magazine, but they target around content rather than age. The only exception is perhaps magazines for teenagers.
This trend to invest in lifestage social networking sites looks like a classic example of bubble investing, done on the “concept extrapolation” theory. This is when VCs invest on the basis of “if it works for x then it will work for y”. If it works for teenagers it will work for baby boomers. You can usually recognize these by the elevator pitch that has something along the lines of “we are the x of y”. (e.g. we are the “eBay of missing socks”).
Eons homepage
In the last dot com cycle, think “if it works for books (Amazon) it will work for pet supplies and groceries (Web Van)”. Concept extrapolation is funded by VCs who are keen to get on a trend before it is too late. The founder CEO is often a great success story - the Eons founder had previously built Monster.com - so it all looks like a no brainer. I can see the Eons decision-making: hot trend, great entrepreneur and the right demographics. What’s not to like?
There is a deeper underlying opportunity here. Clearly content varies by lifestage. A Baby Boomer is more likely to be interested in Bob Dylan than 50 Cent. But people want to connect around content, not around age. Connecting around content is what Blogs do. You connect on something that interests you. I may connect now on technology and later on music. As you get older, you get a more varied set of interests and human relationships across all ages.
It is interesting to look at what we might class the “older early adopter” market. These tech savvy older people are quite happy with a mix of Blogs and RSS and Start Pages as an update to phone and email. Social networking sites are places to “dip into” but not live in. The big question is: will the MySpace generation move more to that model or will older people adopt the tools initially created by teenagers? Clearly Eons bet on the latter and now it looks like that was not a good bet. Possibly Facebook will pull off the tricky job of becoming an all-encompassing site that meets all your communication needs in one place and is effective across all lifestages. The jury is still out on that one.
The big underlying trend of the Internet is the push to the edge, which sometimes goes by the ugly name of “deportalization”. These lifestage social networking sites are fighting over that underlying trend. As King Canute discovered, commanding the waves to go back was futile. I would bet on tools that enable people to connect around content wherever they are.
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Why Eons, a MySpace for Old People, Failed.
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Interesting read Bernard, I was not aware that they were in trouble. To me it would seem that Baby Boomers represent big opportunity because they are folks with money and want to spend in on fun and health.
Seems like health + travel + finance would be good verticals for them.
Posted by: Alex Iskold | September 16, 2007 5:08 PMVery interesting posting: So much money, so much experience and yet things look that bad.
Is there a successful role model for Eons in the US or is it the only social network "aimed at the elderly"?
In Germany, rumor has it that www.platinnetz.de (I am in no way affiliated with that site) is quite successful.
Unfortunately the site is German only but it is quite similar in content and structure.
Mr. Lunn is critizing (rightfully IMHO) Eons' targeting approach. Quite interestingly the German site does exactly that: Explicitly appealing to the generation "50plus".
They call this targeting concept "network 50plus" ("Netzwerk 50plus" in German).
Posted by: Serkan | September 16, 2007 5:30 PMGood analysis. I'm 60 and dropped and dropped out of Eons. I've registered with all the boomer oriented sites, and haven't found any that make me want to stick around. (NYT says we're sticky, remember?)
Disclosure: I have written for boomspeak.com, no pay.
It takes good content - and deep content (think WebMD or CBS Marketwatch) to keep me coming back.
Your bubble analogy was a good one: how does one burn thru that much money so quickly for so little innovation or content?
Posted by: Going Like Sixty | September 16, 2007 6:32 PMI agree and have been questioning on my blog all the social networking sites that have been popping up over the last 6 months. 2 others that seem to have huge nuts to crack every month are TeeBeeDee and Boomj. To be fair, Eons isn't dead yet but if I worked there, I'd have my resume in circulation.
Posted by: thesavvyboomer | September 16, 2007 10:40 PMDo baby boomers have as much time as the younger generation to invest in social networking sites?
Posted by: Clint | September 17, 2007 1:33 AMRe "I can't think of a successful consumer print magazine which does that", Saga Magazine in the UK has a circulation of many millions targeting the over 50s. Likewise the Saga Group which focuses only on this demographic is one of the most successful UK groups by virtue of the brand it developed that focuses solely on these market segment.
Posted by: John Wilson | September 17, 2007 2:09 AMThanks for all the comments. I looked at www.platinnetz.de as I speak a little German and it looked fine. But it is hard to tell if it is a success or not. Eons was being written up as a success in NYT. Saga Magazine is interesting as it is a paid title, which indicates that readers see some value so maybe good publishing/editorial does the trick. I notice they have set up Saga Zone, ie Social Network. It is possible that a well executed media play will work. But anything that looks like a too obvious bunch of content slapped together to hit a demographic to suit advertisers does not get loyalty. Alex you are right, the opportunity is around travel, health and investment. These are all huge markets that need in-depth content. It is likely that a travel only site will be better than the travel section of an over 50 targetted site. As the specialist sites are only a click away, it is likely that they will win. Search engines make specialist stuff so easy to find. This is what drives the push to the edge or deportalization. Now lets say I am researching Venice in winter (its unusual and I once saw pictures of Venice with snow that were amazing) and then I can click on and connect with other people interested in the same thing, perhaps through their Blog. Thats what I mean by connecting around content at the edge.
Posted by: bernard lunn | September 17, 2007 5:12 AMI would really like to see EONS succeed. If targetting an age group is an issue, then an open door policy with a different format to attract whoever might be interested in sharing the wisdom of knowledge and experience.
Posted by: Vince | September 17, 2007 7:47 AMMr. Lunn, by "successful" I was referring to the fair amount of buzz platinnetz.de is creating in the German blogosphere.
They said in an interview published online a couple of days ago (*) they get 170,000 pager impressions per day. Also, each day several hundred new people are joining.
As you can imagine, this is huge by German standards.
*http://www.interview-blog.de/ebusiness/interview-mit-heike-helfenstein-platinnetz-gmbh/ (German only)
As for Eons, they are not completely dead yet, are they? Maybe a relaunch will help get them back on the road to success...
Posted by: Serkan | September 17, 2007 8:19 AMI have visited a variety of over fifty sites, and I agree with so many that have written in that there is very little content. Hence, my husband and I have launched a site, www.fiftysense.net to give Common Sense Ideas for Thriving After Fifty. It will deal primarily with the active lifestyle, and adventure travel. We feel that people want knowledge before trying a new sport and want to learn new techniques for the age-advantaged. We invite you to visit our site and give us feedback.
Sue Williams
Posted by: Sue Williams | September 20, 2007 7:59 AMInteresting article. I run a site for writers and although our age range is 18+ we have a sizable number of the 50+ crowd. I've found that age targeting is not a factor in getting older members interested, but creating an easy-to-use, troll-free environment is. In general, older users look for deeper and more mature conversations and interaction. But is that a surprise?
The advantage of older customers is that they are willing to pay for a good experience. We charge a membership fee and have a relatively small but growing membership base.
Posted by: Sol Nasisi | September 24, 2007 11:24 AM"The toy that 50+ built, but didn't get to play with..until now." - this is the internet, and as the author of both eGenerations.com and SeniorsGrandCentral.com I can tell you there is 50+ life on the internet.
The difference in Facebook, MySpace, eGenerations, and Eons is that every other mention on TV is about Facebook this or MySpace that. Marketing like that pushes crowds.
The second difference is something I read on another blog is the lack of sex. All one has to do is look at the success of erectile dysfunction drugs, and senior sex studies to see human kinds favorite pasttime is alive and well.
The fact is that the 50+ demo (if not already) is 3 times larger than teens, commands between 67% to 80% of the US wealth, and spends more. This equals opportunity...a lot of it.
Everyone knows that a video showcasing someone ingesting a condiment through the nostrils will draw large 15-30 year old crowds... the question is how do you draw large crowds of experienced adults (50+ give or take).
The answer lies is trying things. Most won't work probably. But that doesn't mean there isn't a solution, it just means we've not yet found it.
eGenerations.com is my venture, and on many levels has proved that $300.00 and a years worth of around the clock sweat equity of 1 can produce amazing results. (VC Guys feel free to ring me up - I'm lean and don't need much).
Still however, there is much to be done, and even more to be learned.
That's my 2 cents!
Nathaniel Adam Briggs, CEO/Founder, eGenerations.com
Posted by: Nathaniel Adam Briggs | September 24, 2007 3:23 PMA Worldwide 50+ Online Destination