{"id":97352,"date":"2025-02-10T00:01:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-10T05:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/?p=97352"},"modified":"2025-02-07T14:51:56","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T19:51:56","slug":"ok-gen-x-purchasing-behavior-of-the-sandwich-generation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/ok-gen-x-purchasing-behavior-of-the-sandwich-generation\/","title":{"rendered":"OK Gen X: Purchasing Behavior of the Sandwich Generation\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Which generational cohort has big middle-child energy? Enter the least discussed generation of all, born between 1965 and 1980, Gen X is dubbed \u201cthe Sandwich Generation\u201d because they\u2019re sandwiched between infamous baby boomers and equally infamous millennials. Gen X may be the smallest generation, but they\u2019re actually 22 percent<\/a> more likely than boomers to fall in the \u201chigh-income\u201d segment. In fact, Gen X earned 33 percent<\/a> of total U.S. income despite representing just 25 percent of the population. They\u2019re also the fastest-growing spenders<\/a> in the beauty category.<\/p>

Brands and retailers can\u2019t afford to ignore the MTV Generation, but that doesn\u2019t stop them from trying. Gen X is rife for targeting with strategic merchandising and marketing initiatives.<\/p><\/blockquote>

Brands and retailers can\u2019t afford to ignore the MTV Generation, but that doesn\u2019t stop them from trying. Don\u2019t be one of these brands and retailers that overlooks Gen X purchasing behavior. Gen X is rife for targeting with strategic merchandising and marketing initiatives. Let\u2019s discuss how to do it.<\/p>

Gen X\u2019s Purchasing Mentality<\/h4>

Why is Gen X overlooked, despite their hefty aggregated incomes? One reason could be that much of their discretionary spend is already spoken for: Gen Xers often carry the financial burden of caring for their aging relatives, as well as younger dependents. They\u2019re scrambling to put away money for retirement, as they have the lowest retirement savings of any generation. Most Gen Xers have less than 5 percent<\/a> of the savings they\u2019d need to retire comfortably. So, successfully marketing to Gen X requires an awareness of the financial pressure they\u2019re under.<\/p>

It comes as no surprise, then, that Generation X prioritizes value, but we aren\u2019t talking about crappy products without staying power. Gen X is the most likely generation to use a price comparison website\u2013\u2013besides their peers in China and India. Gen X is 7 percent<\/a> more likely than the average consumer to research a product before buying it\u2013\u2013but they value product quality <\/em>over price alone<\/em> (sorry, Temu).<\/p>

That\u2019s because these savvy consumers have been around long enough to see so many chintzy brands rise and fall and too many subpar products fall apart in their hands. As a result, their perception of a product\u2019s value extends beyond the price tag to product functionality, durability, and longevity. They\u2019ll pay a bit more for a product that lasts if the brand or retailer is able to justify the price.<\/p>

And speaking of product quality, Gen X is still incredibly brand loyal. They came of age in the 80s heyday of legacy brands. Remember when an Adidas shirt would retain its shape through 300 washes? Remember when any shirt with the Adidas label was high quality? Gen Xers do. The \u201cMyth of the Maxxinista\u201d never really permeated their purchasing mentality\u2013\u2013they expect high-quality products from well-known brands. Be forewarned: Product quality is essential and brands that license their logo to companies with subpar manufacturing processes risk alienating the Sandwich Generation.<\/p>

The Adoption Gap<\/h4>

Remember the 90s? When malls were cultural epicenters and legacy brands operated similarly to spiritual gurus, making grandiose affirmations about fashion, beauty, and the human bodies that partake in them? Gen X does. And while few of us wish to go back to a time before #metoo and body acceptance were a thing\u2013\u2013well, evidently half of us\u2013\u2013brands did have an allure and reputability that\u2019s hard to replicate in the modern retail marketplace.<\/p>

Gen X consumers are still looking for that level of trust. They\u2019re the OG (original gangster) brand loyalists; not blind to the faults and global issues of the brands they patronize but looking to build lasting relationships with authentic brands and less willing than younger generations to purchase outside of their tried-and-true brand Rolodex.<\/p>

We can\u2019t talk about how the younger generations shop without talking about the apps on which they do so: the TikTok ban, Instagram, YouTube, and burgeoning sites like RedNote, Flip,<\/a> and Whatnot are the places purchases happen. This isn\u2019t the case for Gen X. Sure, about 70 percent of them use the same platforms, but they don\u2019t live their lives on them. That\u2019s the differentiator.<\/p>

A whopping 58 percent<\/a> of Generation X are laggards or in the late majority of innovation adoption. But this isn\u2019t because they\u2019re dinosaurs that lack the technical acumen to post a selfie. Lumping Gen X in with boomer stereotypes (that aren\u2019t even true for most boomers) is deeply offensive to the first folks to watch MTV and own cell phones. They aren\u2019t boomers and their reluctance about technology is rooted in fact. Meta scandals, TikTok bans, information selling\u2013\u2013Gen X knows all about it. They\u2019ve seen what the fixation on technology has done to younger generations and aren\u2019t interested in following suit.<\/p>

So, while Gen X is highly aware of what\u2019s happening in the world, they\u2019re getting their information from CNN, thank you very much, and not Meta. While Gen X plays their current role as a life raft for aging parents and work-averse young dependents, they just want to get a product that works as well as possible, as affordably as possible, with as little BS as possible.<\/p>

Transparency Is Still Key<\/h4>

Millennials\u2019 lack of brand loyalty has been decried on every news channel, so it\u2019s interesting that none of these narratives focused on celebrating Gen X. As consumers, Gen X is perhaps the least narcissistic of any generation, prioritizing providing food and necessities for their families while saving a buck or two for a retirement that may never come. You can\u2019t market impulse buys to Gen X, but you can still build authentic relationships with them that last for life.<\/p>

Brands and retailers that focus on communicating the efficacy of their products through product demo videos (with subtitles!) and customer reviews have more impact than those hawking snake oil and miracle cures on TikTok. Loyalty programs are a hard YES for Gen X customers, just make sure your store associates are trained on how to properly execute them.<\/p>

Don\u2019t forget Gen Xers when it comes to social media, just focus on demonstrating the value of the product for the price. Show Gen Xers how products work, what\u2019s in them and why they will last. That approach will build your revenue over the long run better than the next thousand viral videos to come with an eventual post-TikTok.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gen X, the “Sandwich Generation,” values quality, brand loyalty, and transparency. Target them with value-driven marketing for lasting success.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":97353,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-97352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-strategy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97352"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97352\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97353"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therobinreport.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}