Posts Tagged ‘baby boomers’

What’s in it for me?

November 13th, 2009

Yesterday, we presented readers with a basic economic question:  Do our rural communities have enough resources to invest in being attractive to both Boomers and Millennials?   I raised it after reading an article from Northern Great Plains, Inc.’s newsletter, which provides great tips for creating communities that are more attractive to young people (who we call Millennials).

Personally, I don’t think we have the luxury of creating communities that are attractive to everyone.  Communities need to figure who is the best target market (boomers or millennials) and develop a plan that creates a product these individuals want.  

That said, I think it’s a mistake to ignore the community’s current residents.  How would you like it if you were a senior living in a rural community that only did things for young people?

Can we have our cake and eat it too? 

Sounds like I want to have it both ways, and in a way I do.  What I’m saying is if your community development strategy is going to focus on attracting new young residents, just don’t forget about the people who are already living there. 

To clarify, I’ve created the following list of ways that I think this can occur.

4 ways to include everyone

1. Develop community events that appeal to people of all ages. For example, if you want to appeal to a younger demographic by hosting a festival, consider how it will be attractive to all generations.

2. Help older generations learn how to use social media tools. Many communities are building marketing strategies around Facebook because the tool has appeal with younger generation. You can help bridge this gap by holding some classes that help people create their own Facebook profiles.

3. Create places where people of all generations can gather for informal conversation. It’s that third place concept that we’ve talked about so much. If you are working to attract young people, you may want to develop a coffee shop; but make sure that it still has appeal to older generations as well.

4. Encourage leadership of all ages. If all ages are represented on the city council, county commission, and the commercial/community club boards, then the decisions made are more likely to benefit all age groups

So keep in mind it’s perfectly acceptable for communities to develop projects and activities that focus on a specific group, like millennials.  But at the end of the day, these projects and activities will be more successful if the existing residents can answer “What’s in it for me?”

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Who are we building our rural communities for?

November 12th, 2009

We talk a lot on ReImagine Rural about creating rural communities that are attractive for young people.  We do so because most rural communities in the Midwest are getting older and older each year.  If we want our rural communities to have a bright future, we obviously need more young people to call our rural places home.

But a recent newsletter from Northern Great Plains, Inc., reminded me that we can’t forget about the people who already live in our rural communities.  It’s a bit long, but the following quote captures this idea:

Any rural development strategy must recognize the importance of defining what kind of region young people today will want to live in the future and work towards it. However, these same efforts must maintain a balance between the interests and needs of young families and workers and the desire of the region’s older population to remain in the region and live in a safe and comfortable environment. The challenge economic developers and city planners face is one of creating rural places that will be welcoming for young people and also making it the passion of older people to create a region for both young and old to live in.”

 This is good advice, especially when one considers this USDA Study suggesting Baby Boomers are looking to move to rural communities. 

But at the same time, it raises the question: Do our rural communities have enough resources to invest in being attractive to both Boomers and Millennials?

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