A recent American internet usage survey showed a significant trend in 2010 with all age groups including seniors age 74+, using e-mail and searching online for news and more.

1. Health – This was the number one category for specific searches across all age groups (after news). Over 80% of folks under the age of 64 look online for health information, dropping slightly to over 60% of those age 65+.
2. Make travel reservations – 2nd most popular search category in the 46-55 age group, with over 70% of them looking online; over 50% of folks in all other age groups also make travel reservations online.
3. Purchase products – Over 50% of those age 65+ are buying products online; this increases to 60% of folks under the age of 65.

It’s 2010 people – if your business is in the healthcare products & services field, travel, or retail, and you still don’t have a good online presence, you’re missing your target market by a mile.

You may be wondering how best to reach this audience, and obviously a dynamic website that serves as your marketing platform is the first step. But did you also know, the fastest growing demographic in social networking usage is users age 74+ (from 4% in 2008 to 16% in 2010)?  Platforms like Facebook & LinkedIn are excellent venues to establish a free presence and advertise your business online with PPC (Pay-Per-Click) campaigns.

Anyone under the age of 33 is most likely to be accessing the internet from a mobile phone or wireless laptop – so ensure your website is mobile-friendly if you want to reach this crowd.

Check out the full details of this Generations Online in 2010 survey on the Pew Internet & American Life Project report/website, from author Kathryn Zickuhr:

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Generations-2010/Overview.aspx