Elderly and IT: Brand discourses on the go

Abstract

In countries where IT products have been an everyday commodity for some time and mass consumption a major social feature for a long time, very different kind of economic and social players picture elderly as the «new frontier». That is to say that elderly appear as the new generation that have to be converted to IT in order to benefit from these devices and become consumers. The challenge is, from a marketing point of view as expressed by professionals, huge since elderly are supposed to be, by nature, deeply attached to traditions and at least suspicious or at most resistant to change, especially when it comes to technological change. We intend here to question and analyze in which respect advertising discourse should, theoretically, be a huge help and drive regarding the acculturation of elderly to the use of IT products. As a matter of fact, commercials and brand content, being brand discourses, should have a major part to play in this process.