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We’ve been trained to think of 65 as the “age of retirement.” However, with many Americans living longer — and staying at their jobs longer — a significant number of people age 65+ choose to postpone retirement. This might stem from a lifestyle choice, financial need, or both.

The qualifying age for full Social Security benefits is now 67 for those born in 1960 and later. Therefore, many people will continue full-time employment (with employer-based benefits) until they can collect their full Social Security benefits (or beyond).

The “late retiree” population should be an important part of your Medicare marketing. But how can you reach this audience? With a little bit of homework and some smart targeting strategies, you can connect with this “needle-in-a-haystack” demographic and convince them it’s time to enroll in your Medicare plan.

Think “late to Medicare” rather than “late to retire”

In the end, it’s about enrolling in Medicare coverage, not so much about retirement. Because, as mentioned above, there are too many variables involved in determining what retirement really means to any given person.

As far as reaching this audience, here are some tips we’ve learned through our 40+ years of Medicare marketing experience:

• Offer seminars about your plans. Both in-person and virtual.
• Utilize social media, such as Facebook and YouTube. This audience highly depends on these resources for information.
• Speak to group plan members at work. Create an educational program for HR administrators that will help them educate and guide employees over the age of 65.
• Remember the “Class of 1960.” As stated before, those born in 1960 and later won’t fully qualify for Social Security benefits until they’re 67 years old. Consider an ongoing program that targets prospects as they reach full Social Security age.
• Focus on the value of the product — not necessarily the price. The late-to-Medicare group may be less focused on cost at this stage.
• Don’t rely on just one model to try to reach this elusive segment. Use a combination of propensity models and suppressions to find the intersection of those more likely to retire after 65.
• Offer to help. Medicare can be confusing at any age.

Overall, you should portray your plan as a resource for support and information during this time of transition. You may even want to include a brief survey in your new-to-Medicare marketing, asking respondents when they plan to retire. Offer to “take the work” out of retirement by helping them understand the best time to enroll in a Medicare plan and provide step-by-step instructions on how to do it. Be sure to include late-to-Medicare guidance as part of your website content.

DMW can help you target the late retiree/late-to-Medicare audience and optimize your marketing dollars by spending them in the right place and at the right time.

Want to learn more? Give us a call.