DMA's list vision: revealing consumer behavior & list marketing trends for 2003--New York, NY.

Peter Frencese, demographics trends analyst at Ogilvy & Mather, and the founder of American Demographics magazine, offered up three observations about consumers to help deal with shifts in the marketplace:

Observation No. 1: An aging set of consumers means a shift in both lifestage and lifestyles.

Americans are getting older with half of all U.S. householders will be age 50 or older within five years. And, over 80% of all household growth will be in the 50-plus age range.

"Marketing of products to this age group will decline, people over 50 have all the things they want," Francese said. If they buy products now, it will be for their grandchildren.

However, the 50+ group can't get enough services. They are buying second homes. Among people 55 to 64, there will be a 22% growth in the purchase of second homes between 2003 and 2008.

This trend will make locating the older buyer more difficult because they will be at their country place or beach retreat instead of at home where you want to contact them, Francese said. "I estimate that 1 in 3 households are empty every weekend."

Observation No. 2: More highly educated women are likely to demand more from you.

Women represent a savvy group of consumers, having received 58 percent of the bachelor's and master's degrees this year. As a result, women's salaries will rise faster than men's, Francese said. He cautioned that more highly educated women expect more as consumers.

More educated consumers also have a high probability of being Web-enabled at work and home. They read more and want product details, Francese said. They like print and are also avid Web buyers.

Observation No. 3: The character of work and leisure is changing.

Office workers are now a majority of workers and knowledge and independent workers blur the line between work and leisure. This results in more consumers who are both browsing and buying from their place of work.

"Be sure to send them relevant offers, not stuff that wastes their time," Francese said.

The main lesson for marketers, Francese stressed: Place and timing of delivery of DM messages will become even more critical to the success of a direct campaign.