A Generational Approach to Marketing by Cathryn Castle Garcia

One helpful way to create a targeted marketing plan is to group potential clients by generation, then craft a message specific to that age range and life stage.

First, What Exactly Is a Generation?

A generation is a group of people born around the same period of time, who share a similar life stage. These people have likely experienced similar cultural, economic, technological and social events that shape their world view and personal habits. And purchasing decisions.

Generational boundaries are rough guidelines rather than hard-and-fast distinctions. It’s not about assuming that every person from each generation wants the same thing.

Think of generational marketing as a starting point for asking better questions: Where does this person look for information? What builds their trust? What motivates them? What makes them hesitate? And what kind of message will make scuba diving feel relevant to their life?

Let’s look at four generations that represent important opportunities for dive centers today.

Baby Boomers (1946–1964)

Baby Boomers are an enormous and economically important consumer group for dive centers because Boomers tend to be in a life stage where they have more free time and financial resources to travel and pursue personal interests.

Boomers generally place a high value on reliability, personal service, safety and comfort, and quality. They expect timeliness and well-organized experiences. They often buy travel paired with the chance to learn a new skill or experience something meaningful, like volunteering on ecotourism projects.

They’re tech savvy, but their media habits can differ substantially from younger consumers.

Marketing to Boomers

A Boomer considering scuba diving wants assurances: Can I trust you? Will I be comfortable? Are your instructors experienced? Is this trip well organized? These questions should be answered prominently in your marketing.

When marketing to people in their 60s and 70s, try these tips:

• Lead with expertise and trust. Show instructor qualifications, experience, safety practices, equipment-maintenance standards and customer testimonials.
• Make travel part of the story. Don’t simply advertise a destination and price; sell the organized, comfortable experience.
• Make information easy to find. Provide clear trip information covering costs, accommodations, transfers, diving requirements, equipment and what is included.
• Use testimonials strategically. A testimonial from someone of a similar age can answer the question: “Do people like me do this?”
• Don’t abandon traditional marketing. Email, print publications, direct mail, telephone conversations and personal relationships can still play an important role.

Generation X (1965-1980)

Gen X sits between the enormous Baby Boomer and Millennial cohorts, but its members occupy a fascinating life stage. They’re mid-40s to early 60s and may be established professionals. They may have teenage or adult children. They may be caring for aging parents. They may have significant purchasing power, but very limited time.

For many Gen X consumers, the question isn’t necessarily, “Can I afford to go diving?” It may be, “When am I going to find the time?” They value efficiency, convenience, personal relationships, and experiences that justify the investment of time.

Marketing to Gen Xers

The key with Gen Xers is to make diving easier. A Gen Xer may already want to dive. The obstacle may be the logistics. How much time will certification take? What equipment do I need? Where do I go? Can my family participate? The more questions the customer has to solve independently, the easier it becomes to postpone the decision.

When marketing to people in their mid-40s to early 60s, try these tips:

• Market convenience. Sell a clear path from online learning through pool and open water training.
• Offer packaged experiences. Combine training, equipment rental, boat diving and travel into straightforward packages.
• Use email well. Provide concise, useful, informative content, not just sales flyers.
• Respect their intelligence. Explain features and benefits. Provide examples of your expertise.
• Make re-entry easy. Some Gen Xers are divers who set diving aside while raising a family or focusing on their career. Have a simple plan to invite them back into diving.

Millennials (1981–1996)

Millennials are 30 to 45 years old, and they represent an especially important category for scuba businesses because they’re a traveling bunch.

Millennials often respond strongly to experiences with personal meaning, social proof, sustainability, and digital convenience. They want a sense of community that’s convenient to engage in. They value experiences over acquisitions.

When marketing to people in their 30s, try these tips:

• Stop marketing scuba certification as a qualification. Market it as the gateway to adventure.
• Show the experience, not just the equipment. Use video to show what it feels like to descend beneath the surface.
• Build social proof. Invite reviews, testimonials, and user-generated content. It can be extraordinarily powerful in winning Millennials.
• Turn customers into storytellers. Invite them to share their first dive, first shark, first manta encounter or first international dive trip.
• Make booking frictionless. Make schedules, prices and next steps easy to understand online.

Generation Z (1997–2012)

Gen Z range in age from mid-teens to late-20s. They are the first generation to have grown up entirely in a world of smartphones, social platforms and algorithmically curated content. But here’s an important misconception: Digital native does not mean digital only, because they’re big in-person shoppers who love unique analog experiences. Use digital media to get them into the dive center.

Gen Z consumers respond to visual storytelling, interactive (digital and analog) content, creator- and peer-recommended buying.

When marketing to people of the Gen Z generation, try these tips:

• Create short-form video. Show the experience, preparation, mistakes, excitement and people.
• Feature real customers. Your customers are already creating your best marketing material.
• Work with micro-creators. You don’t necessarily need a celebrity; a local creator with a small but engaged audience may be more valuable.
• Make your values visible. Conservation, inclusion, and community should be demonstrated rather than merely claimed.
• Connect digital discovery to analog experience. Host beginner nights, try-diving events, underwater photography evenings, conservation events or social gatherings.

Marketing for All Ages

We’ve examined general distinctions between the generations and looked at ways you can tweak your marketing messaging so it reaches your target audience. But don’t let generational marketing veer into stereotyping. Not every Boomer wants a printed brochure. And not every Millennial wants an Insta experience. The key is to make your business relatable to customers of all ages.

A generational approach to marketing simply means doing your homework on demographics and life stages. Start by asking important questions, like, What does this customer want? What problem are they trying to solve? Where do they get information? Who influences their decision? What does “value” mean to them? What does success look like?

And perhaps most importantly: Why would scuba diving matter to this person right now?

The question isn’t, “How do we market scuba diving to this person?” The better question is, “How do we make scuba diving matter to this person?”

I’d love to know how your dive center uses generational marketing. Email me at hello@clearstorycoach.com.