Testimonial

The difficulties of the last few years have been apparent to many in the life insurance industry, and the focus within it has therefore been on how the sector as a whole can get back on track. Now, some experts believe that there's one group of adults on which these companies have largely not been as focused as they probably should be.

In recent years, life insurance companies have mostly been focused on marketing to their typical audience – baby boomers who may be closing in on retirement age or have already passed it – or what they consider an ideal opportunity that could last for decades to come in the form of millennials, according to a report from Life Health Pro. But at the same time, these two efforts might end up having a negative impact on the generation that's sandwiched firmly in the middle of these two age groups: Generation X.

Most people in Generation X are, at this point, anywhere from their mid- to late 30s to early 50s, and many life insurers haven't really focused on marketing to these people directly, the report said. That could be a result of the fact that there are only about 67 million Gen Xers, compared with significantly more boomers and millennials. Thus, they get short shrift in some regards because they never represented the kind of overall buying power that many companies might have honed in on.

Why is this a potential mistake?
The fact of the matter is that while there are fewer people in Generation X overall, that age group might be the perfect one to target for life insurance marketing because they are relatively financially secure, and because many are at the point in their lives when they're most likely to take on such coverage because they are either starting or growing their families, the report said. While this is true of older millennials as well, the number there – about 35 million – is only about half the size of Generation X.

For this reason, life insurance companies might want to do a little more to bridge the gap in marketing toward these middle-aged adults, because they represent a significant market. Whether they're concerned about saving for their own retirements, their families' futures, or what might happen in the event that they die, they may present an ideal opportunity as the economy improves.