• Through all this, adult children of Baby Boomers will continue to be an important part of their parents' lives. Because Boomers had children later in life than previous generations, some of these children will still be in school and living at home even as their middle-age parents are gearing up second or third careers or just now realizing they may soon have their own parents to care for.

What This Means to You? As a result of these and other factors, Baby Boomers' financial obligations will also be long-lived, and so, even now, staying on top of their long-term financial security is (or should be) a very high priority. Because of their economic clout, Boomers will always be an attractive marketplace.

Marketers have focused their efforts on Boomers for decades. "One of surest ways to make sure a product prospers is to wait until Baby Boomers enter that stage of their lives," said Brad Edmondson, senior writer for American Demographics magazine.

Younger Boomers are still in their prime home buying and family-starting years. Yet according to LIMRA, this is a generation where life insurance has not been on their radar screens. Similarly, until recently most Boomers also were well behind retirement planning curve.

Let's see why…

The children of '60s married and had children later in life--but many of these marriages didn't take, and second families and weekend visitation privileges became unhappy institutions for this generation. Add effects of corporate mergers and downsizing, need to support elderly parents, and Boomers' mistaken belief that they could keep spending while meeting other financial goals...it's little wonder so many found themselves with credit problems and got a late start on retirement savings.

According to a report published by Investment Company Institute: "Baby Boomers have done less financial planning for their future than did previous generation. Studies show that despite a large number of two-income households and a higher per-capita income, they have a lower savings rate than their parents.

"More than half of Boomers surveyed said they did not have enough money to save regularly," according report, which was published on Web site of financial planning firm, Waddell

PAVE Way to Profits Remember, community has never been a “build it and they will come” issue – although some disagreed in late 1990’s. There are four active roles you must prepare to take on. Miss on one of these, and you may miss your target altogether. Using acronym PAVE, build your community and be Patient, be Accessible, be Visible, and be Empowering. •Be Patient Build out your forums and be patient. If you have a newsletter or Blog, promote forums every chance you get. One technique to start conversations is to create multiple users for you to use and post under each of names at start.

•Be Available Either yourself or someone on your team should always be available to forum for help, answers and solutions as it applies to your product or service. Have a “feedback” or “rants and raves” section and respond to posts.

•Be Visible Take an active part within community discussions. Not just as a moderator or monitor, but as a member. Your customers will benefit from your presence and you will always have a focus group available.

•Be Empowering Ask members who have made quality posts if you can use their writings in your newsletter, brochures or blogs. They will love celebrity status and you will gain much-needed proof by always having quality testimonials. It will also encourage others to continue to post. Share spotlight and give community a “sense of ownership” in discussions.

Keep your community focused at start. Let it grow naturally and see where it goes. Listen and learn from your customers. Will you be able to count how much your efforts count towards your profits. Probably not. Nevertheless, do you mop your floors and empty your trash?