[sixties-l] New book about Vietnam era baby boomers and "genism" (fwd)

From: sixties@lists.village.virginia.edu
Date: Thu Mar 27 2003 - 02:05:01 EST

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    ---------- Forwarded message ----------
    Date: Sat, 1 Mar 2003 14:44:09 EST
    From: BrentLance@aol.com
    To: sixties@lists.village.virginia.edu
    Subject: New book about Vietnam era baby boomers and "genism"

    Sixties-L Moderator.
     
    I'm a former list member with several prior posts on the site, as well as a
    personal narrative. Of interest to you and the community is the publication
    of my new book, Marketing to Leading-edge Baby Boomers. I've pasted a media
    release below.
     
    I will be unveiling this book in two weeks with a speech I'm giving to the
    National Council on the Aging / American Society on Aging joint conference.
     
    Among other topics, the book explores how denigration of baby boomers during
    the Vietnam War era has led to increasing vilification of the generation in
    contemporary media. (e.g. David Horowitz, et. al.). I raise serious concerns
    about societal intolerance of baby boomers and the growing impact of ageism
    (employment discrimination, for one).

    This is not just a marketing book. It's a new look at discriminatory behavior
    that's getting worse.
     
    Best regards,
     
    Brent Green
     
    Brent Green & Associates, Inc.
    1011 So. Valentia St., Suite #86
    Denver, CO   80247
     
    303-743-0140
    303-743-0373 (fax)
    303-520-7200 (cell)

    <A HREF="http://www.marketingtoboomers.com/">www.marketingtoboomers.com</A>
     
    Baby Boomers Poised to Confront
    Stereotypical Marketing and Ageism
     
    Marketing to Leading-edge Baby Boomers
    Brent Green

    March 1, 2003, Denver, Colo. â^À^Ó Americans born between 1946 and 1955 are ready
    to shatter traditional assumptions about early retirement. Their journey into
    the Golden Years will be groundbreaking.
            Called Leading-Edge Baby Boomers, this forceful segment has over $500
    billion in spending power and today controls a significant percentage of the
    nation's assets. Even more staggering is an unfolding demographic truth: more
    than 30 percent of Americans will be over 50 by 2010.
            Brent Green, an experienced counseling therapist and award-winning
    creative director and copywriter, has published a book focused on this
    lucrative pre- and early-retirement segment. Entitled Marketing to
    Leading-edge Baby Boomers, Green's analysis reveals the psychological,
    sociological and interpersonal dimensions of a generation quickly reaching
    the life stage associated with quiescence.
            As the author declares: â^À^ÜThey will not be quiet, calm, or disengaged.
    They will collectively redefine the connotations of aging and the purpose of
    life's closing years. They will set the stage for a long-term reorientation
    of American business to the value of its previously most undervalued
    population segment. They will bring to aging culture what they bequest to
    youth culture when they were boisterously becoming young adults four decades
    ago.â^À^Ý
            Today, opportunity and reality are at odds. Somewhere between
    Woodstock Nation and Over-The-Hill, the most sought after market in America
    became passe. The fiftysomething-to-sixty crowd has not been attracting its
    fair share of commercial attention from advertisers and ad agencies. As Green
    challenges, this is a problem larger than benign neglect.
           Baby Boomers have often been the source of contempt and ridicule, a
    byproduct of disdain for the group's alleged self-absorbed, unpatriotic
    character, historically rooted in the Vietnam War era. Green provides
    troubling evidence for an emerging ageism directed at those in their
    mid-forties to mid-fifties. A side effect of historical distaste and today's
    growing ageism is often dreadful marketing: hackneyed pitches, rife with
    stereotypes and generational invectives.
            In thirty-six fast-paced chapters, Green analyzes such topical issues
    as Boomer spirituality, an emerging creativity, political agendas,
    age-defying strategies, corporate malfeasance, lifestyle downsizing,
    adventure travel, and communal instincts. The book also provides
    well-developed case studies of marketing programs that have worked powerfully
    with Boomers.
            A long-term social observer and critic, Brent Green understands the
    positive marketing implications of his feisty generation: â^À^ÜThey will not
    tolerate typecasting, stereotypes, pandering or ageism. They will expect
    stylish products to instill value beyond mere utility. They will invest in
    products and services that resonate, and they will reward those who crack the
    idiosyncratic marketing code.â^À^Ý
            An unusual aspect of this traditional business book is Green's
    inclusion of two convincing short stories about Leading-edge Baby Boomers.
    The first story explores the Internet's impact on a dormant relationship from
    the sixties, raising larger questions about unresolved generational agendas
    and the coming struggle for relevance and meaning.
            The second story presents an Orwellian view of an ageist society in
    2028. The protagonist, a successful trial attorney who has dedicated her life
    to women's issues, is awakening to the new reality of generational
    condemnation, discrimination, and violence. This story makes a solid case for
    heightened awareness of Green's descriptive term: Genism. 

    ###

    Author Biography: Brent Green is a former counseling therapist, and today he
    is a marketing communications consultant with over 25 years of experience. He
    has had numerous successes marketing a multitude of products and services to
    Baby Boomers. Over fifty regional, national, and international awards
    acknowledge his creative and commercial accomplishments. Green has also
    written and published Noble Chaos, an award-winning literary novel about Baby
    Boomers during the Vietnam War era. As with any foray into fiction writing,
    this challenge required the author to think intensely and critically about
    the sociology and culture of this coming-of-age period, as well as to
    understand the indelible values that persist within an influential
    generational segment. Green has also twice received critical recognition from
    Writer's Digest, most recently for a forward-looking essay about Baby Boomers
    in midlife.
     
    Title: Marketing to Leading-edge Baby Boomers
    Author: Brent Green
    Publisher:  iUniverse, 2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68512
    ISBN:  0-595-26409-3
    Publication date: March 14, 2003
    Price: $16.95, paperback; $26.95 hard cover
    Author Contact: (303) 743-0140 or <A HREF="mailto:brent@bgassociates.com">brent@bgassociates.com</A>
    Book Availability: <A HREF="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/">www.barnesandnoble.com</A>



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