The Power of Gran

A tale about that lesser-know social network, Gransnet

Last Christmas, my mother-in-law announced that she was never going on Facebook, that she was far too busy to mess around on the web, and that she knew no-one in her social circles who was on it. This surprised me slightly – she loves to chat to (read: advise/critique) everyone in her path, and as her demographic is the fastest growing on Facebook, I did rather expect her to be the early adopter amongst her friends.

So, when the Mumsnet offshoot, Gransnet, launched in May, I set her a challenge. Directing her to an article about the new social networking site, I asked whether she would mind trying out the site and giving me a review? My father-in-law was most enthusiastic – perhaps finally she would put those cruise ship computer lessons to some good? She said she would if I helped her log in. It took a while, and caused more than a little frustration; I began to regret the initiative, and silently gave up on my review.

Two months later, she called me up, ‘Do you want to know what I think then?’

Here it is, in summary (it did go on a bit) -

‘I really love Gransnet! I have met lots of new friends – I can split them up by their personality types – there are The Moaners, The Gigglers (I am one of these), The Supporters (they like to offer advice), The Young at Heart and The Too Young at Heart (always posting about anti-ageing). I read ‘am I being unreasonable?’ every day, and have found lots of info on the gardening and food pages. You Carrie, will love Pedant’s corner – there are over 200 posts on bad grammar! I am now telling all my friends about it.’

So well done Gransnet – if you can get my technophobic mother-in-law using (and advocating) your services, then I’m sure your ranks will surely be swelling before too long (particularly after she’s informed half of her local village).

For me, it’s powerful high profile evidence that proves that the over 50’s really are engaging online, and with disposable incomes and plenty of free time to chat, this age group are presenting a huge opportunity for brands – and not simply for those that want to directly target this market.

At 1000heads, we know that grandparents are key influencers in family decision-making (much of it directly requested), and so need to be taken seriously as both initiators and recipients of brand conversations.

For years they’ve felt ignored – engage, and the rewards could really surprise.

Now, I’m just popping off to Pedant’s Corner to see if anyone agrees with me about ‘bought’ and ‘brought’…

Brought into the world on Tuesday, July 26th, 2011 and filed under 1000thoughts.