Research
The evidence bank behind the work
Playful Media's positioning isn't opinion. It's built on a structured UK research bank, spanning ONS, Ofcom, FCA, Age UK, BRC, Kantar, PwC UK, Thinkbox, Radiocentre, IAB UK and IMTB, kept current and used to replace assumption with evidence in every brief.
The headline numbers
75%+
of UK household wealth is held by the over-50s
£320bn
a year in household spending power, the "grey pound"
~20%
of UK ad spend is targeted at this age group
47%
of UK adults are aged 50 or over
12%
of UK ads feature someone from that group in a leading role
78%
of over-50s feel under-represented or misrepresented by advertising
49%
say they actively avoid brands that ignore them
Source: Marketing Week; Gransnet/Mumsnet advertiser research; Centre for Ageing Better; industry press.
Why one label doesn't work
The research bank is also what shows 45+ isn't one audience. There's more variance within the 45+ bracket, across life stage, financial phase and media fluency, than between many adjacent age groups. A structured evidence base is what lets a brief target a segment within 45+ precisely, rather than the bracket as a whole.