Rethinking Senior Healthcare Marketing

The disconnect between how seniors perceive themselves and how they’re portrayed in media represents one of the greatest missed opportunities in modern marketing, particularly in healthcare advertising. Recent research conducted by Rain the Growth Agency reveals that adults 65+ find little common ground with their representation in healthcare advertisements, with half wanting to see more people like them in creative versus healthcare workers or clinical settings.

The Identity Gap

Today’s seniors see themselves as active, capable, self-sufficient individuals living life to the fullest. Yet when they look at advertisements supposedly targeted at them, they encounter strangers—caricatures that bear little resemblance to their lived experience. The message is clear: stop defining older adults primarily by their medical needs.

The Digital Senior Reality

Based on the senior study, it was found that six out of 10 adults aged 65-84 are actively using social media platforms. These seniors regularly view content that interests them, use apps and messaging to stay connected, and share their own posts and photos. A key distinction is that seniors do use social media, but they differ from younger users in which platforms they prefer and how they interact with content on these platforms. This demographic named Facebook, YouTube and Instagram as their top platforms.

In terms of social media interactions, while seniors regularly click to learn more information when encountering social media advertisements, they are less likely than younger demographics to make immediate purchases through these platforms. This suggests that social media can be highly effective for awareness and education, though brands should consider adjusting conversion expectations accordingly.

Platform Preferences and Tips for Creative Content

Facebook dominates as the platform of choice for the 65+ demographic, with 56% having logged in within the past 30 days and most logging in daily or most days. Among those who use Facebook, YouTube also shows promise, particularly among younger seniors (65-74), with 45% reporting daily or near-daily usage.

When it comes to ad formats, video consistently outperforms static images, carousels, and animatics with senior audiences. Respondents in our study responded especially well to video content that shows genuine relationships and presents information in a clear and interesting way, emphasizing needing to create visuals that seniors can relate to and understand. We also discovered that adding captions to videos is particularly helpful, as four out of 10 seniors prefer to browse social media without sound.

Universal Appeal

Interestingly, seniors’ preferences for advertising content align closely with other age groups. Informative, practical content combined with light-hearted humor resonates strongly across generations. Brands need not develop radically different content strategies for older adults—they simply need to include them authentically in their existing approaches.

The Path Forward

To effectively connect with this powerful demographic, healthcare marketers should move beyond old assumptions and show the rich variety of senior lifestyles. This means:

• Considering a layered approach: recognizing that seniors have different preferences and needs rather than treating them all the same
• Showing seniors as well-rounded people with many interests and passions, not just focusing on health concerns
• Leveraging video content on Facebook and YouTube to increase engagement
• Designing informative advertisements that respect seniors’ intelligence and decision-making capabilities
• Creating humorous content that includes, rather than alienates, older adults
• Building longer engagement funnels that accommodate seniors’ preference to research before purchasing
• Consider using senior creators—an emerging demographic in the influencer space—to foster deeper connection in ads

By addressing these factors, healthcare organizations can tap into the substantial buying power of a demographic that feels increasingly invisible in advertising—despite having an average net worth over $1.5 million and being more visible and active than ever in the digital world.

This article is featured in Media Impact Report No. 64. View the full report here.