Innovation from the Netherlands (Part 2)

I have seen a few different ways that technology has been used to make the process of care giving easier to the recipient and the giver. Most of them are not very good and never see the light of day.

In the Netherlands they have got it to work. The Dutch call it a Care Taker site. I think we would call it Care Giving.

Have a look for yourself and remember to use Google translate.

This is not an experimental site but one that is being used by all parts of the care system - including the equivalent of local authorities.

Well done Arjan in't Veld on another smart idea and equally smart implementation. Dick Stroud

Innovation from the Netherlands (Part 1)

A couple of weeks back I was in Amsterdam meeting Arjan in't Veld - the guy who I reckon is the country's leading expert on marketing to older consumers.

I have known Arjan for sometime and he always thinks outside the box. Unlike so many people in the ageing industry he is not prepared to keep rehashing old ideas.

His company was fed up with the usual portrayal of older people and decided to locate some more interesting people and imagery. The result is De Youngsters.

Thank heavens for Google Translate that explains that the book, that is resulting from the venture, contains portraits of Youngsters. On the basis of various pictures, the identity of the persons depicted. A photo of the favorite spot in the house and four favorite objects make the visual image completely. It is precisely the combination of these images reflect a wide variety of identities within a group.

Besides the photos, an overview of the brands they choose and places where they like to go. Here the parallel with youth, the Hipsters, visible. Each portrait is completed with the motto.

Take a look for yourself. I think it is great. Dick Stroud

Pfizer is definitely a company that 'gets it' about ageing

I wish I could attend the EU Summit on Active and Healthy Ageing a conference taking place in Dublin. Unfortunately, work gets in the way.

The organisers (Ageing Well Network) are good chums and they put on good events.

I was looking at the list of speakers and noticed that the main representative of the corporate world is a guy from Pfizer. Then I noticed that one of the sponsors is the Global Coalition on Aging.  Surprise, surprise - the speaker from the organisation is a 30 year Pfizer executive.

The company's name keeps popping up at conferences and events and in the press. This is not by accident but by design.

I think other companies might pick up a few tips from looking at how Pfizer behaves. Dick Stroud

Packaging - have your say on the saints and sinners.

The hopeless quality of so much consumer good packaging does more to wreck the customer experience than just about anything else. You have spent your money on the product - got it home and then have to fight to get access to the product.

Companies have to balance a lot of factors when designing packaging. Safety, security, appearance, attractiveness and the most basic of everything - allowing the person to open the product without resort to a knife, scissors or causing a coronary arrest.

I recently appeared on the radio to discuss the subject and was surprised at the depth of feeling that people have about the subject


I was talking about this issue with the people at Grannynet and they decided to see what their web site visitors thought about the subject. They even decided to offer prize! I have seen the initial responses and they are fascinating.

One of the things we are trying to identify is who does packaging well and who doesn't give a damn.

I thought it only right that I nominate my saints and sinners. The candidates in each category keep changing but this is what they are today.


The new beer packaging, used by most bottled beer manufacturers, is really difficult to lift from the supermarket shelf and difficult to extract the bottles. When I bought the ones in the photo, the lady on the checkout said " I hate these beer packs". It seems that lots of other customers find them frustrating. The packaging looks to be inexpensive but no thought has been given about its use by the consumer.


My saint is Finish washing-up tablets. Up until six months back the packaging was some of the worst in the industry. A brittle clam shaped plastic that needed a robust pair of scissors to open. This new packaging is a dream. It just proves that with a bit of thought, consumer goods companies can get it right.

If you have any thoughts about saints and sinners let me know. This is not going to be the last time I write about this subject. Dick Stroud

P&G is asking questions about its $5 billion-plus annual marketing outlay

Brandchannel has an item about P&G's decision to review (yet again) how it spends its ginormous marketing budget.

I have already commented about the company's attempt to overtly target the older consumer - some good, some OK, some not so good.

If the company spent a little of its advertising dollars on trying to improve the age-friendliness of the customer service of its main product lines, in the older countries (like the US), it would have infinitely more payback than trying to optimise the lastest social media service.

There you go. Giving one of the world's largest company free consultancy advice. What's the betting they don't listen? Dick Stroud