YouGov Survey shows online increases importance for older people

Online access continues to play an increasingly vital role in the life of older people. Latest survey results conducted by YouGov on behalf of Age UK, which showed that the web is becoming an essential ingredient in older people’s well-being, a trend that can make marketers reshuffle their strategies to address silver surfers’ needs and interests more adequately.

The research revealed that 78% of people aged over 55 who go online consider that the Internet has improved their lives, while for 42% of elderly people, the world wouldn’t be the same without the Internet. For 23% of the respondents to the poll, being online has helped them to enhance their relationships with friends and family.

Alongside maintaining contact with people that they care about, elderly people use their new skills for other purposes such as making savings online, as identified by 44% of silver surfers. About one in three said that the web helps them to pursue hobbies and things they enjoy and 19% stated that being online gave them more independence.

Age UK also announced its Internet Champions for 2013, James Perry, 92 and Janet Tchamani, 55, who were selected by a group of experts, including writer, actor and technophile Stephen Fry. Perry and Tchamani have been given the task to encourage older people who have never surfed the web to give it a try.