Social media usage is common ground across age groups for US consumers, but that commonality masks many differences in the nature of their usage. New research sheds some light on the reasons US consumers in different generations use social media and their attitudes towards these platforms.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver discuss how baby boomers are aging in place in multiple aspects of their lives. He explains their digital adoption habits, their financial status and the new technologies they find important. He also talks about how young people are getting their news, how digital usage varies by age and what the new generational divide may look like.

In-store shopping is seeing a resurgence as retailers continue to provide consumers with convenient and exciting purchase experiences. And with the holidays approaching, it’s important for retailers to evolve their in-store strategies to encourage repeat shopping.

Boomers have extended the concept of “aging in place” beyond its literal meaning. In addition to staying indefinitely in longtime homes, many are sticking with Web 1.0 and hoping to stave off retirement. But there’s lots of change in their lives as well.

Americans are poised to spend $586.92 billion in retail ecommerce in 2019, with a year-over-year growth rate of 14.0%.

UK adults have reached peak media consumption, spending an average of 9 hours, 38 minutes each day with media. Time spent is shifting to digital channels, particularly to smartphones.

Time spent with media by US adults has nearly stopped growing as the gains in digital usage do little more than offset the declines in time spent with TV and other old media.

eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom tees up our latest US TV time spent numbers and breaks down key demographic trends. Watch now.

Email is the most popular method for internet users worldwide to stay in touch with retailers, according to a January 2019 survey from omnichannel retail management company iVend Retail. This tops the number of respondents who say they want brands to communicate with them on apps or through social media.

Gen Xers’ wearable usage is rising, albeit slower than it has in past years. By the end of 2018, 15.4 million Gen Xers will have used a wearable device at least once per month, up from 14.0 million in 2017.

If you’re still looking for a holiday gift for a parent or grandparent, a wearable device could be well-received. Americans 55 and older are the fastest-growing group of electronic wearable users in the US, according to eMarketer’s latest wearables forecast, largely due to the devices’ enhanced health features.

The number of boomers watching digital video on a monthly basis might not be as high as younger generations, but the 37.7 million who will do so this year are more likely to use computers and streaming services than their smartphones.

This year, 8.2 million baby boomers in the US will use a smart speaker. That's a 28.6% increase from 2017, according to eMarketer estimates.

This year, 169.5 million people in the US—or more than half of the population—will use Facebook, a 0.9% increase from 2017, according to eMarketer estimates.

Younger baby boomers are not a digitally clueless bunch, but a marketer cannot assume that they are as digitally active (and as mobile in their usage) as millennials and Gen Xers. Rather, they have their own distinctive ups and downs with digital.

Younger boomers are wealthier than Gen Xers and millennials. But with retirement—voluntary or involuntary—now on their horizon, many younger boomers are going to face new financial challenges for which they are not fully prepared.